Our golden jubilee has been well and truly marked with a series of events that culminated in a night of celebration in St Patrick’s GAA club on Friday 2nd June. The school had been open from Monday 22nd May for the local community to visit the school and view a huge collection of photographs that captured the history of the school. A busy crowd each evening came but the biggest crowd was reserved for the evening of Thursday 1st June. That evening we held a special mass to mark our special birthday. Led by Canon Toner with participation from past and present members of our school community, it was an event of true appreciation for our school. Our school choir, again led by Mrs Ziegesloo made sure the service was one to remember. The Friends of Cullyhanna then hosted a reception at the school as many visited to view the photos on display. Our final event was our evening on Friday 2nd when MC for the evening and our esteemed former Vice Principal, Mr Carragher entertained the large crowd with stories and interviews with special guest speakers. Our Chair of Governors. Sean Donnelly opened the night with a warm welcome and we were delighted to have large representations from the McCauley and Caraher families who represented our first two Principals, Hugh McCauley and Mary Caraher. These great educators were responsible for introducing many of our schools current traditions. Many great memories were recounted such as the winning McGreevy cup run from 1986, a team that was coached by Mr Henry Savage. Breige Lloyd and Irene Murray told us trade secrets of the kitchen from their many years of service and the school’s earliest and dearly missed Principals were remembered through interviews with their representatives Conor McCauley and Maria Caraher. Pat O’Hanlon was also a special guest speaker after his 17 years as Principal brought the school from strength to strength. The last speaker was Mr Quinn who paid homage to the great staff from the school past and present that are fully responsible for the schools enduring stellar reputation in the local community. A wonderful night was bookended by lovely food from Aishing Murray and her team and great music from Terry and Stevie. We would also like to thank Davis bakery for the donation of the cake for the event. A special thank you to the organising committee, the friends of Cullyhanna and the staff of the school who gave up so much of their time for all the events.
Menu
