REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MARY McALEESE AT DÚN MHUIRE, NENAGH CO. TIPPERARY ON SATURDAY 4 JULY, 1998
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MARY McALEESE AT DÚN MHUIRE, NENAGH CO. TIPPERARY ON SATURDAY 4 JULY, 1998
I am absolutely delighted to be with you here in Nenagh this morning – and I am very grateful for the warm welcome of have received from the people of Nenagh. This isn’t my first visit to the town – but it is my first visit as President of Ireland – and I am delighted that you have decided to mark the occasion by asking me to unveil commemorative plaque.
For many people, Nenagh is a place which they pass through on their way south or north between the cities of Dublin and Limerick – and places further afield. But for the visitor who chooses to stop a while – and to take in some of the atmosphere of the town – and experience the warmth of the hospitality of the people of Nenagh – it is an enjoyable and an enriching experience. Nenagh’s status as the administrative capital and principal commercial centre for North Tipperary – coupled with its strategic location between in the valley between the Silvermines and the Arra mountains – and its proximity to Lough Derg – mean that it has been – since the early 13th century – a town with a definitive purpose – with a tradition of commerce and industry - and it is the home of the oldest provincial newspaper in the country – the Nenagh Guardian.
Today Nenagh is a town with a buzz – with people who are very active in commerce – in the arts and in sports – and with a vibrant industrial tradition – with a significant number of high-tech industries locating here in recent years. It is an outward looking town – twinned with Tonnerre in France – links at Local authority level with Ballycastle and with Moyle District Council - at Chamber of Commerce level with Irvinestown in County Fermanagh.
This historic building – recently purchased by Conradh na Gaeilge – is a focal point for people who are engaged in many of the social and voluntary activities of the town – being used by the Chamber of Commerce - Nenagh World Aid Charity - Conradh na Gaeilge – Naíonra - Aisterirí an Aonaigh - the Order of Malta - by the dancing and music school – and for musical evenings, exhibitions, poetry readings and book launches.
So as a centre of so much activity – and as a building with such a long connection with the lives of the people of Nenagh - it is a fitting place to record the first visit of a President. In unveiling this plaque, I want to extend warm good wishes to the people of Nenagh – for your future prosperity and progress – as your town continues to build on its strengths - that will see it continue to hold its significant position in the new millennium.