Looking Back: A happy and splendid community effort

Following recent 'Looking Back' posts relating to the Kilcullen involvement in the International Special Olympics held in Ireland 20 years ago, I came across my own report on KildareNetNews, the experimental internet local news service I operated with Trish Whelan for more than six years before setting up the Diary, writes Brian Byrne. 

There are 70 photographs with the report. Unfortunately the resolution I used then, to save on bandwidth, was very low, so the quality is poor. However, I have enlarged and enhanced them as much as I could with some preservation of detail, and most people are recognisable.

Some of the photos I'm showing on this post, but all 70 can be viewed here. Lots of familiar faces, sadly many of them passed on, but also many children who have now grown up. A record of a very happy and splendid community effort at the time.

The original report I reproduce below.

17 June 2003: It was just like the old days. Kilcullen threw a parade and everybody came, writes Brian Byrne.

The event was last night's official welcome for the Kenyan Special Olympics athletes, and every organisation known in the town (and some that I didn't know existed) was represented with floats and people.

Particularly evident were many hundreds of children in the parade and lining the streets, a signal that what was a quite small community only a few years ago is bursting in growth and is in fact the fastest-growing town in the country, whose population has doubled in two years.

And the bonus of the fine weather added the final note to the carnival atmosphere.

The parade ended up in Kilcullen's Community Sports Centre where the Kenyan delegation was welcomed by Philomena Griffin, chair of the local Host Town committee. She said she hoped that the people of Kilcullen would be cheering on their Kenyan guest athletes when the Games got under way.

Frances Al-Sayyed of KARE, the county's organisation for people with special needs, also welcomed the Kenyans, and said their time in Kilcullen 'is a great opportunity to experience Irish life'.

Mrs Milcha Omenda, the delegation leader, said they had not expected such a welcome and they were simply at a loss for words to express their feelings about such an 'enormous' reception.

"It is a welcome of love, joy and laughter," she said before introducing each of the delegation to the hundreds of people who thronged the hall. She was presented with a St Brigid's Cross as a memento of the occasion.

Entertainment was provided by the Grennell acting school and John Kelly & Friends.

During the next few days the Kenyans will be taken on a tour of Gilltown Stud, will go to Naas Races, and a Farewell Meal will be held at Danny Sullivan's Guest House on Thursday night, with entertainment by the Kilcullen Drama Group, the local set dancers, and the Landers Irish Dancers.

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