It was a golden moment for STT members who attended the National Tidy Towns Awards ceremony on November 1st, when Swords appeared on the screen amongst the names of gold medallists for the first time.
It was the culmination of twenty years of incredible effort by dedicated volunteers. Back in 2004, our group was formed in response to the 2003 report by IBAL (Irish Business Against Litter), which had listed Swords as one of the dirtiest towns in the country.
Amongst our group’s representatives at Croke Park this year was Matt Cullen, who has been a STT member since its foundation, and a volunteer with various groups over the past 50 years.
This year STT was highly commended in the Circular Economy Award. Present at Croke Park was member, Ramune Kuzminiene, who in May, 2003 launched STT’s first clothes swap. This has run successfully every month since then. The occasional seed and plant swaps are also very popular with the public.
That afternoon, in the Whiskey room at The Old Schoolhouse in Swords our members gathered. It was time for celebration. It was wonderful to finally achieve Gold after winning 6 Silver Medals in succession.
We were well looked after by Willie, Manager of the Old Schoolhouse and his lovely staff. As a special treat, long-term member Georgy Hughes baked a delicious cake in honour of the occasion.
Not being ones to rest on their laurels, our group was back in action the following morning.
Swords Tidy Towns 