REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT A FAMILY DAY GARDEN PARTY ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT A FAMILY DAY GARDEN PARTY ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN SATURDAY, 3RD JULY 2010
Dia dhíbh go léir, agus fáilte. Good afternoon, everybody.
Martin and I are delighted to welcome you to the house this afternoon and to offer each of you the traditional céad míle fáilte - one hundred thousand welcomes - to Áras an Uachtaráin.
This is family day at the Áras - a very special day when we celebrate the gift of good, loving families where the nurturing bond of love is strong enough to withstand all sorts of pressures and problems. Family is and should be the rock that always stays steady no matter what comes or goes in our lives. And on a day like this we gather here as one even bigger family to have some fun, to enjoy a day out, to put aside our worries and cares and really enjoy the company and the craic all around us.
A lot of people have worked and are working hard to make this day one of very special, happy memories for each of you- the dedicated and welcoming Áras staff, our MC that great Kerryman, Dáithí Ó’Sé, the wonderful entertainers Bui Bolg, the magical street theatre youth group, the wonderful dancers of Irish National Ballet and the Dublin Youth dance company, the brilliant Clondalkin Youth Theatre and the fabulous musicians of the National Youth Orchestra, the legendary Artane Senior Band and the energetic Cork Music Works Group .
Keeping us safe all the while are the St. John’s Ambulance, the Gardaí and the Defence Forces and later on the Tour Guides will escort you around the house and tell you all about its history. And I’d like to say a special happy birthday to our first aider John Gold who celebrates his birthday today. But today you are making your own history at Áras an Uachtaráin. This is the day you came to this house - so have the best day of your life and of course the safest of journeys home when the day is done.
Thank you for travelling from far and near to be here.
Go raibh maith agaibh.