Paddy (104) to be parade grand marshal in Clara

Two long-serving community figures will be celebrated when the St Patrick's Day parade is held in Clara next month.

The national feast day celebration will take place in the town on March 17, and will be notable for the fact that Paddy Claffey, believed to be the oldest man in Ireland, is planning to cut the ribbon and serve as grand marshal for the event.

A native of Ferbane, Paddy is 104 years old and is due to turn 105 in April.

The inimitable Bertie McMahon once again the organiser-in-chief of this year's Clara parade.

The renowned community figure is celebrating 50 years of organising parades locally, dating back to 1976 when he brought the local community together for the town's Christmas parade.

As preparations progress for this year's St Patrick's Day festivities in Clara, Bertie praised the local community for its continued support of the event.

"We don't have a committee, but when the time comes around I know I can call on the Clara community for their support," Bertie said.

Bertie stated that four bands have been lined up to participate in this year's parade, the Clara Town Band, Mullingar Town Band, the Mountbolus Pipe Band and the Athy Town Band from Kildare.

He hopes to have a similar number of floats participating in this year's parade to that of the 2025 showcase, when there were over 60 entries on the day.

"There will be live traditional music and song prior to the start of the parade at 12.30pm and the national anthem will be played by local man Podge Kavanagh before the parade gets underway," Bertie stated.

As he looks forward once again to this year's event, Bertie added that further details about the Clara St Patrick's Day parade will be revealed in the coming weeks.