Glaslough Harriers membership has grown by 35% over the past two years. This growth simply would not have been possible without the exceptionally strong volunteer base. At AGMs and committee meetings over the years, the topic of “opening the books” to new members constantly arose. The consensus amongst committee members and club coaches was that we felt uncomfortable at the prospect of turning new members away – in particular juvenile members.
The obvious solution to us was that if we could recruit more coaches, we could accept more members. The recruitment drive began, and we added new coaches to our team. The uptake from new volunteer coaches, coupled with the knowledge and experience of our existing coaches, was the driving force in enabling us to accept new juvenile members.
With the help of Athletics Ireland we are continually trying to improve the standard of coaching within our club. Special mention must go to Athletics Ireland Regional Development Officer Paul McKee for his help in this regard and to Athletics Ireland Club Development Manager Dermot McGranaghan, who with club stalwart Eamon Hackett introduced our Club Development plan. This has given us a roadmap to success.
“Volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they just have the heart.”
Behind the scenes of course, a strong committee of volunteers are helping things run smoothly. Without our Juvenile Secretary Sabrina McCooey keeping everyone informed of all upcoming events, we wouldn’t be involved in as many competitions as we currently are. Our coaches, committee members and club volunteers have been instrumental in our recent growth.
Impressive work from Glaslough Harriers
Our first ever summer classes for children with additional needs was held in this summer. Spearheaded by our Club Children’s Officer Joanna McGrath, this initiative introduced new members to Glaslough Harriers and the world of athletics. With the help of our club coaches, volunteers from Errigal Truagh Special Needs and parents of these young athletes, this initiative was a resounding success. It gives us something to build upon for the future and will help us on our path towards being a more diverse and inclusive club.
Another factor in our growth has been our positive attitude towards social media. Our PRO’s Martina Flood & Amy Hamill have been instrumental in promoting the positive impact that our club has on the local community. If Martina can’t get to an event to take photos she is constantly reminding those attending to “take plenty of pictures!”. This positive engagement online has without doubt helped with the growth of our club and is something we are constantly building on.
Our senior group is expanding rapidly thanks to many factors. A significant element is our Couch to 5k programme every winter – this annual event has been driven by Gavin Treanor & Micheál Flood and it keeps a steady flow of new, enthusiastic members joining our already vibrant and diverse group.
In addition, over the last few years, we have received great sponsorship from Upstairs Downstairs Furniture and more recently our current main sponsor Silver Hill Duck who have signed up to a three-year sponsorship deal that has enabled us to continually improve facilities at our track for our ever-expanding club.
The driving factor behind the success and growth of our senior group however has been without doubt, the commitment of our Senior Head Coach Aidan McKenna. His continuous dedication to our Senior group is unmatched. Having an established structure in place with fixed training nights and our athletes receiving expert coaching is something that we are very proud of and lucky to have.
