Parade will cross West Street for the first time in decades
Special Children’s colouring competition announced
Aston Village Educate Together National School had a very special visitor on Friday last when Saint Patrick himself, who looks uncannily like school Principal Dermot McCullen, arrived to help launch a very special colouring competition for this year’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade celebrations.
Because 2022 is the centenary of Irish Independence Saint Patrick has proclaimed this year’s parade will be “Drogheda’s biggest and best parade so far” with a new route secured that will bring the parade across West Street for the first time in decades.
Two years ago there was huge uncertainty around the continuation of the Patrick’s day parade but Gareth Wogan of Wogan’s Build Centre stepped in to save the day.
Speaking at the launch Mr. Wogan announced that the fantastic prizes for the competition are a pizza party for the winning entry’s class from Supermac’s, and voucher for Funtasia. These prizes are sure to have every primary school child licking their lips in anticipation.
The groups also popped into St. Joseph’s CBS Sunday’s Gate and Peter Pan Creche on William’s Street and parade fever began to grow among the children with many of them excited at the thoughts of being able to walk in the parade for the first time.
Sensing this Gareth Wogan declared “We are delighted with the kids response to the colouring competition and to see the genuine excitement build for what will be one of the town’s best parades to date.”
Also in attendance at the schools and creche were members of the Drogheda Festival Committee, a group that started in January 2020 under Chairperson Sarah Taaffe to help save the parade.
Since then the group have worked on a number of very successful projects including a Púca Spooktacular down at the Old Abbey as part of Fáilte Ireland’s Púca Halloween Festival.
Geri Dillon and Ciara Boyle Muller of Wogans Build Centre, sponsors of the Drogheda St. Patrick’s Parade, with the Principal of Aston Village Educate Together National School Dermot McCullen helping to launch the St. Patricks Day colouring competition. Photo: Andy Spearman.
Sarah is encouraging as many businesses, groups and community organisations as possible to get involved sin the 2022 Patrick’s Day Parade.
“This is a wonderful addition for Primary School pupils to the celebrations and having the parade route pass along West Street is sure to be a huge treat for everyone but especially the children of the town who won’t have seen such a spectacle on our main street since the Fleadh Cheoil” she said.
Application forms can be organised via the Drogheda St. Patrick’s Day Parade Facebook page.
Sarah also reached out for volunteers to help on the morning of the parade and added that the Committee are still hard at work securing additional features which will make the parade a unique event in the history of the parade in Drogheda with a number of new initiatives to be introduced.
“These will all be announced on Thursday the 24th of February at the official launch of the parade, which will be held in The Barrel Venue, Mc Hugh’s.
In the meantime the Drogheda Festivals group were able to confirm that both of Drogheda’s Brass Band’s will perform and the parade will be led by The Lourdes Brass Band.
One new addition to the parade will be that Drogheda’s finest troubadour’s, the one and only Kieran Gallagher, will be letting his wonderfully talented Absurdist Pipe Band loose to entertain both young and old throughout the parade.
