A successful launch of the Golden Jubilee edition of Journal of the Butler Society, Volume 5 Number 4 was held recently, with over 40 members and members of the public in attendance at The Heritage Council Headquarters (the former bishop’s palace beside St Canice’s Cathedral), Kilkenny on Friday May 12 last.
From a venue, catering and support viewpoint, the evening was well done, the launch enjoyable and capped by a personal tour with Michael Starrett, C.E.O. of the eighteenth century venue, he having first launched the journal and the editor having replied.
Some new membership sign-ups were received on launch night; some journals sold, and some copies placed with attending members and journal contributors alike.
Two weeks later, the mail out of the journals (some 450 in total) was accomplished by Mark Reade, Peig Butler and David Butler, working from Cahir, Co. Tipperary (another Butler stronghold!), which was ideal from a delivery viewpoint, with the friendly and very accommodating Cahir Post Office. This was a full day (five-hour) affair, but nevertheless enjoyable and effective.
Our treasurer, Mark Reade, has a supply of journals with him for members as they (re-)join and all currently paid up members will have already received a journal. If you have not, and would like to renew your membership, there is no better time than the present!.
Our editor has satisfied our copyright institution and local studies libraries requirements and also ensured all non-member contributors have received copy of their article/journal. A list of holdings by various institutions of Butler Society journals is being compiled by David with a view to filling in some gaps where such institutions are missing recent editions.