A competition like no other
SLIGO Community Games has been in operation for more than 45 years and gets bigger and better every year.
It is a voluntary organisation, consisting of 28 different local Community Games areas. The ethos of the Organisation has remained the same since its induction and that is to introduce children between the ages of 6 and 16 to many sporting and cultural events.
There are more than 1500 adult and youth volunteers working throughout the year. The Community Games differs from other sporting bodies as they run various cultural activities that cater for the child that is not athletic minded.
There are approx 5000 children locally who in one way or another benefit from Community Games. The local sports events consist of teams and individuals and competitors can progress on to County, Provincial and National finals.
One of the founder members of the organisation, John Mc Getrick is still involved and was recently presented with a National Volunteer of the Year award.
Margaret Bolton has been a volunteer with Sligo Community Games for more than 37 years and still finds the work extremely rewarding and has made new friends from all over the country.
“When I came to Sligo in 1980, I was asked to get involved in my local area. I had never heard of the organisation prior to this, but took on the role of area secretary. I soon realised the enormity of what I had taken on, it was mind boggling.”
Margaret added: “I am happy in the knowledge that I have had in some small way made it possible for many children to compete in such a wide variety of sporting and cultural activities. There are so many wonderful people involved within the County, all with the same message in mind and that is to ensure our children are catered for from January to December each year.”
Many competitors have gone on to be professional athletes and music stars like Mary Cullen Mark Scanlon, Laura Tighe and Westlife.