Tarbert Comprehensive Awards Night
I had the pleasure of being one of a large crowd that descended on the PE Hall of Tarbert Comprehensive School for the annual awards night , a highlight of the school year. The night was full of laughs and with the old hands of Mr Denis O Se and Mrs Siobhan Fitzgerald guiding proceedings it all went off without a hitch.
The decision to move the ceremony from the Assembly Hall to the PE Hall has to be commended and it was vindicated last night by such a large turn out. For the first time the whole of the 2016 Leaving Certificate class had the opportunity to come and experience what is always a terrific night.
The night always has two guests from different parts of public life with people like Marcus Horan , Deirdre Walsh , Dr Patrick Kiely being past guests and last night was no different with past pupil Brian Scanlon and Irish rugby international Marie Louise Reilly doing the honours and handing out each award.
Mrs Fitzgerald immediately noted she was feeling old as Brian took to the stage for the first time to hand out to first couple of awards. He finished in the Comprehensive in 2007. He noted in his few words to the crowd that the school had done a lot for him and had helped put him on the road to stardom…. He is a primary school teacher in CBS in Limerick.
Marie Louise Reilly commended the school for the relationship between teachers and students and after hearing some of the stories about certain students from the teachers she reckoned a number of them would make good FBI agents !!
She also said she was going to steal the motto for the evening and the title of the School magazine “ Rising To The Challenge “ and put it up on the gym wall for all of her team mates to look at. From this author’s point of you it was a pleasure to be present last night , it was my second awards night since I left the School in June 2009.
The music interludes were also very good and provided the perfect way to give both presenters a chance to gather their thoughts while giving people the chance to see the musical talent within the school.
Both nights will remain with me for the rest of my life. I was part of three awards nights as a student and will always be eternally grateful to all in the School as they gave me great belief in myself at a time when I was still figuring out what I wanted to do with my life. All the students involved last night were well behaved and represented the school very well.
A night like that as was commented on numerous occasions last night doesn’t come together in a day or two and for that I think Jovita Delaney and the organising committee should take huge credit for what was a wonderful night and as I already mentioned the move to the PE Hall may have given Ms Delaney nightmares but it was a masterstroke. Long may that tradition continue.
To Mr Prendeville and Ms Delaney thank you so much for the invite to last night’s awards , I thoroughly enjoyed the night. Well done to the staff and students for making the night go like clock work. Roll on Awards night 2017… To the Class of 2016 , All the best for the upcoming exams this June.
By
Cian Mc Gibney
20/05/2016