Looking back: The Valley Committee
Sabina has all but one name, from back left John Chapman, John Domican, Jim Collins, Brian Keyes; and (front) Noreen Lynch, Sabina's dad John Reddy, and Bob —? If anyone has that last name, it would be nice to know.
(UPDATE: He is Bob Waugh, manager of Sallymount Stud. Thanks to Peter Moloney for the information. Correction made to original information.)
The late Jim Collins took on the job of raising funds for the park development and came up with a number of fundraising ideas, including waste paper recycling collections, and the innovative and very successful series of 'Lord Mayor' competitions, through which candidates earned 'votes' from financial sponsorship.
These raised tens of thousands of pounds, which enabled the Valley Committee to clear, level and landscape the park that today is almost taken for granted by many of today's Kilcullen residents. Jim's activities at the time earned him the local nickname of 'Mr Valley'.
The park was opened in 1978 by Sylvester Barrett TD, Minister for the Environment. The photo above was taken a little prior to that, as the commemorative plaque is not yet installed.
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