A special event to thank volunteers for their dedication and work throughout the pandemic will be held virtually this Thursday.

Taking place at 7pm, Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council, Cllr Patrick Connor Scarteen, will host the event for the Community Response Forum who provided non-emergency supports, and advice and guidance to communities around the county.

The online event, which will be available on the Kerry County Council homepage, www.kerrycoco.ie, Council Facebook page and Kerry County Council YouTube Channel, aims to recognise the efforts of everybody involved in the Community Forum since it began in March 2020.

The Kerry Community Response Forum is a multi-agency group of statutory and voluntary organisations which has been coordinating the community response to the COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020. It includes representatives of Kerry County Council, the HSE, An Garda Síochána, local development companies, Kerry Volunteer Centre, Kerry GAA, Local Link Kerry, Kerry Public Participation Network, Kerry Age Friendly Network, Citizens Information, St Vincent de Paul, Alone, Irish Red Cross, Kerry Civil Defence and other local voluntary groups.

“The Kerry Community Response Forum was one of the first to be established in the country, in recognition of the need to support vulnerable individuals and households in the county,” Cllr Patrick Connor Scarteen said.

“It provided a single point of contact for vulnerable people and those in need of assistance, and through the Community Response Forum, they were put in touch with local community groups and organisations to help them out.

“We are now seeing restrictions ease and society reopen, and hopefully matters will continue to improve over the coming months. This is why we feel it is the right time to recognise the huge level of effort by the organisers, the groups and those staffing the phones.”

The virtual appreciation night will outline the work of the various groups, with the Municipal District Cathaoirligh and other guests highlighting what went on behind the scenes to ensure that every call was answered and that nobody was left behind.

“The work that our voluntary and community groups do around the county is amazing, and the Forum was a way to ensure that there was a formal structure behind it,” Director of Community Development with Kerry County Council, Michael Scannell, explained. “This ensured the governance and support for all groups was in place.

“For years we have been highlighting the work of the various groups around the county and when the pandemic came, it was clear that they would continue doing the positive work within their communities. Our role was to provide support and back-up and now we want to thank them for their efforts."