TUS Athlone Campus was a hive of activity on Thursday morning last as the Athlone Croi na hÉireann Festival 2024 was officially launched.
The well attended event had a cross-section representation of the various student bodies including musical, cultural and sporting organisations, complete with a select number of members from the organising committee.
Chairperson, John Henson, welcomed those in attendance, particularly Chamber of Commerce CEO, Mr Tommy Hogan and also Mr Patrick Griffin, president of the Providence Rhode Island St Patrick’s Day Parade, who was holidaying in Athlone and was delighted to join the launch.
Mr Henson spoke of the exciting times to come for the 2024 Croi na hÉireann Festival and its committee with the links that have been forged with the local media, marketing and tourism departments within TUS and paid a special tribute to Johanna Archibold and her team on the Athlone campus who have allowed this collaboration to thrive from the start.
Treasurer, Cllr Frankie Keena, also afforded special words of thanks for both Johanna Archbold, Joanna Gillivan and their colleagues in TUS for opening the doors of the University to assist the Festival voluntary committee.
“The secret of success for the Croi na hÉireann Festival is to have close collaboration with all relevant groups such as TUS, the council, Chamber of Commerce, fellow Festival committees and indeed the many sporting and voluntary organisations in the town.
“A full calendar of events will be released in the coming weeks, but natives and visitors to the town can expect to witness a plethora of events during the five day festival, a choice selection being the McFadden funfair in attendance for the duration, a Futsal tournament in TUS, a fishing competition on Lough Ree, water safety demonstrations, a five kilometre family run on St Patrick’s morning at the Regional Sports Centre, a teddy bears picnic on Saturday, March 16 and entertainment from Feile na Sionnaine and Athlone Comhaltas musicians on St Patrick’s Day.
“There will also be night time entertainment hosted at Athlone Little Theatre, an exhibition in the Luan Gallery, walking tours to the Slieve Blooms and the Athlone hinterland, music therapy sessions for children and teenagers in the Athlone Library on Friday, March 15, with so many more events to be confirmed in due course,” Cllr Keena stated.
