At the Oireachtas na Samhna in the Brehon Hotel the Gael Linn Photo Archive was launched with broadcaster Sinéad Ní Uallacháin as hostess for the event. A large crowd was present to view a large archive of photographs for the first time. There are also some interesting videos among them. Now anyone can spend some time going down memory lane with the many photographs in this fine collection.
Former Manager of Gael Linn National Schemes, Seán Ó Ceallaigh is in charge of this work and most of the photographs are related to the schemes he was involved with during the years he spent working with the organisation, especially the debating competitions, Slógadh, Siansa, Three Month Scholarships etc. The various galleries give a good insight into the work of the organisation over the years and they also show the many people who have achieved fame in various areas of life, who started out with Gael Linn schemes. It is a matter of pride for Gael Linn that many of these are still involved in Irish language matters. The public is welcome to download any photographs for their own personal use. If anyone has any additional information about any of the pictures, Gael Linn would welcome it. Also, if anyone in the town has any old photographs relating to the various schemes that they would like to share with the public, they will be posted on the site if appropriate.
Seán Ó Ceallaigh spent 47 years working with Gael Linn. Seán said, “It was lovely for me to see the site go live after spending almost 4 years working on it and it was also great to launch it in front of those who were present at the event. It was clear that they had a particular interest in the subject and I would say that there were at least twenty of them who have photographs of themselves in the photo collection. There are plenty of new galleries to add to the archive and that will be done in the coming years.”
Gael Linn was founded in 1953 and the list of initiatives undertaken by the organisation since then to promote the Irish language and our culture in general is endless.
You can contact Seán here: seanc@gael-linn.ie or 0872510980