France trip planned to complete town twinning

Some scenes from the formal twinning signing in Kilcullen in March 2019, clockwise from top left: The then Mayor of Kildare, Cllr Billy Hillis, and the then Mayor of St Contest, Stephanie Yon Courtin, signing the Twinning Charter; Members of the two twinning committees enjoying the 2019 Kilcullen St Patrick's Day Parade; A presentation of Carve On leather folios to the visiting delegation; and local Irish dancers entertain at the signing event.

Most people will no doubt recall the visit in 2019 by a delegation from the town of St Contest, near Caen in Normandy in France, writes Noel Clare, when the first ceremony to formally twin with Kilcullen took place. The plan then was that a delegation from Kilcullen would travel to France to complete the twinning process with a ceremony in St Contest. 

The plans stalled a little when the St Contest Mayor Stephanie Yon Courtin was elected to the European Parliament in May 2019 and then with the arrival of Covid. Now plans have been put back on track and a delegation will travel from Kilcullen on the last weekend in April to complete the twinning process. 

Hopefully the twinning will provide opportunities over the coming years for exchanges on various levels between the two towns — especially for our young people through our schools.

Anyone who would like to become involved with the twinning committee or who would like more information is welcome to come along to a meeting on Tuesday February 7th at 8pm in Fallon's Snug.

Meantime, a French family in St Contest are looking to link up with a Kilcullen family for a possible exchange in July of this year. The family have two boys — Paul is 15 years old and Pierre is 12. They would welcome two Irish teenagers in their home. If anyone is interested contact Noel Clare on 087 6497619 and direct contact via email can be arranged from there.

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