Portlaoise Comhaltas mark year of success

The recent Annual General Meeting of Comhaltas, Portlaoise branch, reviewed a year of exceptionally successful activities endorsed by returning all outgoing officers.

In her secretaries report Pauline Bell noted that the branch had been feted from Tennessee in March to Belfast in August but above all was the joy of the younger music students and dancers who took to the stage at Ceoil na nÓg and Laois Fleadh at Clonaslee in April.

In his chairperson’s address Jason Conroy thanked all who made the hosting of Leinster Fleadh an outstanding achievement, the second time in four years that the branch members and volunteers had shown such enthusiasm. Thanking management and staff at Scoil Críost Rí and St Mary’s CBS, he noted the complimentary comments of the visitors who deemed it the ‘Gold standard’ venue for a fleadh. Recalling the many musical and dancing qualifiers for the All-Ireland Jason said “it was marvellous that the Cup which the branch donated to mark the distinguished long service of P J and the Phelan family was won by Taidhg Dalton thereby listing a Portlaoise member as the first named winner”.

Activities included providing support to other organisations such as the Lion’s Club, GAA, and the Old Fort Festival which coincided with the Leinster Fleadh. Members welcomed news of further development of the Fort Quarter as a cultural and heritage focal point for the county and looked forward to assisting in that work.

With a panel of eleven regular teachers and a number of standby specialists, the challenge of planning and organising a wide range of activities for an expanding membership - 60 new members joined in September - led to the creation of an additional post of Music Class Co-ordinator to which Shirley Cahill was appointed.

Sustaining activities such as trips abroad, a headline act at Belfast Fleadh, St Patrick’s Day and related events, while keeping weekly subscriptions very affordable, was only possible with the support of generous sponsorship and donations revealed in the detailed financial report presented by hon treasurer Laura Thompson. The meeting expressed gratitude to the local representatives and local authority officials for their support and looked forward to providing further entertainment at other events during the EU Presidency. The ceremony at Laois Co Council Chamber marking the particularly successful Laois representation at Wexford Fleadh 2025 was particularly noted as an endorsement and encouragement of the many volunteers who organise and sustain Comhaltas year after year.