Greystones Embraces Its Park Life

Yvonne O’Neill at Burnaby Park THURS7AUG25

t hardly needs to be said but, Greystones is in desperate need lately of a good kick up the community spirit.

Ever since everyone put the shutters down for those lockdowns, the town has been strangely disconnected.

Which makes the work of the Greystones Town Team all the more invaluable.

Whether it’s putting on a show for Paddy’s Day or Christmas, these volunteers look after all that annoying stuff that goes on behind the curtain – finding the budget, the best entertainment, the best deals on lighting, rigs, transport, staging, staffing, and generally making sure that everyone has a great big – and gloriously free – day out. And each and every time, each and every Greystonian does.

A perfect example of this is the town’s Picnic In The Park, the freshly-minted annual event that takes over the Burnaby for a day. On Saturday, August 16th, there will be live music from Robbie Doyle, Huegrass, Canadh Le Ceile and The Beating, a kids zone, a new AsIAm-approved sensory area, Joe The Magician, The Greystones Baton Twirlers and a trad session with Cruinniú, whilst puckish pugilist Kaci Rock will be our MC for the big day.

And the sweet thing is, sure agus begorrah, it’s all free. With nary a stall or vendor vying for your hard-earned pocket money either.

All you have to do is bring your own nosh-up, a blanket to sit (and later possibly sleep) on, and just enjoy being part of a rather kick-ass town.

Which sounds like just about the right time to thank all those sponsors who have made the day possible – Codling Wind Park, The Burnaby, The Beach House, the Leader funding gang, Greystones Nursing Home, Jokers, Vicks, Holohan’s SuperValu, Escape Boutique and BAM Construction. Nicely done, my sons.

As the big day looms, we caught up with the main ringleader, Yvonne O’Neill, this afternoon to find out just what goes into creating a perfect Greystones day…

You can check out the line-up for Picnic In The Park on Saturday, August 16th from 12pm to 5pm here, jump back through the years here, and catch the latest with the Greystones Town Team on Instagram here or Facebook here.