Wednesday 21 December 2011

Christmas Greetings



I wish all the readers of this Blog a Very Happy Christmas and a Peaceful New Year. Special greetings to our diaspora abroad in near and far away lands who cannot return home for Christmas especially our members and friends in the Great Britain and Middle East Regions of Engineers Ireland. We are especially thinking of you this Christmas as I was on the night of my Inaugural Address last May and my Presidential Address in September.  The work of the Engineers Ireland’s Benevolent Fund has never been more important to assist our members struggling in the recession.  I thank Ray Sexton for his wise chairmanship of the Fund in recent years and welcome John Higgins as the new Chair and wish him well in this important role. 

Time has flown since I started this Blog 7 months ago – it’s now 5 months to go as President of Engineers Ireland when I will hand over to Michael Phillips as the new President.

It’s been a very busy time partly due to the duties expected of a President but also due to the special interest I said I would show in Enterprise and Job Creation by visiting Research Institutes and Infrastructure Projects around the country.

Over the next 4 or 5 months I will be busy also. I'm looking forward to visiting the South, South East, North West, South West and North East more than was possible this year. I'm scheduled to go to Mayo, Athlone and Carlow in January, to Kerry, Cork and London in February, to Sligo and Louth in March, to Cork and Belfast in April and the Midlands in May.

I'm enjoying immensely meeting all the engineers across the country in the various regions and sectors. I find optimism and encouragement wherever I go that Ireland will pull through the current economic crisis and emerge stronger and wiser for the future. 

As I said in my Inaugural Address last May, we will get no credit for cursing the darkness but every encouragement to shine a New Light on the opportunities that lie ahead. We have to seize those opportunities in energy, water, computing, pharma and medical device sectors. We have to channel all of our energies to developing the economy and creating jobs whether at home or through the exports of our goods and services.

I want to again thank the Council, Executive and Director General Team of Engineers Ireland for all their hard work during the year.  I want to pay a particular tribute to Director General John Power and his six directors Fionnuala Kilbane, Aidan Harney, Damien Owens, Margie McCarthy, John Butler and John Byrne.  In difficult economic times, they have guided Engineers Ireland to be a stronger organisation with a higher public profile that continues to be financially strong and supports further growth through excellence.  I also want to thank the Regional and Sector committees who keep the lamps burning for Engineers Ireland throughout the year in their respective areas.

Let the bright lights of Christmas shine for you and your families as we approach 2012.  I hope that our slow national progress to recovery will at least continue and hopefully begin to accelerate next year.

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