Drum Village Goes Wild

Monaghan Post

THIS week saw the official opening of Drum Village’s Wildlife Park by the Mayor of Co Monaghan, Gary Carville.

The project is the brainchild of the Drum Community Development Association. The wildlife park is located on the shores of Drum Lough and close to a recently completed car park at the lough.

Barbara Stewart, Vice-Chairperson of Drum Development Association welcomed all present and outlined the origins of the wildlife park. She paid particular tribute to Angela Graham who had pioneered the project and to the staff of the Rural Social Employment Scheme operated under the Cavan-Monaghan Rural Development Co-Operative Society Ltd. She also thanked the Monaghan County Council led task force on Peace & Reconciliation for the funding allocated under the Peace II Programme.

Speakers included Mavis Magee, the County Manager Mr Nelson and the Mayor. Mayor Carville congratulated the Drum Development Association for their foresight in creating the wildlife park out of what was waste ground.

Mayor Carville praised the children and teachers who had played such an instrumental part in the creation of the new amenity. “This is you space, your piece of creativity. I urge you all to look after it, learn from it and use it to learn, to grow and to relax”, he said. Cllr Carville went on to highlight the role which the environment plays in terms of heritage preservation.

“Quite often, we think of heritage in terms of buildings, traditions and written works. True, they are part of our heritage but so too is the flower and fauna, the wildlife and the general environment we live in. This is what makes us what we are in our own habitats, especially here in rural Ireland. This heritage is especially visible here within the park but also from looking around us at the rolling drumlin landscape of County Monaghan.

“This is truly a gem, hidden away in the geographic periphery of our county and you have enhanced it by your combined efforts”, the Mayor said. The Mayor went on to say that the Drum Development Association deserve full praise for all their work for the village of Drum and this latest addition was just one such example.

Monaghan County Manager, Declan Nelson, was fulsome in his praise of the initiative. He was especially grateful to have been invited and he praised the work of the local community in the re-generation of the village and surrounding areas. “It was great to see the young people involved to such a degree”, he said. The County Manager went on to say that the Council was pleased to be associated with the project and assured the local community of its support in the future, including the tidying up of the nearby water treatment plant surrounds.

Representing Drumcorrin National School, Mavis Magee, said that the involvement of the students was a major addition and help to the work of the school in providing environmental education to the youth of the area. She complimented all involved and assured them that it would be beneficial to all.

FG County Councillor for the Clones Area, Heather Humphries, said the park was a credit to all involved in its creation and was a wonderful example of how a community can learn how to protect their local environment.

Also in attendance were representatives of Cavan-Monaghan LEADER and the Monaghan Community Network as well as many locals, including the children of Drumcorrin National School.

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