Parades in Athlone and Moate on Saturday

It's all systems go for the St Patrick's Day parades in Athlone and Moate on Saturday.

The Athlone parade will get underway at 2.15pm, while the Moate parade will start at 5pm.

In Athlone, the grand marshal will be local Special Olympics basketballer Heather Dickson, while Scott Lowe will be the mini marshal.

Scott, aged 8, donated bone marrow to his five-year-old cousin Grace, who has been battling leukemia, and has become known as ‘Amazing Grace’.

The duo will lead off the parade which will be centered around the theme of 'World Culture'.

This year the organisers are aiming to keep the parade commercial-free and instead focus on community and while the parade will start moving at 2.15pm, the entertainment will commence at 12 noon.

The parade will start on the westside of Athlone – at the top of Connaught Street.

It will cross over the bridge, proceed down Church Street and Sean Costello Street, before turning down John Broderick Street and finishing at Burgess Park.

There will be three main areas on the day. There will be a family area at Burgess Park where entertainment will be provided.

An entertainment area will be in place behind Sean's Bar, where local groups will perform.

A display area will be located at the Civic Square and this will include a vintage display and a BMX display.

Meanwhile, Moate Partnership, together with Moate Action Group/Moate Community Office are working hard to make the parade happen, to again show Moate's 'Pride of Place' spirit.

The parade’s normal starting time has been altered due to the 6 Nations Championship Rugby. The game starts at 2.45pm, so the parade has been moved to a 5pm start.