A cross-party delegation travelled to Omagh's twin town of L'Hay les Roses last weekend to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the signing in France of the twinning charter between the two towns. The anniversary celebrations were timed to coincide with the town's annual summer festival which was given a special Irish theme in honour of Omagh's attendance and participation.
During the anniversary ceremony both the Chairman of Omagh Twinning Forum, Councillor Allan Rainey and the Mayor of l'Hay les Roses Mons Patrick Seve commented on the strong bonds of friendship which have been established between Omagh and L'Hay les Roses and the range of projects which have been organised to strengthen those links in the past ten years. These range from sporting links to friendships which have developed between artists, and contacts between students and young people on exchange visits. As the twinning relationship moves into its second decade it is hoped to extend these contacts to include more educational and work related exchanges in addition to the sporting and cultural exchanges which are already in existence.
The delegation to L'Hay les Roses was accompanied by Kevlin United Football team which participated in a friendly soccer tournament which was organised as part of the summer festival. The team represented Omagh very well and came third in the tournament of nine teams.
Dancers from the St Enda's Scor Group and musicians from the St Enda's Ballad group also travelled to L'Hay les Roses and provided entertainment both during the festival and at the special community banquet. Their music and dancing displays were much appreciated by the people of L'Hay, who greatly enjoyed their contribution to creating the festive atmosphere.
A third element of the anniversary celebrations was a display of work by four local artists who travelled to L'Hay les Roses at the invitation of the Arts Circle to mount a joint Omagh/L'Hay les Roses exhibition for the weekend.
A return visit to Omagh by a delegation from L'Hay les Roses is planned for later this year.
