Madeline and Kitty are Longford’s Most Inspirational people

Madeline Bennett and Kitty Burkhill from Newtownforbes are celebrating after being named Longford’s Most Inspirational People at this year’s Gala Retail Inspiration Awards with Virgin Media.

Madeline and Kitty’s extensive and inspirational work in the Newtownforbes Active Retirement Association earned them the title in this year’s awards.
Established four years ago to celebrate individuals who work to create better communities with their selfless acts and inspirational deeds, Gala Retail awarded inspirational people from every county in Ireland, naming county inspirational people who were each gifted €1,000 in Ireland Hotel vouchers.

Both Madeline and Kitty really impressed the judges for their work in the local community and are worthy winners of the county award for their inspirational efforts.

Run by Madeline and Kitty, the Newtownforbes Active Retirement Association works to promote positive aging within the community.
In partnership with other community members, Madeline and Kitty lead group outings, walks, holidays, badminton, chair aerobics and many more events and activities. Madeline and Kitty are a great example of living life to the full.

From a huge volume of nominations, 26 county heroes were crowned. Noreen Murphy, from Bantry in County Cork, was named as the Overall Inspirational Person of the Year for her services to mental health with the establishment of Lisheen’s House Suicide Prevention Charity.

According to Gary Desmond, CEO of Gala Retail, choosing the winners was a challenging task. “We were overwhelmed by the level of nominations and Madeline and Kitty along with the fellow inspirational heroes are true examples of people who are making Ireland a better place. Congratulations Madeline and Kitty and all our county heroes!”