The
origins of the council are to be found in the Dalkey Ladies Club in
late 1973 when it was decided that a community council was necessary
to help bind the diverse organisations in Dalkey into a coherent and
vociferous unit to represent the population of the town. A Steering
Committee was formed with Mrs. Doris Smyth, as Chairman and Mrs. Judy
O’Mahoney as Secretary. The purpose of the Steering Committee
was to investigate whether or not there was a need for the creation
of a community council. At the time, there were many young families
in the area and many of the young mothers were keen to integrate into
the town. This led to an enthusiastic effort by all concerned to get
things moving. It was also decided to draft a questionnaire and seek
the views of the people of Dalkey on what they saw as the purposes of
the Community Council. This was circulated to every house in the area
and repeat visits took place until the completed forms were returned.
Meetings also took place with councils in Kilbarrack and Clondalkin.
In the Kilbarrack case, much appreciated help was received from a young
Dr. Michael Woods (later a T.D.) The basic concept of the community
council in Ireland was run on the ideas of Muintir na Tire which, in
turn, was started by Canon Hayes in Co. Tipperary in the 1940s.
Following
the return of the completed questionnaires, an election was held to
elect representatives to the council who would be representative of
various organisations as well as the geographical areas in Dalkey. A
brief mention was published in the Irish Times and this led to a letter
from President Erskine Childers offering to assist the newly formed
council in any way he could. Consequently, President Childers formally
opened the Community Council at the inaugural meeting which took place
in the Sports Centre and more that 500 people attended. A reporter from
the Irish Press attended and an article was published together with
a photograph. The first Chairman was Mr. Peter Northover, Vice-Chairmen
were Mrs. Doris Smyth and Mr. Martin Kennedy, Secretary Ms. Mai Kelly,
Assistant Secretary Ms. Eithne Dooge, Treasurer Mr. Robin Budd, P.R.O.
Mr. Harry Latham, Assistant P.R.O. Mr. Richard Blake. In the same week
as all this was happening, tragedy struck Dalkey with the death in a
house fire on Carysfort Road of 11 members of the Howard family. This
prompted a call for support to all organisations in the area and helped
to establish the Community Council as a worthwhile entity.
Shortly
after the beginning of the council, it was decided to publish a monthly
‘Newsheet’ which quickly became the Newsletter we know today.
The first issue was published in April, 1974 and it is clear from the
archive copies of these publications that the basic structure of the
present council was forming at the very beginning with sub-committees
being started for Sports, Planning/Environment, Newsheet, Social Services,
Garda Siochána, Social Services and Cultural Interests
The
new council was most fortunate to get Dun Laoghaire Corporation to purchase
Epworth Hall on Rockfort Avenue for the use of the Community Council.
However, a subsequent decision was taken by the Community Council to
return it to Dun Laoghaire Corporation who subsequently sold it for
use as a private residence.
In
October, 1974, a competition was announced for a new logo for the Community
Council. Community events continued much as they do today with many
organisations mentioned in the subsequent newsletters, a reflection
of the multitude of activities catered for within the area over the
years. Among the most popular activities were guided historical walks
with Mr. Harry Latham around different parts of Dalkey.
back
to top
