Charlene Bloe

Ballinasloe Horse Fair & Festival Directors have announced Charlene Bloe as the new Festival Co - ordinator for this year's event.

Donegal native Charlene has completed a degree in Business Studies with Arts Management in the Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dun Laoghaire and has over four years experience working on a variety of aspects with festivals and events.

She brings to the part - time position a wealth of creative event experience ranging from Donegal's reknowned largest Multi - disciplinary Arts Festival Earagail , Carlow County's premier Festival attraction Éigse Carlow Arts Festival and the unique South East Maritime heritage Festival Event - Waterford's John Roberts Weekend. She has also been an Associate Producer on special projects with AOIFE ( The Association of Irish Festival Events) for the past two years.

Charlene will juggle her freelance portfolio of festival and event management between the Horsefair, specialist clients as well as acting as festival coordinator for the North Tipperary County Council Arts Office. Ms. Bloe has had a very good insight and passion for Europe's Oldest Horsefair having worked as Assistant to the Coordinator for the past two years.

She has first hand knowledge of the event and looks forward to enhancing the programme structure and profile of the Ballinasloe Horse Fair & Festival this year. Charlene hopes to develop and enhance on the previous success of the fair & festival. Alongside continuing and improving on the long established horse fair, she hopes to develop and present a festival programme for all members of the community in particular the local schools and youth.

Fair and Festival Chairperson Brendan Bradley in announcing details of the appointment stated " The Committee and stakeholders to the Festival and Fair are very fortunate to have someone of Charlene's qualification, breadth of experience and indeed insight into the event - we look forward to seeing her stewardship of Fair Week as a further period of growth and professional development for the event and we encourage everyone to give her their fullest of support".

Focusing on her priorities for the event Charlene stated "I look forward to developing the children's programme of the festival into something that can be an annual outing for the local schools, as well as increasing the number of youth and family events throughout the two festival weekends."

Charlene commented "This is an extraordinary event, there is ambition and admiration locally for the event which must be fostered and developed. I look forward to working with the fair & festival team , Town Council local community and businesses to ensure that the 2007 event is genuinely unforgettable."

Charlene ‘s role will be to act as Festival Co- ordinator for all programming , developing and marketing aspects of the Family Festival while acting as Event Controller to the Co - ordinating Committee and facilitating the deliver of the core logistical elements of the week for the Town Council and the stakeholders.
The Directors confirmed that a further contracted appointment to drive a Sponsorship Development Stratagey for the event has been made to source and manage significant regional and national sponsorships, with details being made public at the end of the month.

The Ballinasloe Horse Fair & Festival will run from 29th September to 7th October, full details of the festival programme will be announced over the coming months.