This article is from page 22 of the 2011-05-24 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 22 JPG
MORE than 100,000 ex-pats and people with Irish roots living in the US will be getting an invitation to come to Clare and be part of the reunion of the Dalcassian clans.
Clare Tourist Council will be travelling to the biggest Irish festival in the States in August to promote the county and travelling with them to Milwaukee will be members of the Brian Boru 2014 committee.
They will take a stand at the event which attracts the largest number of people with Irish connections of any Irish festival.
As part of the promotion of the Banner, the 2014 committee will be extending an invite to the celebrations planned for Killaloe and Lough Derg to all descendants of the Dalcassians.
Sir Conor O’Brien, chief of the Dalcassians, has agreed to be president of the commemorative event and it was he who suggested extending an invitation not just to the High King’s descendants but to all the Dalcassians, said 2014 committee chairman, John O’Shea.
“We’re absolutely delighted to have been invited by the Clare Tourist Council to travel with them. We had planned to go next year but this means we can start promoting the event and give potential visitors from the US two years to plan their trip. This is the Irish festival that all other festivals look to and we will be making the most of the opportunity to let people know about the Brian Boru celebrations,” John told The Clare People .
Confirmed as patrons of the 2014 festival are Rugby hero, Keith Wood and comedy giant, Brendan Grace, both residents of Killaloe
The prestigious Milwaukee festival is a hugely important event for tourism interests hoping to attract lucrative US business to Ireland.
“We are planning to make a second trip next year and we’re hoping to bring some geneologists over with us, just to give people a taste of what they might find,” said John.
Plans are well advanced for what looks set to be one of the most spectacular festivals the Banner county has seen.
It will open with a ‘march of the warriors’ from Killaloe to Clontarf and talks are in train for Killaloe to become the honorary capital of the country for the duration.
The committee are also negotiating with Skyfest to have the spectacular show on Lough Derg for that year and there is huge fun a pageantry planned to mark the 1,000th anniversary of Brian Boru’s passing.