MUINTIR Ui CEDALLAIGH

A most cordial welcome is extended to all members of the Association and to all non-members wishing to learn more about the “Kellys”.

The next gathering will be held in Ballinasloe in May 2009. Details will be posted on this website at a later date. Please visit our Gathering 2007 Gallery for some recent photographs.

Kelly Clan Gathering 2009

The gathering for 2009 will take place on weekend 15th – 17th May 2009. We will be based at The Carlton Shearwater Hotel, Ballinasloe. More details here.

Summary of the Kelly Clan Gathering 2007

It is a long way from County Roscommon to Waikato District but a journey that has been made, in both directions, by members of my family since 1887. I had the great pleasure of attending the inaugural Kelly Clan Gathering in 1995 and was delighted to finally be able to come over again for the 2007 Gathering.

Gathering 2007: Sean O’Ceallaigh, Jenny Kelly, Joe Kelly, Joe Kelly, Michael Kelly, Bernie Kelly. More photos from the Gathering 2007 Gallery.

A fine programme, not least the printed version courtesy of Father Celsus, awaited us at the Abbey Hotel. However it was the Welcome, being Kellys, that was the vital part. To see and be re-acquainted with key figures, from 12 years ago for me, and making new contacts is what belonging to the Clan is all about. Many of us enjoyed dining together on the Friday night and the Abbey provided for us in style.

On the Saturday much was learnt by us all from Dr Joe Kelly’s lecture with stories of Kellys he had encountered around the world. Later a bus trip took us to significant Kelly sites within the county. A warming lunch was provided in Knockcroghery and afternoon tea at the Angling Centre in Athleague. All the historians involved knew their subjects well and the Kelly Clan is very fortunate to have their enthusiasm and expertise at hand.

The Banquet with guest speaker Pyers O’Conor Nash, the first cousin of the present O’Conor Don, was enjoyed by all. Roscommon is ancestral territory for both Kellys of Hy Many descent and the O’Conors so there is a shared history as well as kinship. Links between the O’Conor Clan and the Kelly Clan were further recorded by a presentation to the Guest of Honour Pyers O’ Connor of an engraved crystal plate in honour of the occasion.

On the Sunday Mass at the Church of the Sacred Heart was followed by the General Assembly, then lunch, rounded off a most memorable weekend. Most of us left with a list of e-mail addresses so that we can continue to keep up with contacts that have developed over a decade.

- Jenny Kelly, New Zealand