Former Councillors Honoured by Present Local Authority

Two former members of Wicklow County Council who between them chalked up 47 years of service to their constituents were honoured by the local authority this week.

They were Fine Gael man Vincent Blake from Tinahely and Kevin Ryan from Carnew who represented the Labour Party. Kevin was

(From left) Kevin Ryan, County manager, Eddie Sheehy and Vincent Blake

first co-opted onto the Council in 1968 while Vincent Blake came on board in 1976. Kevin was narrowly defeated in the 1999 local elections while Vincent retired and has now been replaced by his son Vincent.

Paying tribute to both men, Council Chairman, Jimmy O'Shaughnessy said that Kevin and Vincent served the people of the county and particularly those in South Wicklow with distinction.

`They have left many legacies including the Tinahely/Carnew regional water supply scheme, Kerry Co-Op, Carnew Day Care Centre, Carnew sewerage scheme, Tinahely Fire Station and many more facilities enjoyed by residents today', said Cllr. O'Shaughnessy.

County Manager, Mr. Eddie Sheehy remarked that the two men served through a time when a lot of things that are taken for granted today did not exist including membership of Europe, the National Roads Authority and representation payment to councillors. `These men were on call 24 hours a day for very little financial reward', he added.

Kevin Ryan said that he enjoyed his time on the Council but he remembered that at the beginning he had to convince officials that places like Carnew, Tinahely and Shillelagh were in Wicklow and not in Wexford because they had been largely ignored.