The Killester WW1 Memorial Campaign lodged a memorial application to Dublin City Council in January 2021 for a permanent memorial consisting of a Celtic Cross with a plaque, two stone benches and a small garden area.
This memorial is in honour of the Irish WW1 Soldiers and Sailors from Killester and is also to recognise the unique history of the ex-servicemen housing development that is the Killester Garden Village, hopefully this spread awareness for newer residents and those who do not know about the areas history. Its one of the largest ex-servicemen housing developments built in the Republic, originally started by the British administration and then passed onto the Irish Free State administration, the Irish Soldiers and Sailors Land Trust then had responsibility for years after. The development consists of 289 bungalows split into three areas by military rank, The Demesne, Middle Third and Abbeyfield. Following on from the houses other infrastructure was put in place like Killester Railway Station, the Royal British Legion Hall and even a bus service was set up called the 'Old Contempitables'.
The memorial in line with the 'Decade of Centennaries' which will be a permanent memorial for commemoration and reconciliation.
The memorial has been submitted to the Commemorations and Naming Committee in DCC but Killester War Memorial Campaign are still waiting for full confirmation to allow the memorial be built in its entirety as seen in the picture. If you would like to contact the commemoration committee in DCC to share your support for it please do.
Once full approval is received, a Go Fund Me page will be set up to fundraise for this worthy and fitting memorial. It will roughly cost €12000.
Killester War Memorial Campaign have thankfully received interest and support from both the British Embassy and German Embassy showing interest in the work of reconciliation and there has been some cross community support from people in Northern Ireland.
Killester War Memorial Campaign will keep interested parties updated with any future updates.
Visit KillesterWarMemorialCampaign on Facebook for more information.