Irish Water Safety honour for Killeen

NORTH Clare man and newly selected Minister for Defence, Tony Killeen was last weekend named a Life Governor of Irish Water Safety.
At an awards ceremony in Ennistymon last weekend, he was presented with the Irish Water Safety Life Governor Award.
According to Lieutenant Commander John F M Leech, chief executive of Irish Water Safety, “Minister Killeen was outstanding in his support of promoting water safety while a Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. He made a significant contribution to the promotion of water safety and the reduction of the number of drownings in Ireland.”
The award, which includes a vellum and medal, was presented to Minister Killeen by Frank Nolan, chairman of Irish Water Safety at the Falls Hotel, Ennistymon on Saturday.
Minister Killeen was Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government from June 2007 to June 2008. While Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government, he had special responsibility for Irish Water Safety, the voluntary/State body concerned with the promotion of water safety awareness.
“Albeit that Tony Killeen had responsibility for the period of one year, during that year his commitment and dedication to Irish Water Safety and the humanitarian work it undertakes at both national and international level was exceptional. He was always available to discuss issues of administration that arose on many occasions throughout the year and he took time out from a busy schedule to meet with volunteers at various functions and ceremonies around the country. It is no accident that Irish Water Safety has its roots in County Clare and furthermore that Minister Killeen hails from Clare, with an exceptional understanding of the seas and the dangers associated with it. Therefore, that he should be so supportive of Irish Water Safety and its humanitarian goal of saving life from drowning is understandable,” the Minister’s citation read.
Liam Griffin, water safety development officer with Clare County Council, believes Minister Killeen is a very worthy recipient of the award.
“Minister Killeen is most deserving of the award. He was an excellent minister in charge of water safety and certainly water safety progressed significantly under his stewardship,” Mr Griffin stated.
Mr Griffin commented on the significance of the honour.
“This is a very prestigious award and a tremendous honour for the person who receives it. It is not given out lightly and there could be people working in water safety all their lives who never receive this. For a Clare person to get it is a great honour because water safety started in Clare over 50 years ago in Spanish Point with people like the late former president Patrick Hillery, who was very involved in water safety in his early years.
“It is particularly significant for Minister Killeen to get the award because water safety was founded in Clare by a retired garda named Harry Gillespie,” he concluded.