CREESLOUGH Community Association says it intends to push ahead with the plans and vision of its late chairman Ben McFadden.
Mr McFadden passed away recently following a long illness.
He gave over 40 years to improving and promoting the wider Creeslough area and remained heavily involved in various events, festivals and committees right up until his death.
Last year Donegal’s Volunteer Centre presented him with an award for his work in spearheading a permanent memorial to those killed and injured in the 1925 Owencarrow rail disaster.
According to Lorcan Roarty of Creeslough Community Association, Mr McFadden had big ideas to mark the 100th anniversary of the rail crash which claimed the lives of four people.
Paying tribute, Mr Roarty said, “Ben had no real vested interest from a business perspective and that made him a very trusted member of the committee on all fronts. And I think that will be the biggest loss, having someone there who could pull people together the way he could.
“He had a great way about him and he was tied in to so many things. He was the length and breadth of the parish.”
As well as being founder and chair of the local community association, Ben McFadden was linked to the Tidy Towns, the Christmas Lights Committee and Creeslough Festival.
“Another thing he was involved in was, there would have been different derelict buildings around the village. Ben was very approachable so he would have went to the owners and asked them to tidy the buildings up. And they listened to him where they might not necessarily have listened to someone else.
Ben with his wife Bernadette and daughter Majella. Ben’s years of tireless community work were recognised by the Donegal Volunteer Centre.
“He worked closely with the Donegal Local Development Company too and was always able to direct the scheme workers and point them to what needed done. He did so much.”
He was born in Ards and his charity work regularly gravitated towards the forest park and friary. He organised various walks, hikes, clean ups and at Halloween ghost trails for all ages.
Creeslough has enjoyed something of a rebirth in recent years with a number of new businesses opening. Again that rejuvenation has been attributed to the 64-year-old.
“Having the village looking well, it made doing business a whole lot easier,” said Lorcan Roarty who runs Wild Atlantic Camp.
One of Ben’s final efforts to promote Creeslough was on an episode of RTÉ’s Nationwide programme. It aired two days after his death and carried a message of sympathy for his family.
Mr Roarty said that while Ben will be badly missed, his legacy will continue.
“He was a good solid community man and even a few days before he died he was still out doing stuff in the village, it was nearly like he was leaving his mark behind him. And it was never a chore to him, he just enjoyed what he was doing.
“He had a great team around him and his wife Bernadette and a few others they put in a big effort too. So even though there is going to be a gap there, the work Ben started isn’t going to die away. He had a vision for the next three to four years for the village and the onus now is on us as a committee to carry that on,” Mr Roarty added.
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