Mayo town to celebrate unique 40-year anniversary later this year

COMMUNITY NOTES: BALLYHAUNIS - WESTERN PEOPLE (APRIL 15 EDITION)

The twinning 40 years ago of Ballyhaunis with Guilers, a town in northern France, is to be marked later this year.

“The outgoing committee has applied to Mayo County Council for funding to enable us to mark the occasion later in the year,” explained Rena Burke, one of the committee members.

She said the committee is hoping for “a trip down memory lane with a function in Ballyhaunis community hall, a display of photos, etc”.

“It is our intention to invite some guests from Guilers to visit Ballyhaunis as they have a Mayor and council officials in Guilers. There is active contact between some families but there is no committee in place in Guilers at the moment.”

Rena was the official translator for the ceremony 40 years ago which twinned Ballyhaunis with Guilers, a town in the Brittany region of northern France. An article in the 1985 edition of the Annagh magazine describes a “very large attendance” on Easter Monday at 3pm to witness the official twinning ceremony with Senator Jim Higgins and Dr Michael Brogan (president of the local twinning committee) representing Ballyhaunis and Guilers mayor Louis Ballard, as well as Paul Guyomorc, president of the Guilers town twinning committee, representing the French town. Kevin Flanagan was master of ceremonies for the event at the Parochial Hall.

In the exchange of gifts which followed the signing, the French visitors presented Ballyhaunis with a sun dial, reciprocated by an icon from the Book of Kells from the Ballyhaunis hosts.

The sun dial was installed at the Parc Guilers, which was officially opened after the signing ceremony with the Irish army’s pipe band leading a procession from the hall to the park, an embankment of rock and seating areas adjacent to the town library and then the local playground. The sun dial remains in situ but the trees planted at the park’s opening in 1985 were removed two years ago by Mayo County Council.