St. Patrick’s Day Parade – Was it the Biggest Yet ?

Tuesday was the ideal day on which to hold an outdoor event. If praying for fine weather is your thing then Tuesday’s weather was the answer to many prayers.
Temperatures well well up into the teens and the bitingly, cold breeze that dominated the morning disappeared as the day wore on.

There are people here who are convinced that Tuesday’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade was the biggest ever and it is hard to go against the view.
The weather theory had an awful lot going for it as the forecast was good in the days leading up to the parade. That, in itself, was enough to convince people to get out and about.

The support of the neighboring villages for the parade was outstanding again this year. There was a special cheer for Brosna GAA Club and their collection of cups – including the All-Ireland Junior Championship Cup.

The organisers were busily lapping up the praise and thanks of the locals for their efforts in putting the show on the streets and they had the town looking its finest ever.

Down at the River Island Hotel, Mrs. Mai O’Donoghue was quietly celebrating her 97th birthday with her daughters, Doris Coffey and Noreen Ring and with her Killarney Road neighbour, Mrs. Philomena Jameson.

The pubs in the area did a roaring trade all day long and there was much talk of the benefits of days like this for the economy of the town.

There is huge credit due to the handful of volunteers who pull the whole thing together. It’s the pre-planning and preparation put in by the likes of John Skevena O’Sullivan, Charlie Farrelly, Ted Kenny, John Lynch, Timmy Murphy, Willie and Bill Reidy, Martin Conway and Wilsie King that carries the whole thing off so smoothly.
Not too many people will tell them to their faces but they’re being praised to high heavens since Tuesday’s magnificent turn-out. There are people even crediting them with the way the weather behaved on the day.