Tributes have been paid following the death of Fine Gael stalwart Mary Kerr-Conlon who died yesterday. The former councillor from Highfield, Carrickmacross was a member of the Fine Gael party for almost 50 years. After a quarter of a century as a Fine Gael representative in Co Monaghan, the former councillor officially retired back in 2022. Ms Kerr-Conlon was first elected to Monaghan County Council in the 2019 Local Elections and had previously served on Carrickmacross Town Council for 22 years from 1992 to 2014. Aside from politics, community work also played a major role in her life, particularly though organisations like Carrickmacross Tidy Towns and Monaghan GAA. Minister Heather Humphreys today described the late Mary Kerr-Conlon as a "trailblazer" for women in politics, particularly across Co Monaghan. Speaking to Northern Sound, the local TD also highlighted the support and encouragement that she has received from Ms Kerr-Conlon, particularly when starting out her own career in politics; "I would not be in the position I am in today where it not for the support of Mary Kerr-Conlon. Mary was a force of nature and a great community woman. She was involved in the Tidy Towns and indeed I recall many times driving to Dublin and seeing Mary out and about picking up rubbish around Carrickmacross at the crack of dawn.
"Mary was a great GAA woman and a proud supporter of Carrickmacross Emmetts and Monaghan. It was a common occurrence when you’d arrive at a match to see Mary coming with her bucket selling tickets for the half-time draw. Mary was a tireless representative for her community. She worked with local charities to organise clothes donations and she always went above and beyond to help people particularly those who were less well off and those arriving from new communities. Mary was the driving force behind many exciting projects in Carrickmacross whether it was at Carrickmacross Workhouse, the Phoenix Centre or the the C:TEK Buildings. I was delighted to work with Mary in 2016 to provide the funding for the wonderful Carrickmacross Lace Gallery which she was so passionate about. Indeed Mary was the person behind the memorable gift of Carrickmacross Lace to none other than the First Lady of the United States of America during a St Patrick’s Day visit by then Taoiseach, Enda Kenny. Mary wanted to show Carrickmacross Lace off on the World stage!"
Cllr Aiden Campbell also paid tribute to his former party colleague. Speaking to Northern Sound he described the late Mary Kerr-Conlon as a "stalwart" particularly for the South Monaghan area. "Mary is a Fine Gael stalwart for Carrickmacross and the whole South Monaghan area," he explained. "It's a very sad day, Mary was a fantastic person and was very much committed to the community and was involved in everything that was good about Carrickmacross and the surrounding area."
