Festival Family Fun Day on Sunday June 17

This year’s Fethard Festival Family Fun Day will take place on Sunday, June 17, with the usual fun of the fair by the Town Wall park, with live music and lots of stalls!  Other events over the weekend will include a Treasure Trail on Saturday, June 16, and the Annual Duck Race (660 Ducks) on the river Clashawley.

On Sunday, June 17, the traditional Fancy Dress Parade will commence at 2pm from Fethard Ballroom, where all entries in the parade are to assemble at 1.30pm to prepare for the parade. The Fancy Dress Parade will be led by Banna Chluain Meala, up through Main Street and down to the Town Wall, where Banna Chluain Meala will treat you to a musical display while judging takes place.  This year we have fantastic prize money for the parade sponsored by Fethard and Killusty Community Council.  All sections, individual, group and floats are more than welcome to participate and pick your own theme.  Further queries regarding the parade please contact Marian Gilpin, The Valley, Fethard.

At the Medieval Town Wall we will have all the usual ‘Fun Fair’ and side shows including ‘Uncle Mike’ with his Pet Zoo, which is always very popular with all age groups. Pat Culligan and Catherine Newport will host their very popular annual Dog Show after the parade and this event attracts entries from all over the county. Local group ’The Sheehans’ will provide live music throughout the afternoon, playing all your favourite tunes.

Along the variety of food and craft stalls available, Fethard Rugby Club will provide their usual comprehensive family food stall where you can sit down and relax while children enjoy the huge array of amusements available, very kindly sponsored by the Magnier Family at Coolmore.
So, pleae do come along early as it looks like it's going to be another fantastic ‘Fethard Festival’ and ‘Family Fun Day’ again this year.

Patrician Presentation Secondary School

Patrician Presentation Secondary School TY Pupils with their teacher Ms M.A Fogarty and Ms. Y. Murphy on a recent visit to Delphi Outdoor Pursuit Centre in Co. Mayo.

Well Being Healthy Active Week
A Wellbeing / Healthy Active Week was held in the school during the week, May 14 to 18. Various activities ranging from healthy treats to spinning exercises to yoga were organised daily by a group of hardworking teachers and the week ended with our Annual Sports Day on Friday, May 18. The weather was kind on Sports Day and a great time was enjoyed by all. Well done to all to the Transition Year pupils who were involved in the organisation of the event.

House Exams
We encourage all our students to study hard in the lead-up to their End of Year Exams this week. They have all worked well during the year and intense revision will lead to pupils achieving their potential in these end of year assessments.

Study for Exam Students in Patrician Presentation Fethard
The school is happy to facilitate Supervised Study in the school during this final week of term for both Junior Cert and Leaving Cert pupils. They have been assigned a Study Centre with a supervisor from 9.05am to 3.50pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of the week ending June 1. We advise them to eat well, get enough sleep and pace their study over the next few weeks. Best of Luck to all of them.

Fethard Athletic Club ‘Fun Run’

Taking part in the ‘Walls of Fethard’ 6K Road Race and Fun Run were L to R: Linda Grogan (Dundrum AC), Catherine Fogarty (Dundrum AC), Ann Marie Boland (Clonmel AC), Elaine Horgan (Clonmel AC) and Suzanne Shine (Clonmel AC).

On Thursday evening last, May 24, the colourful calvacade of athletes passing through the town in the ‘Walls of Fethard’ 6K Road Race was a sight to be seen. The quality of the entries made up for the less than expected turnout. Thanks to the local Garda, stewards and catering staff for a well run and organised event on the evening.

The results were as follows: Ladies, 1st Clare Annan (Clonmel AC), 2nd Linda Grogan (Dundrum AC), 3rd Suzanne Shine (Clonmel AC). Winners Over 35, Brid Quirke (Dundrum AC); Over 40, Catherine Fogarty (Dundrum AC); Over 45, Martina Ryan (Thurles Crokes); Over 50, Sinead Kennedy (Dundrum AC). Mens Results, 1st William Stephens (Coolquill AC); 2nd Colm Bradshaw (Dundrum AC); 3rd Michael Gleeson (Templemore AC); Over 40, Patrick Bowe (Moyne AC); Over 50, Niall O’Ceallaigh (Clonmel AC); Over 55, Michael Moore (Dundrum AC); Over 60, Ned O’Brien (Clonmel AC); Over 65, Matt Alexander (Coolquill AC); Over 70, Michael Dundon (Thurles Crokes AC); and Junior, Stephen McDonald.

Tipperary do well in National Community Games


Good weekend for Tipperary at Aldi Community Games National Finals, held in UL, where Co. Tipperary won gold medals in three events, silver in seven events, bronze medals in six events and pewter in four events. The standard of competition was exceptionally high. The competitors from Fethard & Killusty were: Isobel Maher in the U14 Backstroke Swimming, Fiona Barry in the U12 Recitation and Micheal O’Rahilly in the U12 Handwriting, who all proudly represented Tipperary and had a very enjoyable weekend. Well done to all.

Please Note the County Finals of Athletics will take place in Moyne A.C. on Sunday, June 10.

Isobel Maher from Fethard photographed with Paul O’Connell at the Community Games finals. Isobel represented Tipperary in the U14 Backstroke Swimming.

Social dancing at Fethard Ballroom
Fethard Ballroom continues its social dancing on this coming Sunday night, June 3, to the very popular music of ‘Checkers’. All are welcome to come along and enjoy a great night’s entertainment and social dancing from 9pm to midnight. Admission is €9, which includes tea and cakes.

Bicentenary of Holy Trinity Parish Church

Holy Trinity Parish Church c.1900, from the National Library's Lawrence Collection consisting of 40,000 glass plate negatives from 1870-1914. The images were produced commercially and capture scenes of that period throughout Ireland. The bulk of the outdoor images were taken by Robert French, the Lawrences' chief photographer.

Holy Trinity Sunday in Fethard marked the beginning of the parish preparations for the Bicentennial celebrations to mark the foundation of Holy Trinity R.C. Church that will take place next year. Mary Hanrahan, Chairperson of the Fethard Historical Society, was invited to speak at the three masses in the Parish to outline the history of the Church. Mary’s brief was to give a summary of the history of the Church in Fethard with particular reference to the devotion to the Holy Trinity which figured so largely throughout the centuries.
Tradition tells us that St. Patrick himself passed through Fethard on his way to Cashel to convert and subsequently baptise King Aengus. It is quite possible that he spent time in the area preaching to the native Irish and possibly explaining to them, with the help of a shamrock, the doctrine of the Holy Trinity as he is reputed to have done in his ministry. It is worth noting that there is a medieval carving of a bishop, possibly St. Patrick, to be seen on Chapel Lane, which obviously belonged to a religious building and might indeed refer to the story of St. Patrick’s time in the Fethard area.

Be that as it may, we know that the Augustinian Canons who arrived to establish the medieval parish Church, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, in the early 1200s had been placed under the special protection of the Holy Trinity by their founder St. Augustine. It was St. Augustine in his renowned work ‘De Trinate’ who expounded the theology of the of the Three Divine persons in one God and his adherents obviously brought that devotion with them.

Augustinian Friars arrived in 1305, to found a priory outside the Town Wall. Their mission was to minister not just to the Norman populace within the Town walls but also to the native Irish who lived in its hinterland. Their church, always known locally as the Abbey, was dedicated to the Holy Trinity. In 1334 Pope John XXII declared that the feast day of the Holy Trinity should be universally observed throughout the Christian church and in the 1500s the Medieval Parish church was rededicated to the Holy Trinity.

During the Middle Ages, devotion to the Holy Trinity became a very important part of religious observance. In Fethard a fair was held annually over three days on the Fair Green beginning on Holy Trinity Sunday. The three medieval wooden statues that once resided in this Church comprise St. John the Baptist, to whom the church was first dedicated, Christ on Calvary Rock before the Crucifixion, a particularly medieval devotion, and most appropriately the Holy Trinity. The latter depicted God the Father as a seated figure in wearing a triple-tiered papal crown, holding a crucifix representing God the Son and adorned with a dove to represent the Holy Spirit.

Following the dissolution of the monasteries by King Henry VIII of England, the Parish Church was granted to the new reformed clergy and subsequently became part of the Protestant Church of Ireland. The Abbey and its lands were ceded to Edmond Butler, Lord Dunboyne who lived in Kiltinan Castle, and it may also have been occupied briefly by the clergy of the Reformed clergy, but it then fell into disuse an it was to be almost 150 years before the Friars were officially allowed to return.

At this time the medieval wooden statues were hidden to save them from being destroyed. They were somehow kept safe throughout the worst days of religious persecution to reappear in the 1700s when the Roman Catholic population of Fethard was finally allowed to have a public place of worship. This new church was built in 1704 outside the Town Wall in the corner of what is now known as the school sports field. Continuing local tradition this church too was dedicated to the Holy Trinity and the medieval wooden statues were installed as objects of veneration.

Fr. John Ryan, a native of Donohill, came to Fethard in 1802 and it was his mission to build a Catholic church within the town walls. Fr. Ryan is credited in a contemporary document as having been the ‘architect of the new church, aided by a local first class mason.’ The church is Georgian in style with some Spanish influences in its façade. As Fr. Ryan was educated for the priesthood in Salamanca it is quite possible that he was influenced by the Spanish architecture he saw during his sojourn there.

The site for the new Church was donated by Mr William Barton of Grove, the local Protestant landlord, and he also donated one hundred guineas towards the building fund. To comply with the laws of the time, Mr Barton imposed a yearly rent of one shilling. In 1926, his successor, Captain Robert Barton, remitted that rent for all time. The work on the new church commenced on April 2, 1818, the foundation stone was laid on April 26, and the church was opened officially with Mass on Trinity Sunday, 1819. Like its predecessors it was dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity.

Dean Cantwell bought the Presentation Sisters to Fethard in 1862 followed by the Patrician Brothers in 1873. Both orders went on to found primary and secondary schools in the town The secondary schools were amalgamated in the early nineties and continue to serve the community as the Patrician Presentation Secondary School. The primary schools amalgamated eight years and the new school opened on September 1, 2010 as Holy Trinity National School, thus continuing a long-honoured tradition in Fethard.

Cemetery Mass in Killusty this Friday, June 1

The annual Cemetery Mass will take place in Killusty on Friday next, June 1, at 7.30pm. All are invited to come along and remember our loved ones and friends that have passed on to their eternal reward.

Fethard Historical Society Appeal for Volunteers
As reported recently, The Fethard Historical Society has received funding from the Heritage Council to create a Digital Mapping ‘app’ of historic locations in Fethard. The society is now organising a transcription day on Saturday 9th June in the Patrician Presentation Secondary School Computer Room. Volunteers are needed to transcribe the text from the No.13 Fethard Historic Town Atlas onto the computer. All that is needed to take part are basic typing skills and everyone, members and non-members alike, are most welcome to participate. Come along for the morning, the afternoon, or an hour or so- whatever you can manage. Refreshments will be provided. If interested, please contact Mary Hanrahan 087 9009722 for further details.

Senior Citizens’ Club Summer outing
Fethard Senior Citizens’ Club’s Summer outing is on Tuesday, June 5. Coach departs from the Town Hall at 11am.

The committee and members extend sympathy to the Delany family of Parsons Hill on the death of their mother Kitty, RIP, who was an active member of our committee over three decades. Ar dheis De go raibh a anam.

Fethard & Killusty Community Lotto
The numbers drawn on May 23, were: 1, 16, 20 and 30. There was no jackpot winner and no ‘Match Three’ winner so the following drawn tickets received €50 each: David Kane, c/o Rita Kane; Anne Butler, Main Street, Fethard; and Nellie Ryan, St. Patrick's Place, Fethard.

The following ‘Lucky Dip’ winners also received €50 each: Amanda, The Valley, Fethard; John Carroll, Lonergan's Bar; and Mary Shanahan, c/o Nellie Ryan.

Next week’s draw takes place on Wednesday, May 30. The Jackpot is €10,000 and the Jackpot seller’s prize is €1,000. All proceeds go towards community projects in Fethard, and we thank you for your on-going support.

GAA Sports Development Lotto
The numbers drawn on Friday, May 25, were: 1, 11, 17 and 29. There was no jackpot winner and three ‘match three’ winners who received €75 each: Therese Downey, Rosegreen; John Kenrick, Cahir; and Jean Morrissey, Kilknockin View, Fethard.

The next draw takes place on Friday, June 1, in Burke’s Bar at 7.30pm, when the jackpot is €20,000 and the sellers prize is €1,000.

The committee of Fethard GAA/Sports Centre Development Lotto would like to thank all our supporters near and far who participate in our weekly lotto draw. The funds raised are used to promote sport in the local community.

Happy '100th Birthday' Nellie

Nellie Purcell, Congress Terrace, Fethard, photographed on Monday last doing a bit of gardening while also looking forward to celebrating her 100th Birthday on Thursday, May 24. Nellie wasn’t too impressed with Tipp’s performance in the hurling championship game against Limerick last Sunday and is hoping for better days to come.

Nellie Purcell captured while celebrating her 100th Birthday in Raheen House, Clonmel, on Thursday, May 24, having a dance with her nephew-in-law Michael Shine, Congress Terrace.

Social dancing at Fethard Ballroom
Fethard Ballroom continues its social dancing on this coming Sunday night, May 27, to the very popular music of ‘Peter Burke’. All are welcome to come along and enjoy a great night’s entertainment and social dancing from 9pm to midnight. Admission is €9, which includes tea and cakes.

Fethard Faces and Places from the Past
The following are a selection of photographs recently added to the Fethard Faces and Places from the Past page on Facebook, also published here for the benefit of our readers who are not on Facebook. The Facebook page is used for sharing old Fethard photographs with other members of the group and is open to all interested in joining. Send any comments or photo information to fethardnews@gmail.com

Twenty Years Ago – June 1998


Pat Looby, artist in residence at Nano Nagle Primary School Fethard, pictured with pupils while working on their art project for the school yard. June 18, 1998.






Pat Looby, artist in residence at Nano Nagle Primary School Fethard, pictured with pupils while working on their art project for the school yard. June 18, 1998.



Twenty Years Ago – January 1998

Mouse Morris whispering some encouragement to 'His Song' who was second favourite for Cheltenham Champion Hurdle 1998.


Killusty 6th class winners of the Fethard Credit Union Primary Schools Quiz in Fethard Ballroom, January 22, 1998. L to R: Dawn Russell, Edward Hickey, Shane Aylward and Claire Ryan.


L to R: Patricia Lee, Damien Donovan, Sharon Duggan and John Kearney, taking part in the Fethard Credit Union Primary Schools Quiz in Fethard Ballroom, January 22, 1998.


L to R: Mike O’Hagan, Lory Kenny, Alan O’Connor and Christopher Sheehan, taking part in the Fethard Credit Union Primary Schools Quiz in Fethard Ballroom, January 22, 1998.


L to R: P.J. Morrissey, Killian Cannon, Christopher Needham and William Doyle, taking part in the Fethard Credit Union Primary Schools Quiz in Fethard Ballroom, January 22, 1998.

Fethard News
Items for inclusion on this website and on the weekly Fethard News page on The Nationalist can be emailed before noon on Mondays to fethardnews@gmail.com or delivered by hand to Joe Kenny, Rocklow Road, Fethard.

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