Kerry’s best youth projects nominated for Kerry Community Awards category
The KerrymanVolunteers across Kerry are all set for this year’s Kerry Community Awards’ annual gala night in The Rose Hotel this Thursday, October 1, and amongst them are three very deserving groups in the youth category.
Founded by Kerry County Council, The Kerryman and Southern Marketing Design Media - and now in their 19th year - this year’s awards feature seven categories and the three shortlisted groups in the youth category are featured below.
The Kerry Band Project is a vibrant youth music initiative that provides young people aged 12–18 with the opportunity to learn, rehearse and perform as part of a band in a supportive and inclusive environment.
Operating weekly in both Tralee and Kenmare, the project has grown significantly and now supports seven active bands, offering a creative outlet for young musicians and singers from a wide range of backgrounds and ability levels.
Participants perform regularly at high-profile community and cultural events across the county, including Tralee Food Festival, One Day in May at Dolan’s Warehouse, and headline performances at Féile Thrá Lí.
Parents, schools and youth mental health services have described the project as life-changing for many participants. For some young people, it provides their first opportunity to feel part of a group where they are accepted, valued and encouraged to succeed.
As the project continues to grow, it is helping to develop the next generation of gigging bands in Kerry while strengthening community connections and creating meaningful opportunities for young people through music.
Members of Sliabh Luachra Boxing Club
The Sliabh Luachra Youth Leadership Programme and Mentorship Initiative offers young people a variety of workshops, team-building exercises, leadership training sessions, and community engagement projects.
Attendees take part in planning and leading local events for the club, attend educational workshops, and collaborate with coaches and volunteers.
The programme provides a safe and supportive space for young people to grow, connect, and contribute positively to their communities, while learning about themselves, their mental health and how to become a good coach and leader.
The club breaks down many different barriers to participation, ensuring that young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and the Traveller community have equal opportunities.
This programme a sense of belonging and community spirit to our young people, helping them to be part of the community they live in.
Irish Red Cross Tralee Branch Youth Section took up a project to integrate the group into the community with an aim to make the young people feel more relevant and inclusive in their community efforts.
As well as the normal Red Cross associated skills and tasks, their leaders organised initiatives outside the Red Cross to help the youths to become aware of other voluntary and statutory organisations that assist their communities.
Among the tasks completed were volunteering with ‘Tralee Tidy Towns’ to assist in local clean ups, visiting Tralee Fire Station to learn the importance of fire safety and learning the importance of mental awareness and mental health from the ‘Jigsaw’ charity.
Young members, aged 12 to 18, are now embedded in their community with the Red Cross skills that they learned of First Aid, CPR, using a defibrillator, understanding Red Cross principles and Humanitarian Law.
They are now seen out in public more, their heads are out of their mobile phones and they’re getting hands-on experience on other ventures that help their community.