Covid has helped us rediscover who we are

Each year has its unique defining moments but this one boasts far more than its fair share.

Looking back to the start of the year, it seems an altogether simpler time, when both coronavirus and Zoom were unfamiliar words to most of us, and pandemics featured in blockbuster movies.

In the shadow of Covid-19, our lives were to change in every aspect. We would stop meeting friends and many businesses would have to close.

Yet amidst the Covid chaos and all its challenges, we rediscovered who we are. We are a community. We stand by our friends. We care for our families. We realise how important it is to be surrounded by the people who matter to us.

With the approach of Christmas, my thoughts are with the businesses who have struggled throughout 2020. Some closed their doors for the first time in their long histories, and some sadly, also for the last time.

Cork County Council invested heavily, with a suite of Project ACT measures, in improving public space for pedestrians and business and in assisting local economies and communities through focused direct supports, as we all sought to recover from the first wave of infection.

The council’s seasonal campaign, A Real Cork Christmas, is a natural extension to this, as we look to support local businesses, owned by our neighbours and friends this Yuletide.

Cork County Council has created a virtual marketplace at CorkCoCo.ie listing businesses offering click-and-collect, phone-and-collect and online sales, allowing people across Cork county explore the wide range of gifts available, and where to buy them.

I urge business owners not yet registered to please do so for free by submitting your details online via YourCouncil.ie. The Shop Local message is not new, but this year it is about finding that ‘sparkle on your doorstep’, no matter where you live.

A Real Cork Christmas also looks to bring together our communities in other ways to support each other. I look forward to judging the designs from fourth class pupils for a series of special postcards that will deliver A Real Cork Christmas across the globe.

We will be decorating our Slí na Croí walks with red and white ribbons, to bring a message of hope as we celebrate a different kind of Christmas in 2020. The Christmas lights in our towns and villages seem to be a little brighter this year, as we look forward to 2021 with hope and solidarity.

So, let’s all celebrate A Real Cork Christmas this year. If we spend our money within our communities, we are supporting our neighbours and our friends. The message to shop local is always important, but this year it means something extra special.

2020 has presented lots of problems that were beyond our control. Supporting our own businesses in the run up to Christmas is something we can easily do.

Let us all do our bit to start the recovery now and look forward to a better future for every citizen of county Cork.