Offaly heritage heroes celebrated at awards ceremony

It was a very good day to be from Offaly at the 2024 National Heritage Awards last week with no less than four heritage groups from the county listed among the prizewinners! Two projects from Offaly scooped first and second place in the prestigious Water Heritage Day award category, while Lemanaghan Bog Heritage & conservation Group and Shinrone Heritage Group were also listed among the prizewinners.

Ballycumber Tidy Towns Group won the overall Water Heritage Day award for their 'Folly Tales and Treasure Trails' event, while The Heritage Boat Association and Inland Waterways Association with Waterways Ireland were runners up in this category with their 'A Boatman's Journey: Navigating the heritage of the Grand Canal' held in Tullamore.

In partnership with the Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO) the Water Heritage Day award recognises events which took place last August to celebrate local waterways and explore their importance to natural and cultural heritage.

Ballycumber Tidy Towns hosted “Folly Tales and Treasure Trails” on August 25 last along the River Brosna, celebrating community connections across Offaly. The event day featured foraging with Siobhan Lavell, biodiversity education, and river sampling with Ruth McKeever from LAWPRO, where children learned about water quality and river ecosystems. Kids also enjoyed a riverbank treasure hunt, followed by refreshments. The event included art workshops for children and young adults, including those with special needs, to create a flag symbolizing unity across Clara, Ballycumber, Pollagh, and Ferbane, where the Brosna flows through each community. The evening “Folly Tales” closed the event with music, storytelling, and poetry.

Lemanaghan Bog Heritage and Conservation Group were runners up in the Intangible Cultural Heritage Award (The Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh Award) for their project recording traditions and folklore of Lemanaghan.

The Lemanaghan group has described their local bog as a “living connection to our ancestors, a source of community pride, and a space of immeasurable cultural value.” They added that the national recognition of their efforts to preserve the rich traditions of the area has strengthened their resolve to “protect and share this heritage and ensure its enduring presence for the next generation.”

Shinrone Heritage Group won the County Award for their Shinrone Gown project, and renowned local heritage hero and Tullamore native, James Scully, was the winner of the national Heritage Hero award.

Over 70 events were organised across Offaly to mark this year's Heritage Week, which has been growing in popularity each year.