Galway Bay FM Presenter Valerie Hughes is set to be honoured by well known Country Music singers Mike Denver, Brendan Shine and Ronan Collins and many, many more in an Appreciation Concert on Friday August 25th next.
The event, in association with Galway Bay FM, will take place at Leisureland, Salthill in recognition of Valerie’s long standing commitment and dedication to the Country Music Industry through her Saturday morning show on Galway Bay FM.
Valerie has been off-air since last September, as she currently recovers from Cancer. Recently the radio station shared a message from her on their social media channels where she outlined her progress with her Chemotherapy treatment.
She also thanked all of her listeners for their lovely messages of support, and thanked the management and board of Galway Bay FM for their support, patience and kindness.
Galway Bay FM CEO Cormac O’Halloran told RadioToday.ie that everyone is hopeful that Valerie will be returning to on air duties in September.
“We are now of the view that she will be returning to us in September, and we are so excited to have her back,” he said.
“She’s a key member of the family and she has really been missed around that station, and we are really looking forward to her coming back.
“Between now and her likely return, on August 25th a group of friends in the music industry – Mike Denver, Brendan Shine, Ronan Collins and others are doing a concert in Leisureland.
“Galway Bay FM are supporting that concert as sponsors, but along with that a lot of the funds generated by the concert are going directly to Valerie herself.
“She’s had a lot of extra expense that she wouldn’t normally have, so this is our way of trying to help her and saying ‘you are important to us and we will do anything we can to help!.”
O’Halloran says that while one of the key mantras of any local radio station is supporting local businesses and events, this cause is particularly special.
“I think supporting things like the Galway International Arts Festival or the Galway Races – some of that is business, but this one is personal,” he said.
“Valerie is part of our family, so it’s probably even more important to us that we get that right, than we would with our other partners.
“We hope that she has a long career with us, and we are delighted to know that she is doing well in terms of her treatment and that’s she is hopefully back in early September, but if it takes a bit longer we don’t mind – we’ll wait!”
Tickets for the Concert are now available from Kelly’s Food Store in Clarinbridge and TicketMaster.ie