Village gala day is cancelled this year
Lack of volunteers scuppers Bridge of Weir event
LOCAL DEMOCRACY REPORTER
Bridge of Weir Gala Day will not run this year due to a lack of volunteers.
Councillor James MacLaren has expressed his disappointment after being informed the village festival will not take place.
He said: “The Bridge of Weir Gala Day is a fantastic event in the village who always turnout in large numbers whatever the weather.
“It is very disappointing that a number of factors means this years event will not go ahead.
“Unfortunately, not enough people have stepped forward to volunteer.
“While I recognise that takes a lot of commitment, events such as the gala day simply do not just happen on the day.
“I hope that this can encourage people in the village to come forward next year to ensure that the gala can come back better than ever before.”
Councillor Natalie Don said: “It is a lot of work holding a gala day and the committee just didn’t have the volunteers.
“Despite advising the community of this, there was very little uptake in terms of new members or volunteers.”
The committee will instead focus its effort on ensuring the Santa Sleigh during the Christmas period.
However, Maurice Golden MSP is hopeful a hiatus will help the gala come back bigger and stronger.
He said: “Gala days such as the one in Bridge of Weir are at the heart of the community, so I am sure they will be disappointed that this year’s event will not take place.
“The event organisers do a tremendous job but they need more numbers so that it can be a gala day that the community will love and remember.
“I hope that this disappointing news can encourage more people in Bridge of Weir to come forward and ensure the gala day can be a major success in 2020.”
Last summer’s event was a huge success as a parade led by the Gala Queen and her attendants set off from the Cargill Hall and headed through the village towards Houston Road Park.
I hope this disappointing news can encourage people to come forward for the next gala day