Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce has expressed gratitude to Cllr Donal Grady for his commitment and contribution over many years of faithful service during a long and distinguished career in local politics.

The Chamber has wished him a very happy and healthy retirement and stressed that he can take life a little easier, secure in the knowledge that he has helped to make Killarney a better place.

“Cllr Grady’s decision to step down from frontline politics, after close on a quarter of a century of service, marks a real end of an era,” Chamber joint presidents Johnny McGuire and Pádraig Treacy said in a statement.

Paying tribute to the role he has played in so many facets of Killarney life, they said his commitment to many community causes was admirable and he leaves a real legacy of public service of which he and his family and supporters can be immensely proud.

“Cllr Donal Grady always put the welfare and the wellbeing of his town and its people first and his was a strong and influential independent voice for the people that voted for him, with such consistency and enthusiasm, in all of the elections he contested since 1999,” the statement read.

“He was approachable, courteous, willing to listen and always willing offer help and that’s the hallmark of a very effective local politician.

“When he wasn’t kept busy in the town hall in Killarney or in county buildings in Tralee, Cllr Grady was a familiar sight on the streets of his home town, meeting and greeting the people and keeping a close eye on the town he loved representing,” the Chamber statement added.

“Donal can reflect on a job very well done when he looks back on his contribution to his town and his county. He worked hard and he left his mark."

The Chamber said it is appropriate that Cllr Grady’s final municipal district meeting coincided with the turning of the sod for the new Killarney skate park which has always been a project very close to his heart.

The Chamber said Donal’s family has been a political force in Killarney for many decades with his late father, John, and his brother Sean also serving on the local council and that great tradition will now be carried on by the next generation.