CARLOW Macra marked its 66th AGM recently with a changing of the guards.
Former chairperson Eric Driver and former secretary Mairead Sutton, both from the Tullow club, stepped down after two very successful years at the helm. They were replaced by Liam Carroll and Nuala Hayden respectively, both from the Ballymurphy club.
Mairead will now take on the great task of president of the county’s club, while Eric will oversee the competitions as competition’s chair.
The Carlow Macra board draws on the talents and enthusiasm of members of the five county clubs; Tullow, Ballymurphy, Baltinglass/ Rathvilly, Hacketstown and Carlow town.
According to Aoife Haskins, PRO, Macra is much more than an agricultural club now.
“It’s not all about farming anymore. It’s got its roots in agriculture but we do things like sports, social, debating and more,” she added.
The club, which is usually pretty quiet during the summer months, were busy recently planning their ‘get to know your neighbour’ day in Fatima Hall, Baltinglass.
The next big thing on the agenda for the club is their stand at the Tullow Show on Sunday 15 August. On the day, members from the Macra clubs across the county will be competing in the final of the farm skills competition.
“We have to put up fences, drive tractors, stack bales and drive the roller through an obstacle course… it’ll get a bit of a crowd. We did it last year and it’s a good opportunity to have something different on the stand,” admitted Aoife.