The annual St. Gerard’s School Christmas Bazaar is a community initiative held in early December. Each year, in liaison with key staff, the organisational responsibilities for the event fall upon our 5th year student group. They run and manage and host stalls which range in variation from managing the finances, running the hugely popular casino, computer gaming competitions, CD’s, cakes and bakes to name a few. Santa Claus also manages to take time from his busy schedule to pay us a visit. He is, of course, a hugely popular attraction!
Our In-House Committee and Parents Association also devote their energies to the occasion. Our In-House Committee host a vast array of Christmas fayre which is, always, a kaleidoscope of colour to tempt the appetite. Our Parents Association hosted a ‘Pop the Balloon’ enterprise this year which went down a treat with everyone. Another popular attraction on the evening is our Auction. People travel from far and wide to attend this. It always provides more than expected with plenty of surprises and oddities included to raise curiosity.
The purpose of the the Bazaar is to raise funds for local charities in the Bray and Greystones areas. Every year, without fail, our parent body come out en masse to support our endeavours which results in local charities being able to provide direct support to those in need. In 2015 for example we raised in excess of €16,000 for our beneficiaries. It is a truly fabulous example of a whole-school community in action in a fun and festive atmosphere.
