ST MARTIN’S IS LIT UP!
THREE OF Ireland’s top music groups are no strangers to the spotlight and, thanks to their endeavours at the Castle Marquee in St Martin’s GAA Club, that light will now be shed on their main pitch and walking track.
Seven months of planning went into the Live at the Castle Marquee weekend with the initial festival due to run over two days. However, the fact that the marquee tent would be in situ for two further days prompted event organisers to expand upon the entertainment offered for the weekend.
Brian Cantwell, chairperson of the club fundraising committee, said they decided to include extra events that would cater for the wider community and non-GAA players.
Thursday night featured a teenage disco with DJ Welshy. Friday night saw the club’s first ‘Stars in Sync’ event which, Brian said, was one of the most successful club fundraisers ever.
On Saturday night, the sell-out main event featured music from Something Happens, The Four of Us, and local heroes, Corner Boy.
Finally, for anyone who was still standing, Sunday morning saw a massive aerobics event take place in the marquee with trainer Patrick Dobbs. Teo Lacey from My Sport in Enniscorthy was also on site providing gait analysis.
The event was held as a fundraiser for floodlighting for the club’s main pitch and walking track. Brian said they were very close to their target and they hoped to have floodlighting in place by the end of September. He said they were delighted with the event’s success.
‘It was a bit of a risky initiative; we spent seven months planning it, but we were blessed to have some great sponsors. Our overall sponsor was Wright’s Insurance and we had three brilliant day sponsors: Eoin Reynolds Car Sales, the Village Pharmacy and Wexford Bus.’
He said volunteers, friends and family connected to the club, as well as many other businesses also contributed to the successful event.
He remarked: ‘Fundraising is challenging in the current environment so being able to offer something different, that appealed to people on a wider scale, was important. I think we created something special that we can build on for next year.’