Economic climate sees Coastcare chairman forced to step down
SEAMUS HAS TO EMIGRATE IN SEARCH OF WORK
Wednesday August 05 2009
THE FOUNDER of Bray's branch of Coastcare, Seamus Connor, is being forced to emigrate for work as a teacher and must step down as Chairman of the local organisation at the end of August.
Seamus started the voluntary group in 2007 after noticing a shocking amount of litter on Bray Head during the Good Friday procession up to the cross. There are now over 100 volunteers on the group's emailing list and the monthly cleanups are usually very busy days.
Since Seamus first set the ball rolling, there have been 22 cleanups with 729 large bags of litter collected. Each month they fill at least one skip full of rubbish ranging from beer cans to rusted bicycles, broken televisions and washing machines.
In June 2008, under Seamus' leadership, the group won the An Taisce Coastcare Group of the Year. In November of the same year Seamus took first place in the environment section of the National Volunteering Awards and just last May, the group won Bray's Civic and Community Endeavour award. 'It is with great sadness that I must inform you of my plans to emigrate to London in England and therefore will not be able to continue as Chairman of Bray Coastcare Group,' said Seamus in a statement.
'The reason for me moving is to work as a full-time Secondary School Religious Education Teacher in a very good Grammar School. If it was at all possible I would be staying here to teach in Ireland but unfortunately with all the disastrous education cuts here it would be impossible for me to find work in Ireland.'
He does intend, however, to return for as many cleanups as possible as flights are cheap and just an hour long. Seamus will step down in August, to be replaced by current Vice-Chairman Phillip Byrne.
'It remains to be decided what role I will play within the group but I can assure you that I will be involved as much as possible and that I will do my very best to make some of the monthly cleanups into the future,' said Seamus.
Meanwhile, keep an eye out for some new volunteers as the clients of Sunbeam House Services prepare to join the Coastcare ranks. They will conduct their own weekly cleanup with the help of Bray Coastcare and the use of their equipment.
Bray's Coastcare featured recently on an RTE programme called 'The Enforcers,' a series following people who protect Ireland's health and environment. The Enforcers is available on the RTE website until August 13.
The next cleanup will be this Saturday from 12 midday to 3 p.m. Volunteers will at Bray Harbour, beside the anchor monument.
