For over fifty years Tom Cotter has been a member of the Bartlemy Parish Hall committee serving as an officer, key-holder and tireless worker and fundraiser.
Last Friday night at a meeting of the hall committee, a presentation was made to Tom to mark his huge commitment to the hall over many years.
Tom was completely unaware of the reason for the meeting. He thanked all those involved. He said he was involved with the hall down the decades for the good of the Bartlemy community and he said he enjoyed every minute of it.
Members paid glowing tributes to Tom and stories were told of the planning that went into the building of the hall and the role played by the late Fr Joe Kennefick.
Volunteers are the lifeblood of so many organisations and people like Tom Cotter are the heartbeat of so many rural communities.
