Dear Member, By now we are all back after our summer holidays. Although the weather was not favorable this year I hope you had a relaxing time wherever you went. We held another successful Annual Dinner Dance in the Clayton Crown Hotel, Cricklewood on Saturday 18th April 2015. It was a very enjoyable night with music by Pat Jordan and Finnians Rainbow. The O’Connor Academy of Dance provided an excellent display of Irish dancing. Guests from Wexford were in attendance, notable amongst them were, The Mayor of Wexford Cllr George Lawlor, Under 21 hurling manager JJ Doyle, Billy Donnelly and members of the victorious Ladies junior football team. Other guests included the Ambassador of Ireland Mr Daniel Mulhall and and his wife Greta. Chief Whip and Government Minister Mr Paul Kehoe TD. We send a big thank you to all our guests for helping to make the occasion so memorable.
A.G.M.
Following the sudden death of our Life President Mr Noel Swaine the AGM was re-scheduled for Thursday 16th July 2015. There was a good attendance at the meeting, where we also congratulated Carmel Ryan and Dick Butler on becoming Life Members of the Association. As memberships are now overdue it was agreed that as an Association we need to push ahead and attract new members. If we were all able to ask one or more people to join we could easily beat last years record memberships of 94 people.
Mass
Our mass for deceased members in conjunction with the Fr Murphy’s GAA Club, was held on Sat 6th June at St Agnes Church, Cricklewood and was well attended. There is still room for improvement as it is very important that we honour those that have died.
Future Events
Our first function will be the Wexford Towns Reunion Buffet Dance that will take place at a new venue this year, The Mazenod Social Club, Mazenod Avenue, Kilburn London NW6 4LS on Saturday 17th October 2015. Music will be by On The Tear, dancing from 8.30pm until 1am. Guests from Wexford to attend. Tickets at £12.50 each should be purchased in advance from any of the contact names on the letterhead.
On Friday 27th November we will be holding a Race Night to raise funds to help cover the cost of our Pensioners Christmas Party. Venue is Maloneys Bar, 429 Willesden High Rd, NW10 2JN. Start time 9pm. If you would be interested in selling a race card 10 x £5 or sponsoring a race £25 please contact any of the names on the letterhead.
This year our Pensioners Christmas Party will take place at The Claddagh Ring, 10 Church Road, Hendon, London NW4 4EA on Sunday 13th December 2015 starting at 3pm. Members who are of pension age and above are invited to attend. If you would like to attend please let a committee member know before 1st December, so we can add you to our list of guests.
Congratulations
We send our congratulations to Committee member Nicholas McGrath and his wife Louise on the birth of their baby boy, Ethan Sean.
Also congratulations to committee member Sinead Ffrench on the birth of her little girl Eva. May a healthy and bright future be ahead for the new arrivals. We extend get well wishes to all members who are unwell at present, especially our Chairman Tommy Harrell. We wish them well for the future.
Sympathy
We offer our deepest sympathies to all members who have suffered bereavement during the year. To Jackie, Sean, Kiera, Carmel, Kenny, Finola and Margaret the family of the late John Ryan, a young man who died after a long illness fought with dignity. John was a keen sportsman and a very popular young man within the Irish Community in North London. It was also with deep regret we were informed of the sudden death of our Life Vice President, Mr Noel Swaine at his home on 2nd June. Noel celebrated his 80th birthday in January. Although he only joined the association ten years ago, he contributed a lot to it in that time. Noel was always helpful and very generous with his time. He was buried in Ballycarney churchyard alongside his late wife Helen, overlooking the banks of the River Slaney. We offer our condolences to his brothers Mervyn and George, his sister Betty and nieces and nephews. We send our condolences to Jim Howlin and family on the death of his mother Elizabeth Howlin, who was almost in her hundredth year. We also extend our sympathies to Marie Doyle on the recent death of her brother Denis Kavanagh. May they rest in peace.
Website Our new website is now up and running and can be viewed on www.londonwexfordassociation.com Memberships A reminder that memberships are now due. The annual fee is still only £5 and can be renewed using the enclosed membership form.
Date for your Diary Our 62nd Annual Dinner Dance will take place on Saturday 23rd April 2016 at the Clayton Crown Hotel, Cricklewood. Music will be by Ferns Band, The Moynihans. If you have any enquires or require further assistance or information about the Association, please do not hesitate to contact any of the of the Committee who will be happy to assist you.