{"id":464656,"date":"2026-05-24T10:35:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T10:35:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/464656\/"},"modified":"2026-05-24T10:35:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T10:35:13","slug":"newtown-charity-concert-raises-e10000-for-local-and-national-causes-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/464656\/","title":{"rendered":"Newtown charity concert raises \u20ac10,000 for local and national causes &#8211; Community"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"\"> THE Newtown community came together recently for a memorable and uplifting evening of music at their local church, St Patrick\u2019s, raising \u20ac10,000 to be shared equally between a fund for the church itself and Breakthrough Cancer Research.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Featuring an outstanding line-up of local performers alongside acclaimed singer-songwriter Charlie McGettigan, the concert was a powerful celebration of music and community..<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cThere was something truly special in the atmosphere from the very first note,\u201d said Mary Kennedy who MC&#8217;d the event. \u201cIt was an evening filled with warmth, generosity and incredible music. You could feel the sense of togetherness in the church \u00e2\u0080\u0092 people coming together not just to enjoy wonderful performances but to support causes that really matter.\u201d A particular highlight of the night was Charlie&#8217;s performance, who stepped in to headline the concert after Paul Harrington was unable to attend due to illness.\u00a0 Musical director Ollie Hennessy praised the performers who took to the stage.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3850374_1_articleinline_1_281_29.jpg\" alt=\"Charlie Mc Gettigan performing at the concert Photos: Annabelle Hamil \" title=\"Charlie Mc Gettigan performing at the concert Photos: Annabelle Hamil \" class=\"card-img\"\/>Charlie Mc Gettigan performing at the concert Photos: Annabelle Hamil <img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3850375_1_articleinline_2_281_29.jpg\" alt=\"Kevin Rowe, Des Lacey and Ollie Hennessy, the musical director of the event\" title=\"Kevin Rowe, Des Lacey and Ollie Hennessy, the musical director of the event\" class=\"card-img\"\/>Kevin Rowe, Des Lacey and Ollie Hennessy, the musical director of the event<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3850376_1_articleinline_4_281_29.jpg\" alt=\"Organiser James Brennan and Siobhan O'Toole\" title=\"Organiser James Brennan and Siobhan O'Toole\" class=\"card-img\"\/>Organiser James Brennan and Siobhan O&#8217;Toole<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3850377_1_articleinline_2026.05.09_Charlie_McGettigan_Newtown-11.jpg\" alt=\"Eddie Sinnott playing the trumpet \" title=\"Eddie Sinnott playing the trumpet \" class=\"card-img\"\/>Eddie Sinnott playing the trumpet <\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cThe standard of musicianship on display was exceptional,\u201d he said. \u201cThe local talent in this area is extraordinary and to see them share the stage with an artist of Charlie\u2019s calibre \u00e2\u0080\u0092 all in aid of such worthy causes \u00e2\u0080\u0092 made the night incredibly special.\u201d Parish priest Fr Declan Foley also spoke of the deep sense of community reflected throughout the concert.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cThis event is a wonderful example of what can be achieved when a community comes together,\u201d he said. \u201cThe generosity, goodwill and voluntary effort behind this concert speak volumes about the spirit of Newtown. The funds raised will provide real benefit, both locally and nationally.\u201d One of the key beneficiaries of the night was Breakthrough Cancer Research, a cause chosen in memory of local young man Ois\u00edn Kelly. Speaking on behalf of the charity, Sin\u00e9ad Lalor thanked the organising committee and reflected on the deeper meaning behind the evening.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">\u201cWe are profoundly grateful to everyone involved in organising this concert and to all who supported it,\u201d she said. \u201cThe funds raised will support vital cancer research, but beyond that, the night was a beautiful and heartfelt tribute to Ois\u00edn. It meant so much to our family to see the community come together in his memory.\u201d The organising committee also extended thanks to a wide range of sponsors and supporters, including local businesses, raffle prize donors, community organisations, parish representatives, schools and media partners, whose continued backing was instrumental in delivering such a successful event.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"THE Newtown community came together recently for a memorable and uplifting evening of music at their local church,&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":464657,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[61,60,80],"class_list":["post-464656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/464656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=464656"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/464656\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/464657"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=464656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=464656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=464656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}