Offaly school celebrates 25 years of its Millennium Pledge

AS 2025 draws to a close, Scoil Bhríde Ballyboy is proudly celebrating a remarkable milestone: the 25th anniversary of its Millennium Pledge.

First established in 2000 under the leadership of then Principal, Ms Patricia Grimes. The pledge set out a simple yet powerful commitment to nurture kindness, generosity and compassion within the school and the wider community.

A quarter of a century later, that promise remains firmly at the heart of school life. Over the past 25 years, pupils, staff, and families have worked together to support countless charitable initiatives, both locally and abroad.

One of the school’s longest-standing partnerships has been with Fr John Fortune, who spent many years working in Ewuaso, Kenya. Through this partnership, Scoil Bhríde’s school community has helped fund projects for Ewuaso’s Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary Schools, Church, Women’s Refuge, Water Schemes, and individual families facing hardship.

Closer to home, the school has supported a wide range of worthy causes, including Down Syndrome Ireland, Offaly Hospice, St Vincent de Paul, Meals on Wheels, the Ashling Murphy Memorial Fund, Offaly Comhaltas, and the Ballyboy Community Development Group, among many others.

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This year, the school launched its latest charitable initiative in support of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). In June, pupils introduced a special collection of handmade greeting cards, and since then they have raised over €1,800. The project has since expanded to include a 2026 Seanfhocail Calendar and a new range of Christmas cards. Every aspect of the product creation, from drawing and design to colouring, packaging, and labelling has been completed by the children themselves.

The Factory in the Fivealley, a local printing company, have ensured their end products are of a high quality for their customers. The cards and calendars are now available to purchase locally in Doolan’s Emo/Londis, Kilcormac, Kelly’s Stationery Shop, Birr, and online at Ballyboy4Charity.etsy.com. All profits will go directly to MSF.

Staff at Scoil Bhríde emphasise that supporting charitable initiatives does more than just help important causes, it instils values of empathy, kindness, and responsibility in pupils. These qualities, they say, guide children toward becoming adults who will strive to make the world a better place.

As the school community celebrates this meaningful milestone, it does so with a spirit of gratitude, unity, and hope for the future.

Ní neart go cur le chéile — our Community Succeeds in Unity.

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