CORK PEOPLE ARE being asked to open their homes and towns to some special visitors this October – marching bands.

The call has been put out for people to host the bands for the October 19 International Parade event, which will take place in Cork City on 19 October this year. It is an event being run as part of The Gathering, and will involve bands from all over the world descending on the county for Rebel Week, one of the city’s key events.

Criteria

Towns and districts of Cork are being asked to host one marching band in their locality – and if they are interested, they must carry out a number of activities to meet the criteria. These are:

• Create a Rebel Week Committee who will meet regularly from the beginning of March
• Act as principle liaison with the band director
• Provide a sufficient number of host families to accommodate all band members (up to 50 members)
• Provide transport to and from the arrival / departure airport and to all events scheduled for the duration of their visit
• Create an educational and hands-on cultural programme unique to their town / district (arrival Wednesday 16 –departure Sunday 20 October)
• Provide all meals and social activities, eg a welcome reception/event
• Create a float to compete and participate in the Cork Rebel and Culture Parade which will be held in Cork City on Saturday 19 October.

A fund of up to a maximum of €7,500 will be provided towards the costs of being an official host town/district.

Padraic O’Kane, organiser of Rebel Week, said:

Cork people are unquestionably among the friendliest people on earth, so we’re expecting a huge response to this. This is a unique opportunity for the people of Cork to become intrinsically embedded into Rebel Week. By hosting an internationally-renowned marching band from the UK, the US or even further afield will help drum up support, hit the right note and bring a real sense of ceremony and colour to Rebel Week. We will work with these towns to make sure the process of hosting over 50 people for a week is simple and straightforward.

The closing date for applications from towns / districts is 22 February. Full details on how to take part in Rebel Week are available at www.corkrebelweek2013.com or by emailing Louise@corporate.ie.

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