All roads lead to Cooley this St Patrick’s Day...
COOLEY staged its own Saint Patrick’s Day parade for the first time in 2018. The response and support justified the initiative and efforts undertaken to put it on showed the local community were fully behind it and were all for celebrating the national feast in traditional manner like all across the country and abroad.
Some 1,000 turned up to participate and watch the event. The turnout was the same last year, and the organisers, satisfied that the parade is a big source of pride and enjoyment and the way that local people wish to honour Saint Patrick, expect at least a similar attendance on Tuesday week. Assuming “God willing there is no blanket ban (on major events) with the Corona virus,” cautioned a spokesperson for the parade.
The spokesperson told that that the organisers are all set to follow the format that was successful in the first two years, with food, refreshments and musical entertainment laid on in the Cooley Kickhams complex after the parade.
The parade will start at 1pm from Murphy’s petrol station at Bush and proceed along the main road to the Cooley Kickhams sports complex. The organisers at the time of going to press were
Seán Malone with his Grandson Oliver McShane at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade held in Cooley. Pictures Ken Finegan/Newspics. finalising who will be Grand Marshall for the occasion, and sources indicated they have a very worthy candidate.
A special guest who will be chauffeured along the route in a vintage car will be Carlingford Oyster Pearl Leah Kirwan. The Carlingford Pipe band will join in along the route and lend atmosphere with their music as they lead the way from the front.
There will be live music when the parade reaches Cooley Sports complex provided by the Rambling string band from Omeath. Their folk, Irish and country tunes will be apt for the day that is in it.
The children will also be catered for with a supervised disco for them in the downstairs of the complex.
There will also be food served at a nominal price, and a full bar service will be provided.
The community are again fully behind the venture, with schools, clubs and voluntary organisations the length of the Peninsula from Ravensdale to Carlingford committed to taking part.
Businesses have also pledged their support and will provide floats. All in the area are looking forward to the parade again and the planned celebrations with great anticipation and excitement.