Clare woman Martina Moloney began working in a motor tax office after she did her Leaving Certificate but has worked her way to up to become Galway?s first ever female County Manager.

Originally from Doora Barefield, Martina attended local secondary school Coláiste Múire before deciding to begin her working life in Clare County Council. She began with a post in the motor tax office but before long, she was moving up the ladder, and worked in water services and finance for over 15 years.

She then left Clare and took up positions in Limerick and Donegal before moving to Galway in 1996. However, after seven years with the City Council, she was transferred to Louth where she worked as County Manager before receiving a very tempting offer which prompted her to return to Galway.

"The vacancy for the County Manager came up in Galway and I had always enjoyed my time in Galway so it was very tempting. At the end of the day, I realised I was a ?West of the Shannon? woman at heart so I decided to take the job and move back to Galway."

Martina took up the position of County Manager earlier this year and says she is delighted with her decision. She describes her day-to-day duties as "very varied" and says that she never gets bored. As County Manager, she is responsible for ensuring that essential services are being provided as well as liaising with the Mayor, local councillors and organisations and the public.

"It is a great job and very interesting. It is demanding as well, time management and prioritising is really important. I?m lucky that I have a great team behind me and we all work together to get everything done," says Martina.

Outside of work, Martina is a member of many local groups including Irish Water Safety and the Heritage Council. A huge sports fan, Martina enjoys all things GAA but admits to having some conflict when it comes to choosing who to support. Although she follows both Clare and Galway, she admits that Galway would come a close second if choosing between the two teams.

Martina says that she also watches television in her spare time, as it is a "real escape from reality" and admits to being a huge fan of Coronation Street and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

"I love watching Coronation Street but that would be the only soap that I would be interested in. I?m hooked on CSI as well, it?s not an ordinary night if I don?t have my CSI!"

In the future, Martina hopes to use her position to improve investment into Galway, as she feels that the West is "lagging behind". As a result she says that the upgrading of roads in the county and the development of public transport is a major priority.

"If we want to encourage tourists to the area then we have to make it easy to access and improving the transport, from airports to roads. We want people to make Galway the destination for their holiday rather that somewhere they just pass through."

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