Board Meet & Greet: Mary
We recently caught up with Mary, one of the board members of Rialto Development Association (RDA) which is the board that oversees the work we do here at St. Andrew’s.
Read on to learn more about her role, the work of the board, and what inspires her most about supporting the local community.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself - What’s your role with the Rialto Development Association (RDA) and St. Andrew’s?
Hi, I'm Mary and I live locally, although not in Rialto, I’m only over the bridge in Kilmainham, so I still feel very connected to the area. I’ve worked across a few different fields over the years and I’m currently working with as a consultant in Data Strategy. Before that, I spent a lot of time in Finance and Risk Management in Financial Services. I’d been looking for a way to get involved locally and I knew someone who was involved with the RDA so when I spotted the role on Boardmatch, I decided to go for it. I was delighted when the board felt I could bring something useful to the RDA — and that’s how I ended up here
2. Can you give us an overview of what your work with the RDA entails?
My main role is to look after the financial governance side of things and support the Centre Manager whenever financial questions or issues come up. Month‑to‑month, that means reviewing payments, signing off on bank reconciliations, and making sure our financial processes are solid.
Because we’re a charity, we have a big responsibility to make sure our spending is appropriate and meets the expectations of our funders. There’s also a lot of governance we need to follow, and I try to help us meet those requirements without creating unnecessary red tape — though some of it is unavoidable.
The RDA Board meets six times a year, and I’m also part of the Governance, Finance and HR Committee, which meets at the same frequency and I try to attend as most if not all of these.
3. What have been some recent highlights or challenges in your role?
Being the Treasurer, I would have to say that the most recent relevant highlight was the successful completion of our Annual Audit. It reflects the hard work and professionalism of every project within St. Andrew’s and is a real credit to the teams who deliver such valuable services every day within their own projects.
On a lighter note, supporting the work of the Centre Manager and the achievement in upgrading the facilities in the hall has been a great achievement. Also, I really enjoyed the recent Rialto Recounted night and seeing the fantastic attendance and the level of local engagement was wonderful. It really shows how events can generate a sense of community.