People from around the Sliabh Luachra area and indeed further afield, can enjoy an evening of music and dancing while simultaneously supporting the Irish Community Air Ambulance.

Mike Condon from Kerry and locals Sheila Fitzgerald and Annmarie O’Riordan will be on stage at the CYMS Hall in Newmarket this Friday night for the event which is being organised by well-known promoter John Joe Herlihy.

Musician and singer Mike Condon needs no introduction to dancing audiences, having built up a strong following throughout Munster in a career spanning over three decades.

While Annmarie O’Riordan is recognised primarily for her wonderful renditions of traditional songs, she is equally at home with performing for a dancing audience.

Annmarie just recently released a new single ‘Do you Hear the Robin Sing?’ which is currently receiving extensive airplay on all radio stations. She will launch her brand new album at the INEC, Killarney, on September 25.

Having toured extensively at home and abroad with her band, Sheila is certainly no stranger to the stage. Just this week, Sheila has released a new single entitled ‘Santa Maria – A Prayer to Mary’. The new song will be aired on all radio stations from this weekend. An accompanying video, filmed at Tubrid Holy Well in Millstreet, will be launched shortly - watch out for it on Sky/Spotlight TV shows.

EMERGENCY SERVICE

The Irish Community Air Ambulance service is committed to providing safe, effective and timely emergency pre-hospital care to those seriously ill or injured in Ireland. It is Ireland’s first and only charity Air Ambulance service and also operates a fleet of ground services throughout the country. Since its launch in Rathcoole in 2019, the crew has been tasked over 1,300 times and credited with saving countless lives. From the base in Rathcoole, the Irish Community Air Ambulance can cover a 25,000 km² area within 30 minutes, thereby providing state-of-the-art emergency medical care. The Air Ambulance crew was tasked to 490 incidents across 13 counties during its first full year of operation in 2020, which increased to 512 incidents in 2021, over 14 counties. The crew has attended over 325 medical emergencies in the first four months of this year alone, showing an increasing need for the service.

“We are honoured to be chosen as the beneficiaries of the upcoming fundraising dance in Newmarket," CEO of the Irish Community Air Ambulance, Micheál Sheridan, said.

"It shows the value that is placed on the service locally. We have received incredible support from the people of North West and North Cork since day one and we are forever grateful. It’s the dances, raffles, quiz nights and events that have allowed us to bring hope to so many families in rural Ireland in particular.”

Meanwhile, a whole new series of dances will kick off in Newmarket, beginning with this fundraiser. Punters can look forward to Declan Nerney on September 16, Dermot Lyons; September 23 and Michael Collins on September 30. All enquiries to John Joe Herlihy on 087 9735113.