The people of Anglesboro are fighting to keep the services of Ballyhoura Development, warning that if it is lost, rural life as we know it will be finished.

“We feel we are already forgotten by our councils and this will only follow on from the closure of garda stations, post offices, shops and other businesses in small rural areas,” local activist Patrick English said.

As Minister Phil Hogan is threatening to streamline Leader groups or to amalgamate them into the councils, the people of Anglesboro have warned that people need to stand up and fight.

“It is ours – hands off Minister – if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. It is high time that successive governments were told that Ireland does not finish at Newland’s Cross, it actually starts there.

“Minister, in the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson we say to you: ‘Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail’.

“Ballyhoura in its present form certainly has done that for the people of Anglesboro,” Mary T Lane said.

In Anglesboro, the community has benefitted to no end from the advice, support and financial aid from Ballyhoura Development.

The chairman of the Galtee District Forum, Moss Fitzgerald said that they have plans to develop a community field and playground in the village and with the help of Ballyhoura, they will see this dream become a reality.

Through the FETAC course for jobseekers, unemployed people from the area have been helped to get back into the workforce by improving their CV’s, compiling cover letters and brushing up on interview skills.

The TUS programme has also given small farmers the opportunity to learn new skills such as stone wall building, mapping out walking trails and landscaping, while the community also took part in the Wellness Recovery Action Planning WRAP programme.

This focussed on getting people to engage in a work, life balance and look after themselves. Ballyhoura also helped the people of the village to build a Tidy Towns group and when they gained highest new entry in 2011, all of their hard work was rewarded.

If the service is amalgamated, the people of Anglesboro argue that they will left out on the fringes and, as a small community, will inevitably be left behind.

The text alert service was also launched in conjunction with Ballyhoura and the rural bus scheme allows people living in isolated areas to interact with others and be a part of their community again.