ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT, MARY ROBINSON, ON THE OCCASION OF THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF EASKEY HOUSE
ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT, MARY ROBINSON, ON THE OCCASION OF THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF EASKEY HOUSE, CO. SLIGO
The official opening of this building for the service of the community in Easkey is yet another example of the determination of many rural Irish villages today, particularly in the West, to revitalise their fabric - eroded over the years as a result of the familiar and widespread causes of emigration. The smaller the village, the stronger that commitment clearly must be.
- Without the ongoing voluntary effort of local people working in partnership with the agencies of the state, it is certain that achievements such as the one we celebrate today would never become a reality.
- As villages go, Easkey is a small one - 400 households in the overall parish and a population of just 100 in the village itself. In spite of, or more likely because of, the fact that Easkey is small, much has already been achieved by the Community Council. The development of walks and gardens by the river, the erection of showers and dressing rooms for the many surfers who come here for the unique conditions that the area has to offer, the rebuilding of over 40 miles of dry stone walls surrounding the village and environs, the tasteful cobbling of local footpaths, and the recent provision of a long sought after visitor hostel, all are lasting testimony to the voluntary commitment of both the Community Council's members and the wider community.
- Easkey House itself, named democratically by local plebiscite, is the result of a five year development plan for the village which began in 1991, with a survey carried out by architectural students from UCD under Mr. Patrick Shaffrey. The stamp of youth on the project makes it all the more valuable as it now begins its future of service to the community.
- What was a derelict building since the 1970s now contains an information centre, a gift and craft shop and a coffee shop - facilities which the village has lacked until now. In tourism terms alone this facility will repay the community's investment even in the shorter term. The future of Easkey will be increasingly involved with the growth of tourism as an international industry.
- I am particularly aware, as a native of Ballina, just down the road, of how close our local Mayo and Sligo communities work together. Moy Valley Resources which represents the communities of eight local regions, has two Sligo areas - Enniscrone and Easkey - as members in a natural partnership.