Westlife star joins Relay for Life in Newbridge

AS one of the biggest examples of the charity in Ireland, the 13the Newbridge Relay for Life took place weekend (6-7 June) as it grows and grows – and attracts celebrities!

“Shane Filan from Westlife, and his wife Gillian, were here,” explained local chairman Peter White.

“Shane is the Ambassador for Relay for Life in Ireland, and this was the first Relay he’s ever attended outside his own in Sligo, and we were very proud to host them,” he said.

And as if to prove how the local chapter is going from strength to strength, this year the Curragh Racecourse once again hosted just over 7,000 participants, and 163 survivors.

“That’s the greatest number of survivors we’ve ever hosted, it’s a huge increase on last year (126),” said Peter.

“Last year we took in €93,000, which allowed us to overcome the €1m mark over the last 13 years – we just got over the finishing line!” 

And as for the weather?

“Did you have sunshine and showers, like we had?” asked the Kildare Nationalist.

“God, no! It was showers, showers, showers,” laughed Peter.

“We had all the 5,000 candlebags with the family messages in them, and it was tough to keep them going, but fair play to all those who took part in those conditions.

“And to Moorefield GAA who answered the emergency call to lay them all out over an area about quarter the size of a football pitch, then lit them at dusk on the Saturday where the effect was fabulous, very emotional.

“Shane (Filan) arrived around 2.30pm and we brought him to meet the survivors first, then the people who fed them, and the people who pampered them, and he was nearly an hour and a half getting through all this. Then he went and met the 19 teams, three more than last year. 

"With the money it usually takes another three or four weeks to chase it all down. This year we had three choirs – one to open the Relay (Alan Brereton’s), one for the Candle of Hope [Eoin Lynch’s], and one for the closing ceremony (Lorraine Nolan’s) at 1pm on the Sunday."