Past President and currently Vice President of St. Vincent de Paul (Fermanagh), Mr. Joe Maguire, the surprise recipient of a Rotary Paul Harris Award, was acknowledged for the manner in which he has ‘steered the ship’ over the last 16 years.

The presentation was made at a recent Rotary Club of Enniskillen luncheon meeting at the Killyhevlin Hotel. 

Joe, a native of Enniskillen, is married to Rosaline and they have three children. Described as a great family man, he was well known in his butcher’s business for many years.

Rotarian Siobhan O’Reilly delivered the citation for his Award, which highlighted that it came as no surprise when, on April 6, 1998, Joe became President of the Enniskillen branch of St. Vincent de Paul. 

The Enniskillen Rotarians heard: “Although it took a lot of thought on his part and promises of help and advice from former presidents - Terence Maguire, Paddy Maguire and Hugh O’Kane he finally agreed to take on the job.”

The citation recorded: “1998 was a very special year for St. Vincent de Paul in Enniskillen, being the 150th year of unbroken service to the people of the town and the Fermanagh area. Joe agreed to take on the position of President for three years but 16 years later he is still in the job!

“In 2008 Joe and the committee of SVP felt that they should move the Thrift Shop which had operated for 12 years in Forthill Street to new premises on Church Street. This proved to be a great move as they soon trebled their income at a time when support for people in the community was needed more than ever.

“The demands on SVP are ever increasing but so far they have managed to cope successfully and have never had to refuse any genuine requests from families or individuals. The requests are not always financial, some ask for assistance with furniture or helping people travel to hospital appointments.

“St. Vincent de Paul has now been providing a service in Fermanagh for 166 years; a credit to those who started it all those years ago and to all the people who have carried it on, not least to Joe Maguire for the manner in which he has ‘steered the ship’ over the last 16 years.”

Each Christmas Joe (along with a representative from the Salvation Army), receives a cheque from Rotary which is put to good use helping the needy in the run up to Christmas. 

“This fulfils the Enniskillen Rotary commitment to use the Santa-mobile Christmas street collections to help those in need in the local community,” noted the citation, which concluded that they had no doubt that "Joe Maguire would be a worthy recipient of a Paul Harris award for his sterling help to the needy in Fermanagh over the last 16 years.”

Rotary President Ken Rainey presented the Award to Joe and congratulated him.