Roscrea's Anne Keevey recognised as one of Ireland's most inspirational people

Roscrea's Anne Keevey founded Age Friendly Roscrea - a group so successful it has been held up as a blueprint for how all towns in Ireland should plan ahead for the inevitable growth in our national aged population.

Age Friendly Roscrea, who are based in the former Roscrea Courthouse on Gaol Road, have played a pivotal role in already transforming Roscrea's streetscape and entire approach to planning for the future - a future where the number of older people will have grown dramatically and as a result the town's infrastructure will have evolved to accommodate them.  This change has mostly been driven by one indefatigable champion for the older community - Anne Keevey.

Following a nationwide search to uncover Ireland’s most inspirational people, Anne is now celebrating after being named an Inspirational Hero in the Gala Retail and Virgin Media Inspiration Awards.

The Awards shine a light on individuals who make Ireland a better place with their selfless acts and inspirational deeds and Anne stood out due to her hard work and dedication in setting up and continuing to Chair the Age Friendly Roscrea movement.

Its legacy is to have the information the elders need to lead healthy and active lives, to continue to learn and develop. During the pandemic, Anne organised daily calls to people living alone, delivered meals on wheels and goodie bags to the elderly to help keep spirits up when morale was at an all time low.

Inspirational people from across Ireland were nominated for the Gala Retail and Virgin Media Inspiration Awards, with 26 inspirational county heroes being named from the hundreds of entries received.

Commenting on the quality of the entries, Gary Desmond, CEO of Gala Retail said: “We’re a national brand with a local focus, which is why we’ve partnered with Virgin Media to delivering a national platform to shine a light on and reward the amazing people who are making a real difference to Irish society. 

 Gary continues: “Now in their third year the Inspiration Awards pay homage to people from all across Ireland who play their part creating a better country for us all. Operating in communities throughout Ireland, Gala Retailers have seen first-hand some of the great work that people have been doing and we are proud to have been able to recognise some of these inspirational individuals.

"We were overwhelmed by the level of nominations we received and Anne along with the fellow inspirational heroes are true examples of people who are making Ireland a better place for us all.”

2021 marks the third year of the Gala Retail Inspiration Awards created as a way of celebrating the selfless acts and inspirational deeds of people in Ireland who are making the country a better place.

Marian Mattimoe from Mayo was named as Overall Inspirational Person at the Gala Retail and Virgin Media Inspiration Awards.

As a community retailer with 175 convenience stores nationwide, Gala store owners often hear of inspirational stories in their local communities, and this year’s Gala Retail and Virgin Media Inspiration Awards have elevated Ireland’s unsung heroes onto a national stage, giving these inspirational people the recognition they deserve.

Gala Retail has gifted €26,000 of prizes to the winners with the 26 county winners being awarded with €1000 hotel getaways across Ireland. For further information, see www.gala.ie.