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BBC News
17-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Deputy first minister 'deeply saddened' by summer camp cancellation
The deputy first minister has said she is "deeply saddened" that the organisers of a cross-community sports summer camp felt the need to cancel an event after an Orange lodge opposed the involvement of a "small group of children from a GAA club".Emma Little-Pengelly said there was "legitimate discussion to be had" about the GAA's levels of inclusivity - but that this was not "the time or the place".North Down Cricket Club had planned to host the event for young people from varied backgrounds, including some from East Belfast GAA, on lodge said there were concerns about the "perceived move of the GAA into the local community", which it said had come from some local residents. North Down Cricket Club then decided not to go ahead with the original event after it said the "spirit of the camp was at risk of being lost".Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster programme, Little-Pengelly said "cricket is a sport that brings people together" and summer camps like the one planned were for "children to get to know each other and work with each other."She said she had spoken to the club, which is based in Comber in County Ireland said on Wednesday it hoped to move the event to Stormont in July. 'Totally unacceptable' - first minister Also speaking to Good Morning Ulster the First Minister Michelle O'Neill said the cancellation was "so disappointing"."I am actually quite dismayed that anyone would think that young people coming together through the medium of sport, just because they come from a GAA background, that that is not appropriate," she said."I just think that is just totally unacceptable by anybody's standards."She added "sport should be something that unifies people, no one should be excluded that they come from a Gaelic background."
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Local hockey camp helps players succeed
The Farm Tough College Prospect Camp for roller hockey players was founded by Peter Dale, a six-time roller hockey world champion.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Children's camp cancelled as Orange lodge opposes GAA involvement
A cross-community sports summer camp in County Down has been cancelled after opposition to the involvement of a "small group of children from a GAA club". North Down Cricket Club, based in Comber, had planned to host the event for young people from different backgrounds, including some from East Belfast GAA, on Friday. However, a local Orange Lodge said there were concerns about the "perceived move of the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) into the local community", which it said had come from some local residents. The cricket club said following comment on social media, the "spirit of the camp was at risk of being lost" and it had decided not to proceed with the event. North Down Cricket Club said it had been an important part of Comber since 1857 "with deep roots, proud traditions, and a strong sense of identity". It added: "Cricket is a global game made up of many faiths and cultures, and that is reflected here at the green. What unites us is the game. "The sport summer camp was created to give young people from different backgrounds a chance to enjoy cricket, try something new, and simply have fun. "The plan was to involve 10 different local sports and community groups - including organisations supporting ethnic minority communities - with the aim of building friendships through shared activity. "A small group of children from a GAA club was just one part of that broader mix." The cricket club said as "reaction to the event grew, we felt the spirit of the camp was at risk of being lost". " With regret - and out of respect for all involved - we chose not to proceed," its statement added. Goldsprings of Comber Orange lodge posted a message on social media saying that "many local residents have raised reservations about the GAA's cultural and historical affiliations". "Specifically, there is unease regarding aspects of the organisation that have, in the past, celebrated or commemorated individuals associated with paramilitary activity. "For a shared and peaceful future, such actions are viewed by some as divisive and incompatible with a truly inclusive society. "Residents have made it clear that until the GAA takes meaningful steps to ensure it is fully inclusive and sensitive to the history and identity of the Protestant, Unionist and Loyalist (PUL) community, its presence in Comber would be viewed with regret and opposition by many in the Comber area," the lodge added. "This issue is not about opposition to sport, but about ensuring that all organisations operating in shared spaces demonstrate respect for all traditions and work proactively towards reconciliation and mutual understanding." A spokesman for the Orange Order told BBC News NI the organisation had no comment to make about the issue. In a statement, East Belfast GAA said it was "disappointed" that its youth academy members "won't be enjoying a planned community sports event". "This was a great opportunity to engage with those who share our values of respect, togetherness, and inclusion," it said. "The regrettable cancellation won't stop any of the organisations involved from continuing their great work in building bridges, promoting peace, and sharing spaces for sport." The club said it looked forward to "future opportunities to collaborate with like-minded groups from Belfast and beyond". In a post on X, First Minister Michelle O'Neill said: "Children should be allowed to play together at summer camp without facing intolerance. "These developments are deeply worrying and unacceptable. Sport has the power to unify. Political representatives must call this out. "We need to send a clear message that we will continue moving forward together to build a brighter society and overcome such unacceptable intolerance." Alliance assembly member Kellie Armstrong said North Down Cricket Club had encountered "hostility and bigotry from some quarters". "This summer scheme has now been cancelled due to some online commentary. "It is a disgrace the club felt it had to do that in the wake of such criticism. "Those who have criticised the club do not represent the vast majority of people in Comber or further afield in Strangford," Ms Armstrong added. "The people who have criticised the club and forced the postponement of the summer scheme need to realise denying children the right to play sport together for purely sectarian reasons is not acceptable on any level."
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
CHRISTMAS IN JULY: A beautiful friendship
Most kids with disabilities have no friends. None. One Canadian university study put membership in that lonely kids' club at 53%. Sad but true. Not so at Variety Village. Which brings us to the bustling lobby of that iconic east end sports centre the other day. Georgio Gonsalves, 12, glances out the big windows and his eyes spark. He bounces up and down. 'K!' he exclaims. K as in Kaden Jaglowitz, 13. The two boys are best buds. They have not seen each other for all of three days. They love each other. I mean real love. 'Kaden is so sweet,' Georgio tells me. 'I love Georgio,' says Kaden. They have other things in common, including Down syndrome and heart surgery scars and the like. Loneliness, too – until that vanished three summers ago at Variety Village's legendary camps. By chance, their moms had enrolled them in the introductory sports camp. At the end of day one, Georgio's mom, Mary Kapetanos, came to get him. 'This is Kaden,' Georgio said, solemnly. 'He's my friend.' It was music to Mary's ears. Georgio had classmates, of course, but those relationships ended at the school bell. No one invited him for sleepovers. There were no BFFs – until that Variety camp, and Kaden. Kaden's mom, Julie, says: 'The camp counsellors told us Georgio got all sad about something and was sitting alone on a hill (on Village grounds) and Kaden came to him with a water bottle and put his arm around him, then they went off to play.' The boys have been a dynamic duo ever since. 'They're like brothers,' says Julie. 'Georgio is the sensitive kind of kid and Kaden is the nurturing type,' says Mary. 'Their relationship is so sweet, so kind and tender.' STROBEL: Banner season for Sun Fund! Variety kids thank you for $125,709 boost STROBEL: Saquib is on the run, Variety athlete breaks new ground STROBEL: Variety Village regular 'helps make me who I am,' brother says Their moms say the boys even have their own language, which sounds like garble to you and me but is Shakespeare to them. The moms, both single, are like sisters now. Kaden and Julie have become part of Georgio's extended Greek family. The moms and sons went to Disney World together. In the Village fieldhouse, the boys demo their basketball skills for Sun photographer Jack Boland. Basketball is their sport, born of a Variety summer camp. They play for a junior Special Olympics team called the Basket Hounds. They learned to boogie at a Variety summer dance camp. Fave tunes include JoJo Siwa's Boomerang. Hey-hey-hey, I don't really care about what they say Won't let the haters get their way I'ma come back like a boomerang. Hey-hey-hey. Haters gonna hate. A total stranger once marched in off the sidewalk and asked Julie, who was on her porch with baby Kaden, 'does your child have Down syndrome?' The gall. 'I'm never wrong,' said the woman and marched off. Kaden spent weeks in ICU and could eat no solids until he was two. He was tiny. 'People used to come up and ask, 'Don't you feed your baby?'' says Julie. Baby Georgio, meanwhile, faced so much resistance from educators – one rejected him after an 'interview' at age two-and-a-half – his mom, a Montessori teacher, started her own school. Every parent of Down syndrome kids I've met over decades of the Sun Christmas Fund for Variety Village has similar stories. Society may be more open to the disability world these days, but we're a long way from real 'inclusion.' But back to Kaden and Georgio. Tuckered out from basketball, the boys get out their 'Barbies.' That's what they call them all. Their stash ranges from Iron Man and dinosaurs to anime to actual Barbies, including one with Down syndrome features. The boys use them to work out thoughts and feelings, to confront troubles at school. For instance, one Barbie says to the other, 'Oh, yeah, you said I was stupid,' and a third doll cuts in, 'No, you're not!' And so on. You get the idea. Two boys boisterously playing with dolls would draw stares in many places. But not at Variety Village. 'I don't know anywhere else, other than our homes,' says Julie, 'where kids can foster real friendships based on who they are without having to mask any part of themselves to fit it.' The boys are back at Variety's summer camps in July – starting together with swimming, though they both fret that they're going to sink. Other camps, for kids of all abilities, include taekwondo, art, drama, track and field and rock climbing – and basketball. You are lucky if you have a friendship like that of Kaden and Georgio. Variety Village remains its backdrop. You can help keep it so. Any donations in June to the Sun Christmas Fund – Christmas in July? – will be tripled thanks to Canadian Tire Jumpstart and a private donor, to a total of $150,000. Donate at Could be the start of a beautiful friendship. northchannelmike@
