Remember your loved ones at Christmas time

After last year's success members of the Mullingar Rotary Club and the committee of the North Westmeath Hospice have teamed up again to run the Tree of Remembrance project which proved to be such a success last year.In total the 2008 project raised €17,000 which was distributed amongst five local charities. Members of the public are invited to pin a ribbon remembering a loved one to the tree and are asked for a donation of any amount or of none at all, the donation is entirely optional.Those involved would like to give special thanks to John Lynch who volunteered this year and last year to transport the Christmas tree from Abbeylara and erect it at his own cost.This year's big switch on will take place on Thursday November 26 (tomorrow afternoon) at 4.30pm and will go a long way to lifting the Winter gloom.Traders, despite financial constraints, have pushed the boat out and Mullingar will be as bright and cheery as possible. And who is going to oversee the big switch on? Why the man in red will be there to make sure everything goes according to plan.