Hall of Fame award shortlist – 1

A MAN whose boundless energy and sense of justice has benefited his beloved Beara in countless ways, Donal Kelly, from Lehanmore on the Beara Peninsula, is a successful farmer (sheep, beef and suckler cows) with operations locally and in Bandon. A carpenter by trade, like his father before him, he has a keen sense of doing right by people, which saw him awarded a Paddy Fitzgerald Community Award in 2000, which is a good reflection of the high esteem this community activist is held in by his peers. Donal was a leading figure in the IFA in West Cork, holding numerous positions from local level right up to national level over 20 years since the early 1980s. They included being the National Council representative for Cork and West Cork; as well holding key positions on the Western Development Management Committee to name but a select few. In 2006 he set up a St Vincent de Paul conference in Castletownbere and has had a broad involvement over many years in a variety of sporting and festival organisations and has held senior positions in several of these organisations. He will celebrate his 80th birthday in December and he enjoys social dancing as a hobby.

•    The winner of the Hall of Fame award, sponsored by Denis McSweeney & Son Ltd, Enniskeane, will be announced at The Southern Star and Celtic Ross Hotel West Cork Farming Awards presentation at 12pm on Sunday, September 24th, at the Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery.