This article is from page 35 of the 2008-04-29 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 35 JPG
A GROUP of 20 young Clare people will travel to Sydney in July to cel- ebrate World Youth Day with Pope Benedict XVI.
The annual event, which takes place in a different location each year, gives young people from all over the world a chance to celebrate and speak about their faith with each Oo) i aterm
“World Youth Day is a gathering of people from all over the world. It has taken place all over the world. The Limerick and the Killaloe dio- cese have travelled together for the
last couple of year,’ said Deirdre Convey, local organiser and Deputy Principal of St Don Bosco’s School in Kildysart.
“The highlight of the week would be on the Saturday night when the Pope attends for a vigil and then on Sunday morning when he says Mass. There is a designated park area and the young people all camp there in their sleeping bags.
“There could be as many as a mil- lion young people at that event. At the moment we have 20 signed up and ready to go from Killaloe and 25 from Limerick. We have our quota of people but if there are people still in-
terested we could squeeze one or two more people in if they really want to attend.”
Because of the location of this year’s World Youth Day, cost has be- come a real factor for the people who wish to attend.
“It is going to be expensive all right. At the moment we are look- ing at €2,500 for flight and accom- modation. But some people are go- ing to stay on afterwards and make a holiday out of it as well,’ continued Deirdre.
“We are hoping that parishes will Support the people who are go- ing from their own locality. The
age group is from 18 to 35, and the younger ones would not have that kind of money to put to something like this but they may do a bit of fun- draising themselves.
“When people come back there is a real change in them. The trip gives them a positive way of expressing their faith and when they return it is something that they can share with the whole community.
“So it is a really positive experience for all concerned.”
To find out more about World Youth Day or to enquire about booking one of those last few spots to Sydney con- tact Deirdre on 065 6834461.