This article is from page 28 of the 2008-03-04 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 28 JPG
A MASSIVE community effort is underway in Ennis as preparations continue for St Patrick’s Day.
The showpiece of the day, the St Patrick’s Day Parade will commence at 11 am from the courthouse.
The parade in Ennis in recent years has attracted large crowds of onlook- ers and has grown in popularity as a community event. Stilt walkers will also be at the parade to entertain the onlookers with their own form of pe- destrianisation.
The theme of this year “event is cel-
ebration, providing participant with plenty of scope for imagination.
The traditional blessing of the shamrock will take place before 12.15 mass at the Ss Peter and Paul Cathedral.
The party continues after the pa- rade is ended, when in conjunction with celebrations taking place for Seachtain na Gaeilge, a massive street céili is planned for O’Connell Square.
Town Clerk Eddie Power explained the street entertainment will be a major feature of the day, before and after the parade itself.
He said, “I am delighted to an- nounce that Ennis Gospel Choir will perform in O’Connell Square before the parade from 10.20am to llam. The choir recently performed in Glor to much acclaim and have given per- formances in Cork, Killarney and Limerick. The choir will perform a variety of well known songs and will appeal to a wide audience”.
“We are also arranging a Street Session in Lifford before the parade commences. Traditional musicians from Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann will entertain the waiting crowds in advance of the parade. A stage will
be in place as was done prior to last year’s parade which raised the pro- file of the musicians while improving sound and vision for the onlookers present,” he said.
Power continued, “Ceoltoiri na Mainistreach, a new céili band from Ennis, were formed by a group of very talented musicians from the En- nis area.
‘They first came together for the Clare Fleadh and went from there to Munster and on to the All Ireland competition in Letterkenny. This promises to be enjoyable for all the family.”