RAPID growth in the size and population of Sixmilebridge has prompted a renewed push to attract younger residents and newcomers into the community, according to the PRO of the Sixmilebridge Community Development Association and Tidy Towns.
Norma O’Neill became involved with the group almost by accident after contacting Sixmilebridge Tidy Towns about litter and dumping around forest entrances near her home.
“I had actually just been experiencing a lot of building at some forest entrances around the area. I’m a bit out of town in a townland called Cooleycasey and I would have made contact with the Tidy Towns first just to kind of hear about whether any grants were available or any place I could get pickers or bags. It was very innocent. It actually only started with a question about my own area outside the town and somehow I just got swept up in it”, the Sixmilebridge woman explains.
O’Neill outlines that the organisation has been in operation for more than 40 years and now faces the challenge of maintaining its strong volunteer base while attracting new members from a rapidly expanding population. Some of the group’s longest-serving members are now in their late seventies and approaching their eighties, making the recruitment of younger volunteers particularly important.
“I have noticed that some of the legends that are in the group, they’re not getting any younger. You can’t have people like that doing physical work. Whereas it’s quite a young population in the town. The population explosion that has happened in the last number of years is massive”.
With several new housing developments being constructed in and around the village, the group hopes to introduce itself directly to new residents and attract future members. “One of the aims we would have when the newest construction site on the Shannon Road is completed, we would be up to maybe three new developments where we want to get our campaign going. We want to drop leaflets and try to just introduce ourselves to people and get new members. We’re always looking for new members”, O’Neill highlights.
In terms of weekly activities, the organisation has also introduced a regular volunteer work programme during the spring and summer months.
“We launched a volunteers work night which happens from March roughly to the end of September. We launch kind of a very intense work schedule where we have one or two nights every week for weeding, picking up litter, watering the flowers in the heat we had, that kind of thing”, O’Neill notes.
In recent years, the group has placed a greater emphasis on sustainability and encouraging a circular lifestyle within the community. One initiative involves working with local butcher Jamie Keane to provide a community sharing stand for surplus produce.
“It started with just an apple sharing program, but then we had people with cucumbers or tomatoes”, the PRO explains. The stand allows residents to leave excess fruit and vegetables for others to take, with the initiative expected to return in the coming weeks and continue through to September.
Sixmilebridge Community Development/Tidy Towns or SCDA also works with other community organisations in the village such as the GAA and Bridge United AFC. As The Bridge continues to grow, O’Neill hopes the next generation of residents will help shape the community as it moves forward. O’Neill’s message to anyone looking to become involved in the community is clear, “We’re always looking for new members, we’d be delighted to have you”, she adds.
Membership of Sixmilebridge Community Development/Tidy Towns or SCDA is free and open to anyone. Members will be added to a WhatsApp group after joining where they can hear about planned activities and volunteer. The group are on Instagram @sixmilebridgetidytowns and on Facebook @smbcommunitydevelopmen
