Joe says his goodbyes as IFA President

FOUR hard years of toil at the helm of the IFA were recalled at a farewell function for Joe Healy at the Loughrea Hotel and Spa last Saturday night attended by six of his ex-presidential colleagues as well as the current incumbent, Tipperary’s Tim Cullinan.

IFA members from counties all over the country turned out for the function with many speakers highlighting the hard work, dedication and patience shown by Joe Healy since he took up the role as President of the Association in April, 2016.

Galway IFA Chairperson, Anne Healy, outlined how Joe Healy had ‘steadied the ship’ for IFA at a very difficult time for the association and had gone to play a huge role in bringing hundreds of millions into the pockets of farmers across the country and in the West of Ireland.

“Joe has done a wonderful job over the past four years helping to secure in the region of €600 million extra for farmers in new measures or in top-ups of existing schemes.

“But as well as that, he has been tremendous ambassador for Irish farming both here at home and in Europe – we’re all very proud of his term in office,” said Anne Mitchell.

New President, Tim Cullinan, also paid tribute to the work of Joe Healy since 2016 – a period when farming faced a series of difficult challenges from cattle prices to crisis weather situations.

Former IFA Deputy President, Richard Kennedy, spoke of how easy it had been to work with Joe Healy on a personal and professional level. “If he gave you a job to do, he just trusted you and left you at it,” he said.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app

The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.