Christmas tree lighting ceremony County Hall Tallaght and Civic Centre Clondalkin

06/12/2004

Archived item. This item is published here for historical reasons. The information below may be out of date.

LIGHTING OF CHRISTMAS TREE CEREMONY BY MAYOR ROBERT DOWDS SDCC. HEADQUARTERS COUNTY HALL TALLAGHT TUESDAY 7^TH DECEMBER AT 5.30

LIGHTING OF CHRISTMAS TREE CEREMONY BT MAYOR ROBERT DOWDS CIVIC CENTRE CLONDALKIN THURSDAY 9^TH DECEMBER 5.45.

This is the sixth year that the ceremony has been performed in the SDCC headquarters, in Tallaght and the third year in Clondalkin, the idea came from the Family Support Network in Tallaght.

The purpose of the tree ceremony is to commemorate those who have died as a result of their addiction. It is an opportunity to publicly acknowledge the human element of addiction within our communities. It is now widely known that whole generations of families have been wiped out as a result of the curse of substance use and misuse.

It is also our way of showing solidarity with the parents and partners in their grief at this time of year. The way we express our feelings as a community response to the families affected is to put doves on the tree. The white doves represent those who have passed away. The gold stars are to celebrate and acknowledge those who have made the brave journey to recovery. The silver stars are the traditional representation of the spiritual aspect of the nativity.

Families are also asked if they wish to decorate the tree with their own decorations which represent their loved ones.

There will a blessing of the tree by the Bishop in Tallaght and representatives of the different religious congregations in Clondalkin. The Mayor will say a few words at each ceremony.