Larchville/Lisduggan Residents’ Association is flying high having been selected to represent Waterford in this year’s all-Ireland Pride of Place awards.
The association was put forward by Waterford Council having won the Mayor's Spick and Span awards last year. The Council said they were a worthy entry and the community had gone "from strength to strength over the past few years and are driven by a constant and unique pride in their community or as they would say ‘parish’".
Stressing the 'parish feel' when WLR news visited the area on Tuesday, local councillor John Hearne said he wouldn't live anywhere else:
"This is a great place to live, we have a lot of people coming back who bought houses outside the parish, and are coming back buying houses here now. It's very hard to get a council house here now".
John says a large part of the area's appeal is the brilliant work done by volunteers in clubs and organisations throughout the area for generations from the boxing club to the youth club and soccer club: "they all have great pride in the place and all they all magnate towards the parish ...and we're very proud of it."
The resident's association has grown in recent years, and now encompasses Manor St John. Arunas and his wife Illona have been living there for the past three years and said getting involved in the association has been a lovely way to get to know people in the community:
"We're meeting the people we never met...shovel to shovel we go shoulder to shoulder digging the place up, planting flowers and everything. We meet so many people we wouldn't meet otherwise."
The fruits of their labour are clear to see in pretty pots, planters and beds all around the estates.
But it's not just gardening the association gets involved in. Recently following a request from Francis Court resident Gus Fitzgerald, volunteers painted the bungalows which are home to around 15 elderly residents. Flowers were planted and residents are delighted with a bench from the Deise Men’s Shed. Gus says it means residents can now come outside of their doors and sit on the benches to have a chat.
"Everybody here now is living on their own, they have nobody...with the help of the lads here (the association) I was able to get them out (to sit on the benches) now they're coming out and they're starting to talk to one another and that in itself is a blessing," Gus said.
The impact the association has had on residents like those of Francis Court will undoubtedly be taken into account by the judges as they pick their Pride of Place winners next month.
Secretary of the residents association Veronica D'Ambra says they've already been interviewed by three judges via Zoom where they were quized about how they've dealt with the disadvantages in their area. She said everyone knows they've had issues in the past with anti social behaviour, but they're working to turn the area around:
"in all estates everybody has a little bit of something - we don't have a negative impact, we want to focus on the positive the whole time" Those views were expressed to the judges who Veronica said seemed "impressed".
The residents were also keen to thank the local businesses in the area who give them great support and Waterford Council for helping them progress a number of initiatives.
And their work is far from done, Gus has his eye on an unused small community centre in Francis Court which he wants to see back in use. With the help of Veronica and all the team, no doubt they'll achieve that goal eventually too.
