Golden Glaslough! Village Officially Recognised as one of Europe’s Best

Posted on By monaghan

The picture perfect village of Glaslough put Co. Monaghan firmly on the European map on Friday, 15th September, as nineteen delegates from the village, accompanied by staff and Cathaoirligh from Monaghan County Council, descended on the spa resort town of Podčetrtek, Slovenia for the announcement of the results of this year’s prestigious Entente Florale Europe awards, and came home with a Gold Award, the highest accolade in the competition.

Group Award
“A proud moment for Co. Monaghan. The Glaslough delegation pose with the bronze plaque which will be erected in Glaslough village, next to the plaque commemorating the village’s win of the National Tidy Towns Title in 1978. Seated front are (l to r): Gareth Corrigan (Chair Glaslough Tidy Towns), Ann McGhee (Mayor of Glaslough), Cllr Paudge Connolly (Cathaoirleach Monaghan MD), Cllr Cathy Bennett (Cathaoirleach Monaghan County Council, Louise Duffy (Projects Co-Ordinator Glaslough Tidy Towns). Back row (l to r): Irish Jury members Dr Christy Boylan and Eamon de Stafort, Donal McElwain, Monaghan Municipal District Co-Ordinator, Melanie Colleran, Noel Keelan, Patricia Murphy Thom, Dennis Flannery, Monaghan County Council Horticulturalist, Claire Cunningham, Maeve Treanor, Noel Kennedy, Helen Kennedy, Irene Gormley’s hair!, Bridie Comiskey, Siobhan Cheung, Ciaran Teague, Marie Colleran, Susan Shipley, Carol Lambe, competition Co-Ordinator for Monaghan County Council, Liz Morrough, Jamie Duffy. (missing from photo: Packie McGhee, who’d wandered off to get his hair and make-up done)”

The competition is run by the European Association for Flowers and Landscape, which is an international non-profit association, which aims to promote social and cultural development to enhance Horticulture, Tourism and Environment. They do this by encouraging actions that foster a better quality of life for urban dwellers, and their main tool for so doing is the annual Entente Florale Europe competition, which is run in 9 countries. Participating towns and villages are visited by an international Jury during the summer, awarding marks against set criteria.  Depending on the marks awarded, each participating village or town is then awarded either a bronze, silver, or gold merit, and given a rather substantial plaque to display in their town.

“Gareth Corrigan, Chairman of the Glaslough Entente Florale Steering Committee and Chair of Glaslough Tidy Towns, and Louise Duffy, Projects Co-Ordinators for Glaslough Tidy Towns, accept the bronze plaque which accompanies the Gold Award from Chairman of Entente Florale Jury, Rudi Geerardyn. Also in the photo are (l to r): Irene Gormley, Claire Cunningham, Cllr Paudge Connolly, Cathaoirleach of Monaghan Municipal District Council and Cllr Cathy Bennett, Cathaoirleach of Monaghan County Council”

Ireland’s entries are nominated by the National Tidy Towns unit in the Dept of Environment each year, with only two towns or villages representing any participating country. Abbeyleix in Co. Laois, Ireland’s other representative, was awarded a Silver merit, and won the President’s Award for Biodiversity for their wonderful bog conservation work.

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