New Community Playground in the pipeline for Castlegregory
ONE of the surest ways a community can showcase all that’s positive about where they come from is by organising a summer festival. At Castlegregory this is something they know a thing or two about as they have made it their business for the last four decades to stage one and this year’s event takes place from July 5-9.
It goes without saying this is one of the most picturesque parts of the Dingle Peninsula and summer is when Castlegregory really springs to life where they’re busy right now preparing for the festival which attracts crowds, not just from the locality, but also passing tourists who drop by to sample a warm Castlegregory welcome.
“The festival really adds a great buzz to the place for the week. People arrange their holidays around it which tells you something of its appeal with locals,” said Martha Flynn, co-organiser of Castlegregory Summer Festival.
Meán Scoil an Leith-Triúgh will be the focal point of the week where a cheese and wine reception takes place on the opening night ( Wednesday 5th). The secondary school will also host an arts and crafts exhibition throughout the week where people can browse and buy items.
Throughout the five days there will be a community beach clean-up, cupcake decorations, music, magic shows, drawing workshops, teddy bear picnic, fairy trails, drumming workshops, and a golf scramble. You won’t find yourself short on. There will also be a children’s treasure hunt and arts and crafts, which are hugely popular as kids love to create their own adventures and stamp their own creative input on the festival.
Sunday will be family fun day and this is one of the best days of the week with the ever popular fancy dress parade taking place at 8pm through the village which will be led by the Killorglin Pipe Band.
A guided historic walk around Castlegregory and the Maharees is also planned and this is popular with visitors and locals looking to find out more about these historic parts of the peninsula. THERE is a major drive right now to raise money for a new community playground with locals fundraising to help secure what will be a positive addition to the locality. With this in mind, local man Jamie Knox will host an afternoon’s water sports during the festival with proceeds going towards funding the Castlegregory community playground project.
“We’re heavily fundraising for the community playground at the moment as this will make a great addition. Jamie has kindly arranged the afternoon to coincide with the festival and it’s sure to be popular with kids,” said Martha.
Jamie is offering a special price of €10 per hour so kids can enjoy some water sports activities, while the parents will know their money is going towards funding an important facility for Castlegregory.