TY Trip to ATHY

Transition Year Students took a trip to the Athy Heritage Centre and Shackleton Museum. Here they explored and discovered the brave and tremendous journey by Ernest Shackleton and team on the Endurance to the Antartic. They got to see real life exhibits of this journey, including the ‘Sledge’ that carried them across the ice. Students also enjoyed doing the student activity where they had to find answers to questions about Shackleton.
We also got to see John Minihan room, a world renowned photographer. John Minihan is sometimes known as ‘the man who shot Beckett‘. It was very app giving that today is National Poetry Day to see his photo exhibition, which includes photos of Nobel laureates such as Samual Beckett and Seamus Heaney.
Our Transition year students also got to see the unveiling of a Made of Athy plaque in honour of a collaboration by Leonard Cohen and John McKenna and their contribution to music and arts. This plaque was unveiled by President Michael D Higgins. This project is the brain child of local Music connoisseur Colm Walsh. Students listened to the speeches which is a great educational learning experience for their Youth Leadership Programme (Toastmasters) class. We would like to thank Brian Dooley and the Athy Lions Club for funding an ISL interpreter giving us access the the speeches.
After this we visited an Art Mural by Dublin artist Solus who is famous for Street Art. He painted a mural of local boxer Eric Donovan. Solus’ paintings normally have boxing gloves in them. This represent putting up a fight to conquer life’s obstacles.
Transition Year Students also used the journey to and from Athy on the bus to share their favourite Poetry because the 2nd of May is National Poetry Day in Ireland. Everyone enjoyed today’s trip, it was educational, cultural and great fun.