Creeslough Together initiative announced with €500,000 funding over three years

Funding of €500,000 has been granted for the Creeslough Together Initiative (CTI).

The CTI will help support the recovery of, and sustained growth of the Creeslough community in the coming years in the wake of an explosion at the local service station last October that saw 10 people lose their lives.

James O’Flaherty (48); Jessica Gallagher (24); Martin McGill (49); Catherine O Donnell (39) and her son James Monaghan (13); Hugh Kelly (59); Martina Martin (49); Robert Garwe (50) and his daughter Shauna Flanagan Garwe (5); and Leona Harper (14) all passed away following the tragedy.

The Initiative will be delivered over a three-year period and will work with and have ongoing consultative input from the wider Creeslough community. The project will be based on Creeslough Main Street and will employ a number of key staff including a full-time Community Links Worker, a part time Administrator and a part time Youth Worker.

The work of the CTI will be rooted in the principles of both Community Development and Trauma Informed Community work. These twin track approaches will build on the ongoing work of the key support agencies and the local community response.

Announcing the funding, Minister for Community Development and Charities, Joe O’Brien said: “I am pleased to announce this funding for the Creeslough Together Initiative, which will help support the community as it recovers through the coming years. The 7th of October marked a dark day for the people of Creeslough, and the road to recovery will be a long one. Since the awful tragedy, I have visited and engaged with key members of the Creeslough community to see what supports my Department could offer to help the community going forward. I trust this Initiative will mark an important step towards brighter times.

“The initiative will be hosted locally by the Creeslough Community Association, with support from the Donegal County Council and Local Development Company. Over the coming three years, the CTI will work closely with the wider Creeslough community. It is important that the community itself decides on the way forward, and that’s why this group, made up of local people, are going to gently lead the way for the people of Creeslough and all those affected by the tragedy.”

“I want to acknowledge and commend the work carried out by all of the various local individuals and groups, who have been steadfast in their support of the community.

“The work of the organisations in the community; the Creeslough Community Association, the Local Development Company and Donegal County Council, the Red Cross, An Post and more, has been instrumental in delivering supports and trauma-informed care and training to the people of Creeslough in the aftermath of the tragedy.

“The work of the CTI will build on the strong foundations laid by the work of these people and organisations. I know this work will be challenging and will take time, that’s why I am committing support for 3 years. I’m delighted that the local authority and Donegal Local Development Company are fully on board as well, to provide guidance and support.

“My ambition at the end of this project is to see a community which will have taken steps on the journey to recovery together. The community will have access to information, supports and services within their own trusted community resources and via the Creeslough Plan 2024-2027+, which will see enhanced community infrastructure supports available to all within the community.”