Ballinagore marks the centenary of st patricks school
Ballinagore people are looking forward to the celebration of the 100-year anniversary of their national school this weekend, and great preparations have been going on since last May.
The Centenary Committee, headed up by school principal Gillian McBride, comprising a selection of parents and past pupils, have compiled a commemorative book – From the Inkwell to the Net. This book will be available for sale on the celebration day, Sunday September 28, and boasts an excellent array of stories, poems and a spectacular amount of photographs submitted by the people of the parish who attended the school.
There are even photos going back to 1905 and the committee are delighted with the response from the locals who handed over heirlooms so that they could appear in the book.
The current school has offered education to the locals since 1914, and although very different to the previous 1851 school, it was state of the art in its day.
How fantastic that a small community had the foresight to invest in the future of its children considering World War I had begun and money was difficult to come by.
The current school was built on a site donated by the Perry family, who owned the local mill and the first teachers were husband and wife team, Joseph and Annie Pilkington. In those days the school was fuelled by open fires and had no electricity or running water. Today the community are proud to say that they have a fantastic building with great teaching staff and facilities and hope that this will continue well into the next century.
Order of events
Events begin at 2pm with a welcome, followed by Mass and refreshments, entertainment and a chance to mingle with old school friends. There will be exhibitions and displays from past and present and of course sales of the book, From the Inkwell to the Net.
If you attended Ballinagore National School, or your parents or grandparents did, then this celebration is definitely worth attending.
There will be ample car parking on the day and senior citizens will be well catered for.
The Centenary Committee extend to you their warmest welcome and look forward to seeing you on the day.
• contacts: ballinagore.ias@eircom.net: 057 9331256; see ballinagorens.com