'It’s time that we put Longford first and talked it up': TidyTowns volunteers commended for their success

Longford County Council members congratulated Abbeyshrule on winning a gold medal in TidyTowns and Longford Town who also took home a gold medal.

Councillor Seamus Butler kicked off the applause saying, “I’d like to congratulate the first-ever gold medal for Longford TidyTowns.

“It's been 22 years since it was founded in 2002 and we’ve got several bronze but just one silver and now to get gold I think it’s a fantastic achievement.

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“Sometimes we can’t see the wood from the trees when we’re here ourselves but when visitors come to the town they get a much more positive view than they did in the last 10 to 20 years.”

Councillor Mick Cahill then chimed in saying, “It’s great to see the support that TidyTowns are getting from the Local Authority and we need to encourage that more."

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Councillor Peggy Nolan then congratulated the TidyTowns winners and highlighted the importance of the win for Longford.

“All too often we are at the butt-end of bad news and criticism and antisocial behaviour and all that goes with it. It’s time that we put Longford first and talked it up.

“What my colleagues have outlined is very very special but what happened over the Halloween weekend was unbelievable and I’d like to thank all who were involved.

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“There were thousands of people on the streets of Longford and the streets of Longford have been maligned and talked down for so so long it's about time we talked Longford up.

“The TidyTowns, the gold medal and the other achievements throughout our county, what our young people achieved in the National Community Games all of this is positivity.

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“None of this could have happened without the community spirit and volunteerism that Longford is known for.”