by Stephen Stack — The Kerryman Newspaper

The 15th Moyvane Village Festival was declared an outstanding success by organisers, following a packed weekend of events ranging from a vintage machinery display to the selection of the winner of the ‘Boro Queen’ contest.

The festival opened on Friday night with a lively ‘Céilí Mór’ at the Marion Hall, with music provided by the Kilmallock-based Seamus Sheehy Band. The céilí included a wide range of traditional Irish dancing with a special emphasis on set dancing – among those who danced the night away were local residents Juila Stack and Ita O’Connell.

The four-day festival continued on Saturday with the ‘Boro Buffet’ staged at the Marion Hall. This event was a celebration of local cuisine and all produce used was locally sourced. This all-ticket event drew a large attendance of 150 people.

Those who were fortunate enough to have a ticket for the event were treated to an evening of good food, fine wine and a few songs from local residents, including the former Republic of Ireland soccer team manager Eoin Hand and Aine Cronin.

The highlight of Sunday afternoon’s events was the staging of the Vintage and Treshing display, which attracted a large crowd of exhibitors and locals to Moyvane Community Centre. This is the sixth year of the event, which had over 150 exhibitors from around Munster and beyond.

There was a wide variety of vintage machinery on display including vintage tractors, cars, engines and other machinery dated between the late 1920s and the early 1950s. The display was the latest in a number of vintage events to be held in the county this year. This was the last vintage rally of the season, which runs throughout Ireland from Easter Sunday to October each year.

The young children of the parish were also catered for at the event in the form of a special karting track and a bouncy castle.

The Marion Hall staged one of the highlights of the festival with the selection of the Cork/KerryTourism-sponsored Boro Queen on Sunday evening. In front of a large audience of family, friends and supporters, a total of 10 contestants competed for the title.

The winner of the contest was the 18-year-old Cork based student Celina Mulvihill, who is a native of Kellod, Moyvane. She was sponsored by the local pub, Mairead’s Bar.

“I am privileged to have been selected as the winner of the Boor Queen,” an overjoyed Ceilina told The Kerryman. She is one of four girls in a hugely talented musical family and was the only contestant to sing on the night and not suprisingly, singing is one of her main interests. She is currently studying to become a qualified holistic and beauty therapist and she hopes to be fully qualified within three years.

The other contestants were; Michelle Roche, Marguerite Lynch, Anne-Marie McEvoy, Aileen Stack, Aoabhlinn O’Connor, Yvonne O’Connor, Kerry Mullins, Michelle Dore and Patricia Leahy.

The Master of Ceremonies was local man Joe Enright, who did an excellent job throughout the evening. Each of the ten girls brought a flavour of their own personality to the stage. This contributed to an enjoyable evening for all those present at the Marion Hall, where it was a case of standing room only.

Each contestant was sponsored by a local business and each of the girls had her own escort for the evening. The winning escort on the night was Gerard Barrett. Local musical talent was also on show at the event including live performances from the Mary Mulvihill School of Singing, Tom Moore and the Moyvane Comhaltas Group.

A special presentation was made to Tadhg Kennelly on behalf of the Moyvane Development Association by Kerry County Board Chairman, Sean Walsh, in recognition of the pivotal role played by the Listowel man in helping his club, Sydney Swans, win their first AFL Grand Final in 72 years.

Tadgh was described as ‘half a Moyvane man’ in a direct reference to the fact that his grandmother is a native of the Kilbaha area of the North Kerry village.

Events concluded on Monday with the highlight being a draw hunt staged by the Kerry Hunt Club that attracted over 40 dedicated huntsmen and women from throughout Munster.

A special mention must go to the members of the Moyvane Development Association for staging an excellent weekend of varied entertainment, which had something on offer to suit all tastes.

All proceeds from the festival will be reinvested into a number of community based projects.

Moyvane Development Association Village Festival 2005