Our Community Champions & Little Stars
Nominate
If you know a person or group who deserves the Community Champion Award or Little Star please let us know by emailing us at info@thesquare.ie. Please send a brief description of why they deserve this award along with your contact details.
Kayleigh Tuite
Little Stars – December 2018
Congratulations to our Little Star for the month of December – Kayleigh Tuite.
Kayleigh donated a total of 15 inches of her hair to the Rapunzel Foundation. The six year old also raised an amazing €1.7K to the Irish Cancer Society.
We would like to congratulate Kayleigh on being named December Community Champion and we wish her the very best!
Evelyn Williams
Community Champion – March 2018
Congratulations to our Community Champion for the month of March – Evelyn Williams.
Tallaght native Evelyn was this month awarded the Community Champion Award after she shot to fame and became a household name with her first audition on Ireland’s Got Talent. Her audition received a standing ovation and the clip has been viewed over 10 million times since judge Michelle Visage hit that Golden Buzzer.
Evelyn is well known now for her time on Ireland’s Got Talent all over the country but here in Tallaght she is known for much more than just that. Evelyn has worked for many years with many charities throughout Dublin and will always be seen with a smiling face as she greets members of the community daily.
We would like to congratulate Evelyn on being named March Community Champion and we wish her the very best for the future, we also hope to see her continue on with her successes!
Sinead Tighe
Community Champion – December 2017
Congratulations to our Community Champion for the month of December – Sinead Tighe.
Tallaght native Sinead Tighe was last month award the Tallaght Person of the Year for her work and devotion to her son Daniel and we here at The Square Tallaght are delighted to this month award her our Community Champion award.
Sinead is well known within the community of Tallaght for work around “Daniels Voyage”. Sinead is a devoted mother who is striving to overcome many physical challenges to give her son Daniel a fulfilled life.
We would like to congratulate Sinead on being named December Community Champion and we wish her the very best along with her son Daniel you are a worthy winner of our award!
Jigsaw Tallaght
Community Champion – September 2017
Congratulations to our Community Champion for the month of September – Jigsaw Tallaght.
Jigsaw Tallaght is a free and confidential support service for young people aged 12-25 who live in Tallaght, Rathfarnham, Templeogue, Knocklyon, Saggart & Rathcoole areas. They are based in the heart of Tallaght, near both the Square Shopping Centre and Tallaght Hospital in the Belgard Square Complex opposite Exchange Hall.
Jigsaw Tallaght work towards their goals of providing community-based help for young people’s mental health needs, tailored to each specific individual.
Thank you to all the team from Jigsaw Tallaght for all the work they do in the community you are worthy winners of our award!
Gary Roberts & Ben Gleeson
Community Champion – June 2017
Congratulations to our Community Champion for the month of June – Gary Roberts and Ben Gleeson. Both Gary and Ben are proud owners of local fitness bootcamp BGR Fitness.
The pair who will be familiar faces to the community of Old Bawn began 18 months ago in the local community school with just 15 members and also just hosting one class a week. Since that time they have grown, and now run an impressive four classes a week with approximately 70-85 members per class.
They have also donated many of their classes earnings to a variety of charities, including Pieta House and this year they were selected to host the warm-up for Darkness Into Light, in aid of Pieta House, in Marley Park.
Thank you both Gary and Ben for all the work you do in the community you are worthy winners of our award!
Darren Dillon
Community Champion – February 2017
Congrats to our Community Champion this month Darren Dillion. Darren is well known throughout the community for his successful fitness business Kickstart in Jobstown. He is also a local man and has over the past few months worked with many charities raising funds.
In December Darren took part in the Tallaght Talks in association with suicide awareness. He is also raising funds for The Laura Lynn Foundation by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. Also at the end of last year he took on a new role as fitness coach for Shamrock Rovers .
Thank you for all the work you do in the community Darren you are a worthy winner of our award!
Ann Hogg
Community Champion – March 2017
Last month Ann Hogg a much-valued member of our Customer Service Desk team retired after working an impressive 18 years. So who best to be awarded the Community Champion this month than her.
Ann will be a well-known face to many of you who visit the Centre. Originally from the inner city, Ann moved out to Drimnagh and grew up there. She’s married almost 40 years now and has lived in Tallaght the same amount of time too.
All here at the Square wish Ann all the best as she heads off into a new chapter of her life. Ann is a truly beautiful person inside and out and will be much missed by all the Square Management team, tenants, staff and all the customers who got to know her over the many years. Ann, we wish you all the best in the future and we hope you enjoy every minute of it.
It is a great privilege for the Square to present Ann with this month’s Community Champion Award for her dedication and professionalism in her role at the Customer Service Desk. Well done Ann…
Emmet Kirwan
Community Champion – January 2017
We want to congratulate local man Emmet Kirwan on being awarded this months Community Champion Award. Many of you will know Emmet for his role in Irish television cult comedy series Sarah and Steve, to which he not only started in but also wrote for.
Although this months award was for his work on his youtube video that became an overnight success called “Heartbreak” which was directed by Dave Tynan and features another Tallaght star Jordanna Jones, as a young sinle mother struggling to raise a child alone.
The short video clocked up well over 900,000 views in the first two days of it being uploaded. Congrats to you Emmet and keep up the excellent work
Stephen Stroughair
Community Champion – December 2016
Congratulations to our final Community Champion of the year Stephen Stroughair.
Many of you will know Stephen well in the area of Tallaght and if you don’t know him personally you will certainly know his home this time of the year. Stephen lives in the home that brightens up everyones evening, yes the ever popular house in Kilnamanagh that is lit up extravagantly each Christmas. Stephen puts in all the hard work for charities to which he raises much needed funds and of course puts a smile on all our faces as we drive by.
Congratulations on your award Stephen!
Al Porter
Community Champion – November 2016
We have struck up a great friendship with Al Porter over the last few years here at The Square Tallaght. His time on Living with Lucy before Christmas won over the hearts of the nation and it is for this we have awarded him our Community Champion award for December.
The 23 year old Tallaght man has seen his career go from strength to strength over the last year in particular scooping an IFTA, if that all wasn’t enough Al has been busy selling out stand up shows around not just Ireland but also the UK. He has become somewhat of a familiar face on our screens too landing broadcasting spots on various stations.
We are so proud of Al and of all his successes to date and we wish him all the best in his future endeavors. Congrats on your award of Community Champion Al you deserve it!
Vivian O’Hanlon
Community Champion – October 2016
Congratulations to our October Community Champion, Vivian O’Hanlon.
Vivian is a retired fireman but he still helps his community is so many different ways. He is a regular volunteer at Tymon Parkrun and a member and volunteer at Tallaght Athletic Club helping out for fundraising events, coffee mornings and club races.
Vivian has also volunteered at many of the Great Dublin Marathons over the years in all kinds of weather. He goes above and beyond to help those in the community and that is why he is our community champion.
Ireland’s Littlest Hero
Little Stars – September 2016
With Childhood Cancer Awareness month approaching, we chose Ireland’s Littlest Heroes to be awarded our Little Star Award.
The page Ireland Little Heroes was set up by Susan Brown shortly after her son Ceejay was diagnosed with cancer. She explained to us how she wanted to provide an information hub for parents of children fighting cancer. A one stop page with the aim of spreading childhood cancer awareness and highlighting the help available to families.
We want to congratulate Susan on her work with Ireland’s Littlest Heroes and of course on the Little Star award which will be awarded to the page which has brought so much help to many families out there who are struggling with the road ahead.
Community Champions – August 2016
INFORMATION COMING SOON
James Lumumba
Community Champion – July 2016
Congratulations to James Lumumba from Jobstown who is the winner of our July Community Champion.
James has been involved in a number of charity events including losing 12kg in 12 weeks in support of Autism for the Autism Support Group, and continued fundraising for charities like the LauraLynn Hospice. He is also well known within the community for his work with Suicide Awareness. Well done James!
Eimear Farrell
Community Champions – June 2016
This month we awarded our community champion trophy to the founder of ARTzheimers, Eimear Farrell, as she continues to make efforts to educate and inform about Alzheimer’s disease.
Eimear, from Killinarden, set up the social enterprise after years of working with the Alzheimer’s Society and noticing that people found it difficult to understand and communicate about the disease.
We think that ARTzheimers is a turkey noble initiative and we will support anything that can help cross the boundaries of this debilitating disease.
Congratulations Eimear, you’re doing fantastic work and we hope to visit one of your exhibitions soon!
Ann Carthy
Community Champion – April 2016
For anyone who was in The Square or the National Children’s Hospital last month you will have seen the wonderful ‘Easter Chicks’ at work, selling their knitted Easter chicken egg cosies to raise funds for hospital. The ladies work year round to make the little chicks in all colours and so we wanted to reward them for all their efforts!
We presented the Easter Chick’s organiser, Ann Carthy as our April Community Champion as she’s the one who gets all the ladies together once a week to knit everything from Easter chickens to baby outfits, dolls to Christmas decorations. This is the tenth year the group have devoted their time to making and selling knitted goods for the hospital and to date they have raised a staggering amount of nearly a quarter of a million!
Not only do the ladies make the goods, but they take turns to sell them at stalls from early morning to late in the evening. Their support has ensured that the children who stay at the hospital are afforded the highest level of support and care, through the purchase of vital updated equipment, the development of a specialised outdoor play area within the hospital, improved facilities for parents who stay with their children as well as providing art therapy for our young patients. Keep up the good work ladies!
The National Children’s Hospital is The Square Tallaght’s chosen charity.
Tallaght Parents Autism Support Group
Community Champions – March 2016
This month we have another very special winner of our Community Champion award, Tallaght Parents Autism Support Group. They were set up in 2010 to help support families affected by Autism and Aspergers Syndrome in South Dublin.
The group offer support to all parents with children with Autism with meetings in Killinarden Community Centre at 6pm on the first Thursday of every month and a children’s social group meeting in Fettercairn Community Centre at 3pm on the first Saturday of every month.
We think the group are so worthy of our Community Champion because they do much to help educate, empower and provide greater opportunities for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder to the community in South Dublin.
There is an Easter Egg Hunt Fundraiser on for the group taking place on Saturday March 26th in Corkage Park, Clondalkin at the cycling track. There will be prizes, face painting, an egg hunt and lots more for just €5 per child. The event runs from 11am to 2pm and snacks and drinks will be available to purchase on the day.
We hope you can help support this very worthy cause and it will no doubt be a fantastic day out for all!
Pictured: Ann Hogg, Customer Service at The Square and Lynn Byrne from Tallaght Parents Autism Support Group
Foróige Tallaght
Community Champions – February 2016
Another month is here and we have another wonderful Community Champion for February!
This month we were thrilled to award Foróige Tallaght, who work with 5,500 young people in the local area aged 10-18yrs and 450 Volunteers each year through volunteer-led Clubs and staff-led Youth Projects.
Congratulations to Foróige Tallaght, and keep up the good work!
Pictured: Monica O’Connor, Customer Service at The Square and Laura Kelly, Youth Officer at Foróige Tallaght.
Ross-Lee Fennell
Community Champion – January 2016
Our January Community Champion is 15-year-old Ross-Lee Fennell from Glenview here in Tallaght. Ross-Lee has made amazing efforts to help youths in the area with a number of anti-bullying initiatives and won the ‘One to Watch’ prize at the Youth Citizenship Awards with Foroige.
He is a 4th year student at Tallaght Community School and is currently on the prestigious Tenderfoot scholarship at the The Civic Theatre. Ross-Lee impressed us because of his positive attitude and go-getter approach and his aim to create a difference in the community of young people in Tallaght.
Another project he is working on at the moment is a magazine and app for young people and kids in the area to find local youth clubs and activities to engage with. Furthermore Ross-Lee was also awarded the Heart of Gold accolade at the recent Tallaght Person of the Year awards!
Congratulations Ross-Lee, we think you deserve our Community Champion award and hope you continue to make Tallaght a great place to live!
Simone Hiney
Little Star – December 2015
It was our pleasure to give the final Little Star award of the year to Simone Hiney from Killinarden. Simone, aged 8, is a thoughtful, understanding sister to all her siblings Jack, Sophia and Grace. Her parents Regina Turner and Vincent Hiney are so proud of her and her efforts to help them with Grace and Jack in particular as they navigate life through their medical and physical challenges of autism and cerebral palsy.
Simone also won the Heart of Gold award at the Tallaght Person of the Year Awards on November 20th and attended the ceremony with her proud parents. Congratulations Simone, we are so happy to name you our Little Star this month and hope you will continue to be the best sister in Tallaght!
DEBRA Ireland
Community Champion – November 2015
We are always looking for a worthy person or organisation to honour with our Community Champion Award and this month was no different. We presented our November award to the wonderful charity DEBRA Ireland, who work with children with EB – a skin disease that is distressing and painful and leaves the skin as fragile and delicate as butterfly wings.
Epidermolysis bullosa (EB) currently has no cure and is more about managing symptoms so DEBRA Ireland provides patient support services to those families affected by or living with the condition. DEBRA Ireland has played a vital part in the establishment of EB clinics in both St. James Hospital for adults and Our Lady’s Hospital for Children in Crumlin for a condition that effects one in 18,000 children in Ireland.
Judith Gilsenan from DEBRA Ireland (pictured) was happy to collect the award and the €100 that was donated to the cause. If you would also like to donate €4 to them, text BUTTERFLY to 50300. See debraireland.org for terms and conditions. Keep up the good work DEBRA Ireland!
Tara de Buitlear
Community Champion – October 2015
We were thrilled to award this month’s Community Champion Award to Tara de Buitlear, who has given so much of her time to the local community in recent years. Tara works with the Tallaght Community Council (TCC) who run Tallaght Person of the Year and Tallafest, which is always an event to look forward to in the summer.
Tara very modestly accepted the award and insisted that she wasn’t deserving of it, yet her humbleness is all the more reason to give it to her.
This is also Tara’s final year with the TCC so we couldn’t let her leave without highlighting her input to the community. Congratulations to Tara, we thank you for your commitment to the local community and think you are very deserving of this award.
Nicola Moore
Community Champion – September 2015
This month’s Community Champion is local woman Nicola Moore, one of the founders of VISIT (Voluntary Independent Service in Tallaght).
Set up last October, every night VISIT provide meals, sleeping bags, warm clothes and support to Tallaght’s homeless. The group gets no funding and raises it’s own money from donations by individuals, community groups and local businesses.
We thought Nicola more than worthy of the Community Champion award when we heard just how much she does to help.
Nicola told us: “VISIT started off last year when we knew there were people sleeping rough in The Priory so we came out one Thursday with food and warm blankets and then came back on the Friday then drove around all day Saturday and discovered there were a number of people sleeping rough in the old Gallagher’s factory on the Greenhills Road.”
VISIT are feeding between 15 and 18 people four nights a week and hand out sleeping bags, blankets, gloves and more. VISIT also provide information and support in accessing services.
Well done to VISIT and Nicola for all their help to the community.
If you would like further information or to help out VISIT, check out their Facebook page or call 085 788 5945.
Tom Kelly
Community Champion – August 2015
We were delighted to present our August Community Champion award to Tom Kelly from Aylesbury in Tallaght, who raised funds for charity by doing a 690km walk across Ireland this summer.
Tom raised the funds in memory of his youngest daughter Leah who sadly passed away in August 2013 from a cancer known as ependymoma. Tom said that he was honoured to be awarded and was happy that it would help gain more recognition for his cause Footprints For Leah.
Tom’s walk started on July 18th in Malin Head, Donegal and finished on August 2nd in Mizen Head in Cork. We gave Tom a €100 gift card and a plaque to honour his amazing efforts. Congratulations Tom, we think you’re a true hero! If you would like to donate to the cause log onto the Footprints for Leah Facebook page or the iDonate page of the same name at idonate.ie/FootprintsForLeah.
St Kevin’s Boys School
Little Stars – July 2015
We would like to congratulate the students and teachers of St Kevin’s Boys School here in Kilnamanagh who are the winners of our Community Champion award of June.
Students and teachers worked hard before the end of the school year to ensure their school was the one chosen as the winner of the 30 iPads up for grabs from Ireland’s RSA.
The competition which was based throughout social media saw pupils at the school participate in a video which then was viewed by many of you online. St Kevin’s received the most views online therefore seeing them win the 30 iPads.
Forth class teacher Emer Maher told us of her delight at win “We are absolutely delighted and want to thank all the local businesses for their great coverage and especially the Square because I know a lot of families will shop there and without them I don’t think we would of go all the votes that we needed. It’s great for the local school we have no iPads of yet so the kids are absolutely chuffed to get a whole set”.
The school also received a €100 Gift Card from The Square to which Emer said she hopes will be spent on some of the accessories to go with iPads.
Antony Dempsey
Community Champion – June 2015
Our Community Champion Award for June goes to local man Antony Dempsey. Antony was the man behind the organisation of Mason’s Big Shopping Day here.
He also suffers with Cystic Fibrosis but is aware of just how important these events are for not just the sufferers of CF but also their families.
Antony travelled to Gorey to meet little Mason and his family and get them settled into their limo for their journey with Garda escort to The Square for their special day of fun and shopping. Antony has helped organise many events over the years and we would like to thank him for helping us make Mason’s day here so enjoyable.
Along with Antony’s award, Square Management presented a cheque for €3,000 to Cystic Fibrosis Ireland on behalf of Mason. Congratulations on the award Antony and thank you again for all the hard work you have put in to this event and all you do on behalf of Cystic Fibrosis.
Gabby McDonald
Community Champion – May 2015
This month’s Community Champion Award goes to Gabby McDonald. Regular readers of InTallaght Magazine will be familiar with Gabby, but for those who haven’t heard of her before she is a 21-year-old local drag racer who drives a 300 mph, 8,000 bhp top fuel dragster in her chosen sport.
She is the first ever Irish Top Fuel Pilot and the youngest licenced female in Europe. As well as this she also holds the quickest licencing pass in Europe. Since she started racing at the tender age of 13 her rise to the top of her sport has been nothing short of phenomenal. At just 16 years of age she became the first female from outside the UK to win the Triple British Championships. Last year she put in an amazing performance to attain her Top Fuel Drag licence at the FIA European Finals at Santa Pod Raceway in the UK which is the home of European Drag Racing. This summer she will be moving to New York for a year to pursue her dream of becoming a professional drag racer.
Having competed already in America on the junior drag racing circuit, she ultimately aims to move over there long term as the sport is much bigger in the USA compared to Europe, with potential prize money for winning an event as high as half a million dollars.
Gabby is a great role model for young Irish female sportspeople and we wish her the very best of luck for her year in America and her dreams of becoming a professional drag racer.
Dylan Leon
Community Champion – April 2015
Our Community Champion Award this month goes to Dylan Leon. We met Dylan when his business idea ‘Laced Up’ gained him first place in the senior category of the Student Enterprise Awards, which The Square sponsored, at IT Tallaght in March.‘Laced Up’ is a trendy new way to keep your laces from coming undone and all at a fantastic price of just €2.99. He came to The Square to set up his stall and showcase his entrepreneurship recently.
The Coláiste de hÍde student will go on to represent South Dublin in Croke Park on April 22nd. Congratulations Dylan we wish you the best of luck!
Lynn Ruane
Community Champion – March 2015
We were delighted to award local Tallaght woman Lynn Ruane with our Community Champion Award for March 2015. Lynn has just been elected as Trinity College’s Student Union President, something that is inspiring and great news for the locality.
The achievement is even more impressive when you hear Lynn’s story of how she reached her goals.
Lynn, from Killinarden, is a single mother of two, who dropped out of school aged 15 when she became pregnant. With determination and commitment she has worked hard to get to where she is now.
Lynn worked in addiction counselling services from age 17, where she helped start a support programme for teenage heroin users in Killinarden, and also set up a drugs task force in Bluebell, Clondalkin.
She is now studying a four year degree in philosophy, political science, economics and sociology at Trinity, and will postpone her final year in order to take office as Student Union President. Lynn was surprised and delighted to receive the Community Champion award and hopes to make big changes next year at trinity for the students there.
We wish her the best of luck in her future endeavours!
Robbie Keane
Community Champion – February 2015
Our Community Champion for February is none other than our favourite local football player Robbie Keane who graced Tallaght with his presence and his on-the-field skills at Tallaght Stadium last month with L.A. Galaxy.
Robbie has come a long way from playing in Tallaght and Crumlin, and is the record scorer for the Irish national team with 65 goals since his debut in 1998.
Robbie had a fantastic year with an MLS Championship, scoring the deciding goal in the final, winning Most Valuable Player in the league and scoring a goal for Ireland that broke the all-time record for goals scored in European Championship qualifiers.
While in town last month Robbie visited Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin with his LA Galaxy teammates to present a cheque worth $50,000 from the LA Galaxy Foundation and Herbalife to CMRF Crumlin, the fundraising arm of the hospital. Robbie is an ambassador for CMRF Crumlin’s campaign ‘Give It Up for Crumlin’.
Robbie is a generous man, an enthusiastic player and an all-round nice guy in our opinion, and very much deserving of the Community Champion award this month. Congratulations to Robbie and best of luck for the coming year!
Paddy Holohan
Community Champion – January 2015
Our first Community Champion of the year is UFC fighter and Jobstown man Paddy Holohan.
Paddy has made a great start to the year with his very impressive victory over Shane Howells in UFC Boston this month. It was extra special to see him make a triumphant return to the ring after his unlucky defeat in UFC Nova Scotia near the end of last year.
Paddy made his UFC debut last summer in the O2 Dublin after being out of action for nearly two years with a back injury that required surgery. Not only did he compete that night in a new weight division he also worked the Dublin crowd into a frenzy when he beat his opponent in only three minutes.
A wonderfully positive and hardworking man, Paddy is a great role model for any young people looking to make their way in the world. He has brought great happiness to his community in Jobstown and it was wonderful to hear legendary UFC announcer Bruce Buffer refer to Paddy as “from Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland”.
Congratulations to you Paddy and the best of luck for the coming year!
Alexander O’Keefe
Community Champions – November 2014
Our Little Star award of December goes to Alexander O’Keeffe. On the 20th November Alexander was welcomed along to turn on the Christmas Tree Lights at The Square, while celebrating Santa’s arrival.
He has been in hospital since June and the trip to the Christmas tree lights was his first time out of hospital since he was admitted. His mother Diana hopes to have Alexander home from the hospital this month to celebrate his 7th birthday.
On his visit to The Square he enjoyed having his hair cut here and his nurse Catherine told us that he has been getting compliments on his hair ever since. We were told Alexander had “the best night ever”. Congratulations on the Little Star award Alexander and we hope to see you back visiting The Square soon!!
Padraig Thompson
Community Champion – October 2014
This month our Community Champion Award goes to Tallaght fireman Padraig Thompson. Padraig completed the Dublin Marathon last month to highlight the plight of those suffering through mental illness.
Padraig was among 11,000 people that took part in the annual marathon which was held here in the City Centre on the 27th October, but unlike other runners he ran with an added 40 KG child mannequin on his shoulders.
He explained how the idea first came about in the station as a bit of “banter” between him and his workmates and how amazed he was to see just how well received the idea was.
He was delighted with the help of other participants throughout the race that offered their support by helping to “take the weight off his shoulders”.
The reason behind this was to show to others how invaluable it is when friends and family members offer help to someone in need.
Together with Irish charity Suicide or Survive (SOS), Padraig raised not just much needed funds but also awareness that help, support and education is always available.
Congratulations to you Padraig and well done on your hard work!
Tallaght Youth Band
Community Champions – September 2014
Tallaght Youth Band has been awarded Community Champion this month for their continued success all over the world. Last month the Vikings finished in the top 10 of the 2014 Drum Corps Europe Championships with a pretty impressive score of 69.60.
It was unprecedented to see how the entire top ten went the extra mile. Such intensity, such power and so much emotion, The Vikings did not just Tallaght but the whole of Ireland proud to finish so high.
The band was founded in 1977 by Fr. Len Perrem and assisted by Pat McNally. It was originally known as the Priory Youth Band, subsequently changing to its present name. The band had many sections including Brass, Reed, Bag Pipes, Majorettes, Flag Twirlers, Drummers and Irish dancers and although the band haven’t retained the pipes and Irish dancers, it still has many different sections.
Throughout the year they take part in many festivals, parades and competitions. We here at the Square want to congratulate the whole team on their outstanding work. Well Done Guys!
Richard Dunne
Community Champion – August 2014
We are delighted to announce that our Community Champion for August 2014 has been awarded to Richard Dunne. Local hero Dunne returned to Tallaght this month with his QPR teammates to take on Shamrock Rovers in a preseason friendly.
While home he announced the sad news of his international retirement. He’s had an interesting club career. Having played schoolboy football in Dublin for Home Farm, Dunne joined Everton as a 15-year-old schoolboy in the 1994–95 season. In 2000 he joined Manchester City for a fee rumored to be in the region of £3 million. After nine years there he moved onto Aston Villa and then QPR to where he now plays. After an impressive 14 years and 80 caps for Ireland the Killinarden native has called it a day.
Dunne has provided something that Irish football has lacked for some time, a rock solid, Premier League standard centre half, a reassuring presence who gives confidence to those around him. It may be some time before we ever see a player like Dunne in an Ireland top again.
Our Community Champion is awarded a €100 voucher for the Square Tallaght, Richard has kindly donated his gift to National Childrens Hospital here in Tallaght! He is a worthy winner of the Community Champion Award and what a fitting way to thank him. He has been a loyal, brilliant servant and it will take someone special to replace him. From everyone at the Square Tallaght and indeed Ireland, thank you Richard.
Ciaran Duffy – Mini Messi
Little Star – July 2014
Our latest Community Champion award goes to Ciaran “Mini Messi” Duffy. Ciaran from Citywest plays for Shamrock Rovers U-10’s and has become a global sensation since appearing in the McDonalds World Cup advert. Ciaran was also the Star of our video that was set here in the Square. To-date it has had over 20,000 views on YouTube. Ciaran was also lucky enough to travel to Brazil where he had the honour of leading out the 2010 World Champions and reigning European Champions Spain against Chile in Rio.
Remember the name… Ciaran Duffy is set to be a megastar!
Tallaght Swim Team
Community Champion – June 2014
We are delighted to announce that our Community Champions this month are the Tallaght Swim Team. The group has experienced massive success over the past few months seeing their LC National Team which consisted of Antoinette Neamt, Brendan Hyland, Clodagh Flood, Joe Cassidy, Niamh Coyne and Nicola Neamt secure 9 National Titles.
All the Tallaght swimmers made it into the finals and semi-finals in their respective events. All these achievements along with many others have enabled the Tallaght Swim Team members to become worthy winners of our Community Champion award for this month. Well done to all involved at the Swim Team you are a credit to our community, let’s hope the success continues.
Holly Johnson
Little Star – May 2014
On the 26th April we had the lovely Holly Johnson visit us on the Square on Centre Mall to help raise funds for the Irish Cancer Society. Holly raised money for the charity by cutting off 14 inches from her beautiful hair. Holly’s hair was also donated to the Rapunzel Foundation.
We’d like to thank Carol and Peter Marks on Level 1 who styled Holly’s hair and gave her a beautiful new style. Also a big thanks to Think n Blink and InTallaght who also supported this event.
We are delighted to award Holly with this month’s Little Star Award… Well Done Holly!!
Strictly Luaralynn
Community Champions – April 2014
We are delighted to announce that our Community Champions this edition are a group of local charity fundraisers who recently raised over €34k for the Lauralynn Hospice, well exceeding their €25k target. The group organised a fantastic event, Strictly Lauralynn in the Ballsbridge Hotel on March 1st where over 550 people attending the night to support the 13 couples taking part, special judges on the nights including Lucy Kenney (TV presenter) and Adrian Kennedy (Radio Host).
9 of the fundraisers also went over to Barcelona to compete inthe Barcelona Marathon on March 16th. James said, “Thank you to all the fundraiser’s for their amazing work, all the volunteers Sean O’Riain, Joe Lumumba, Nicola Grehan, Kevin Rowe Events, TV3, our sponsors and each person who donated to and helped make this possible. And thank you to the Square for this wonderful trophy, thank you.” Well done to James and the rest of the lads and ladies who helped raise funds for the wonderful charity.
Eoin Keogh
Little Star – March 2014
Local Greenhills College Student 13 year old Eoin Keogh is the latest recipient of our Little Star award. Eoin took first prize in the recent South Dublin Student Enterprise Awards which were held in IT Tallaght in the Junior category. Eoin produced and sold over 500 Pens branded with the slogan “Write off Bullying” to raise awareness for an Anti Bullying campaign. Eoin is pictured with his teacher Maria Donoghue and School Principal J.J. Walsh.
Keith Doherty
Community Champion – February 2014
Keith Doherty is an 18 year old sprinter from Kilnamangh, who became one of the fastest people in the country when he broke the Irish Junior 60m record last month at the National Championships in Athlone IT. He has been a member of Tallaght Athletics Club since he was 8 years old. He works in JD Sports here in the centre and has been accepted for a Sports Scholarship to DCU in 2015.
On winning the award Keith said, “I’d like to thank the Square for this great award, I am truly honoured to be awarded with the Community Champion award. It’s nice to have all the hard work acknowledged.
Francis Genockey
Community Champion – January 2014
The first Community Champion award of the year goes to Francis Genockey for his amazing 42 years service to the Irish Wheelchair Association as a fundraiser for the charity. Through the years Francis has worked tirelessly to help fellow wheelchair users in this country. As well as his involvement with the IWA, Francis would also be very well known for his life long support of Shamrock Rovers. Speaking to InTallaght after receiving his award Francis said: “I’d like to thank the Square for taking such a great interest in their wheelchair customers and contributing generously to the IWA, it is very much appreciated.”
Tara Hamilton
Community Champion – December 2013
This month’s Community Champion award goes to Tara Hamilton who is a founder member of the Tallaght Parents Autism Support Group. When Tara’s daughter Kelly was diagnosed in 2010 Tara was shocked by how many people were dealing with the same issues she was but felt isolated. Although Aspire and Autism Ireland do a lot of good work nationally, Tara felt there was a need for a local group to help organise monthly meetings, trips to adventure centres, and swimming lessons amongst other activities. If you want more details about the work of the TPASG you can log on to their website at www.tpasg.ie.
Sarah & Eimear Ward
Little Star – November 2013
Our Little Star Award for November goes to twins Sarah and Eimear Ward from Old Bawn. Sarah was born Antasea, a form of Cerebal Palsy and ever since the girls were toddlers her twin Eimear has always looked after her. When they began to crawl first Eimear would push Sarah along. All the way through school Eimear looked out for her Sis and kept her involved in everything.
Eimear plays camogie for Thomas Davis and insisted that Sarah help out on the backroom team. A friend of the family felt that this sisterly bond was so special that she nominated both the girls for the Little Stars Award and we were only too delighted to present the trophy to these two very worthy girls, well done…If you know of anyone who deserves our Little Star or Community Champion Award please let us know in writing at the Customer Services Desk!
Noeleen Fulham
Community Champion – October 2013
The latest recipient of the Community Champion Award is Noeleen Fulham. She started her voluntary work in 2005, as an art teacher in Addiction Service Groups in Tallaght and Inchicore. She has painted and donated a wall of cartoon teddy bears to the Children’s Hospital in Tallaght, as well as donated paintings to the Millbrook Lawns Centre and the Capuchin Homeless Centre.
September 10 was World Suicide Awareness Day and Noeleen organized a Candle Light Vigil in Dodder Park. A beautiful, successful night unfolded and around 350 people turned up. There was music and poetry and she received great support from local groups including Teenline, all the local TDs, the Mayor and Bishop Eamonn Walsh.
Joe Prendergast
Little Star – August 2013
This month we have the pleasure of presenting Joe Prendergast with the Square’s Little Star Award. 10 year old Joe is currently writing his third novel and has donated the proceeds from the sale of the first two books of the Great Fragola Brothers trilogy to the Clinical Cancer Research Trust at St Vincent’s Hospital where Joe’s father Geoff lost his five-year battle with cancer last year.
Joe who has admitted to getting most of his ideas while on a trampoline is a great example of what can be achieved when you work hard. Good on you Joe from all of us at The Square.
His first two novels are available in pharmacies nationwide and also to buy or rent on emuink.ie
Tallafest Committee
Community Champions – July 2013
This month we are recognising the amazing work done by the organising committee of the recent very successful Tallafest, by awarding them the Community Champion award.
The event was a great success and this was all down to the tireless work that was put in by the organising committee TCC, over the weeks and months prior to the event. Such was the thoroughness of the committee that they even organised a heat wave to hit Ireland on the big day!
Tallafest was a two day event that highlighted all that is good in the local area, it was a showcase for all the local sports clubs to show their talents as well as local bands who entertained the thousands of visitors.
There are so many events throughout the country that simply would not happen if it were not for the spirit of volunteerism and sometimes we take these volunteers for granted!
Citywise
Community Champions – June 2013
The latest winners of The Square Community Champions Award Students from Citywise Education Centre in Jobstown.
The six lads recently represented Ireland at the Lego European Championships in Germany and did brilliantly to beat 52 teams from 34 countries around the world to win the Gracious Professional Award for their outstanding team spirit. The team already won the Irish title last January and their award in Germany capped off a year of very hard work, after school, most evenings, in the centre. A lot of the team are also studying for their Junior Certs and their dedication and commitment to the project they undertook and the way they represented the area deserves recognition.
Citywise Education has no direct statutory support from the State, and depends on fundraising in the community and a strong volunteering spirit.
The boys were very well supported by their mentors, who we also congratulate on their recent successes.
Tallaght Gardaí
Community Champions – May 2013
The latest winners of the Tallaght Community champions Award are the Tallaght Gardaí who took part in a charity cycle from Tallaght Garda station to Kilkenny.
“It was a great day in aid of a great cause. We had 45 people cycling along with another 15 people assisting us. We had a good few stops on the way down. I want to thank Sergeant Carmel Henry for organising food for everyone at Kilashee House outside Naas,” he said. “Our target is to raise €10,000 for the National Children’s Hospital, we are still collecting so if anyone would like to donate they can contact the station here in Tallaght. I would also like to thank all our sponsors for their kind donations. And also a very big thank you to our Superintendent Peter Duff and Inspector Ray Blake for helping us the best they could and pointing us in the right direction for sponsorship.”
Melissa Luttrell
Community Champion – April 2013
The latest recipient of The Community Champion Award is 17-year-old Mellissa Luttrell from Jobstown. Melissa, who is a Leaving Cert student at Mount Seskin College, came up with an idea to stage a concert to raise public awareness of teen bullying after learning of the tragic suicides of the two Gallagher sisters in Donegal, one of which is believed to have been linked to bullying.
Having been a victim of bullying herself Melissa feels great empathy for other teens also going through similar difficulties.
With help from her close friend and fellow Tallaght girl Catelyn Conlon she started putting the word around about her plans to create an event to highlight the problem. Other friends came forward and offered help and it was decided to donate all money raised to Aware and Teenline.
The concert takes place on Saturday May 11th in Jobstown Community Centre and Melissa’s father Mark Luttrell says a great night of music is in store.
“Acts appearing on the night include Ray Scully from The Voice of Ireland, Kenneth Usher from Britain’s got talent, Robby Dingle, Luke Clerkin plus a host of others. If there are any local bands who would like to come and join Melissa they can contact me on 087 362 4983.
“Tickets are available from Jobstown Community Centre and also from Melissa at Mount Seskin College and Catlyn at St Thomas’ senior school.”
Susan Kelly
Community Champion – March 2013
The latest winner of The Square’s Community Champion is Susan Kelly. Susan was nominated for the award by previous winner Bridie Sweeney for her work with the charity Saint Vincent De Paul through her running of their shop in The Village Square in Tallaght.
Prior to taking over at the Tallaght shop she worked in the St Vincent De Paul shop in Clondalkin for four years. Speaking at the award presentation Susan spoke of her delight in winning The Square’s Community Champion.
“It’s a privilege to be recognized for the work that I do as I really enjoy it immensely and it’s great that through the shop we can help people in the area who may be in need.
“The shop runs on donations from the public and all money generated in the shop goes back into helping local people who need assistance.
“We have 40 volunteers on board who share their experience and time in running the shop. We cover a large range of clothing, for both men and women, priced from €1.
“I’d like to thank everyone in Tallaght who supports the St Vincent De Paul and I hope we can continue to rely on their generous support in the future,” she said.
TJ
Little Star – February 2013
He is a very brave little boy that suffers from a rare and severe form of epilepsy called ‘Infantile Spasms’. An infantile spasm is a specific type of seizure seen in an epilepsy syndrome of infancy and childhood known as West Syndrome. West Syndrome is characterized by infantile spasms, developmental regression, and a specific pattern on electroencephalography (EEG) testing called hypsarrhythmia (chaotic brain waves).
The seizures primarily consist of a sudden bending forward of the body with stiffening of the arms and legs and dropping his head forward.
This makes it extremely hard for Tj to try walk as at any moment he could fall forward. He has over 100 seizures a day.
We recently spoke with Tj’s Dad Tony and he told us that they received great news from the surgeons in the States. Tony told InTallaght, “We are flying out to Detroit on Friday 22nd February. He is being admitted to the hospital there on Sunday 24th February for further testing and the work up for surgery. He will then have a couple of weeks of tests with the neurologists and the surgeon”.
Tony added, “His first surgery is planned for 7th March. If all goes well he will have a 2nd surgery on 13th March. In order for him to get this operation all the medical people have to agree to it. There has been loads of support for Tj in the community, with loads of fundraisers and sports events taking place. Ourselves at The Square half entered a team to compete in the upcoming 5-a-side Tournament taking place in the Postal Club on the Kiltipper Road.
Tj’s Pharmacist, Jennifer from Doc Morris braved the freezing cold waters recently and jumped into the 40 foot out in Dun Laoighaire and in doing so helped raise over €500. Well done Jennifer!
There is so many more events going helping to raise funds for Tj’s medical expenses. The whole community have really come together to help this brave little boy. Tony was very appreciative of all the support they have been receiving, “The people of Tallaght have been absolutely brilliant with their support, we can’t thank them enough.” For anyone who wants to keep up to date with TJ’s progress and to find out about events please keep an eye out on the Facebook page, TJ’s Epilepsy Journey.
Thomas Davis Ladies
Community Champions – January 2013
The club did Tallaght proud when they defeated their opponents Boherbue from Cork. Some of the team members, along with Niall Kelly, who is part of the management, accepted the award on behalf of the club.
Niall said that the victory was so important to Thomas Davis. “It will do a lot for the promotion of ladies Football in the club,” he said. Here’s wishing the club all the very best for continued success in 2013.
Ladies GAA Football is one of the fastest growing sports in the country with the numbers participating growing year on year. The victorious Thomas Davis team are leading by example and showing local girls that it is possible to compete at the very highest level in their chosen sport.
Jacob Keenan
Little Star – December 2012
Jacob’s Journey continued last week and flanked by his cousin Moo-Moo he had the honor of lighting up the Square and welcoming Santa to Tallaght. There were fireworks, Cheeky Monkey and a host of other characters on hand to welcome Santa but Jacob, the first recipient of The Squares Little Stars award stole the show!
Jacob’s Mammy Lynne who was with him on the big night was delighted that Jacob’s bravery was rewarded by the Square who have commissioned the Little Stars award to reward the bravery and outstanding achievements of young people in the Tallaght area.
There were fireworks and Christmas lights galore in the Square last Thursday night but nothing shone so bright as Jacob’s smile.
Lauren Byrne
Community Champion – November 2012
Local 18 year old receives our Community Champion Award for her work for Pieta House.
Lauren Byrne is the latest recipient of the Square’s Community Champion Award. Lauren who is 18, and from Springfield recently organised a fundraiser in Captain America’s for Pieta House.
Inspired by the high rates of Suicide in the area Lauren took it upon herself to do something about it. She persuaded local bands to play for free and through the medium of Facebook rallied the troops to attend. Local celebrities who attended included Shamrock Rovers players and members of the cast of Tallafornia.
Through her sports contacts, her father Paul played for Celtic and her brother Kurtis who currently plays for Ross County in the SPL, Lauren garnered some really attractive Sports Memorabilia including signed Celtic and Hibs Jerseys.
Raising over €2,500 Lauren is an inspiration to others and displayed great Community Spirit in organizing this event to help others and The Square is delighted to give her this award!
Lauren was delighted and surprised to receive the award, and when speaking to InTallaght said “although I didnt organise the fundraiser to receive personal recognition it is nice that the hard work has been rewarded.”
Kitty Raftery
Community Champion – September 2012
Kitty moved to the area four decades ago for a ‘nice pensionable job’ in the Civil Service but as the years went on she made her mark in her community in more ways than one. For the past seven years Kitty has been an integral part of the Senior Citizens’ Club, which is based in The Postal Club in Kiltipper where she does everything from organise events, holidays and days out to teaching aerobics and line dancing to over 100 members.
She is the lifeblood of the club according to Bridie who says that Kitty was the first person who sprung to mind when she decided to vote for the next Community Champion. Bridie said: “Kitty is the type of person who shows kindness to everyone. She is a lovely person who visits the sick and makes the days of those who come up to join in, in the club. She listens to people, she advises and for some she is the family member they may be missing. Kitty is that club and she is loved andappreciated by all. I am delighted she is being honoured like this.”
