All-Ireland winner special guest at Newbridge community showcase

EIGHT-TIME All-Ireland football champion Michael Darragh McAuley showed just how important Newbridge’s Community Showcase is to the area.

Mr McAuley is now chief executive officer of not-for-profit Sanctuary Runners, which is a community organisation which operates 40 groups across Ireland. The organisation brings together cross-community groups to engage in various activities including running and jogging.

His was just one of numerous community, social, cultural and sports groups which attended Newbridge Town Hall on Saturday 21 September as part of the showcase held between 1pm and 3pm.

Some of the groups which attended were Newbridge Pickleball, Foróige, Newbridge Kildare Lions Club, St Conleth’s Community Games, County Kildare Twinning, KWWSPCA animal rescue and Newbridge Athletic Club.

Orla O’Neill, who helped to organise the showcase explained that the event provided the “opportunity for long-standing and new residents to speak with representatives from the groups, to find out about their activities, where and when they happen”.

Ms O’Neill continued: “The event provided the opportunity for conversation, networking and making connections while people also had the opportunity to ask about volunteering opportunities in the groups.

“The showcase helped to acknowledge and celebrate the diversity in the town with a huge number of new people moving into the area and sharing resources.

"We hope to also create a community directory which will detail information about schools, the health system etc and break into those networks.” Ms O’Neill believes the event should be held again next year.

Newbridge Community Development, in partnership with Newbridge For All hosted the event.