There are big plans again this year for the highly-anticipated Poor Farmers livestock auction – a one-of-a-kind night in Ardara that’s always great craic.
The 12th Annual Poor Farmers Association (P.F.A) Charity Auction will be taking place in Teague’s Bar on Friday the 29th December 2017 at 9pm.
To date the P.F.A has raised a grand total of €256,749 for charities, and they are hoping to build on that success again in 2017.
This year the proceeds will be split between the:
- Cancer Care West
- Ardara Defibrillators Fund
- Treatment and rehabilitation funds for Mickey Jo McMonagle and Stephen McNelis
The P.F.A. auction will be as usual, a great night’s craic. Furniture and fixtures are removed and replaced with bales of hay to sit on with saw-dust covering the floors. Who knows what’ll be up for sale!
Teagues Bar
A wide and varied range of items will be up for auction – all for three great causes. The stage is also transformed into a bidding table for the auctioneer taking charge of proceedings over the usual dance floor which also morphs, on the night, into ‘the mart ring’ but seeing is believing so be sure to make your way to Teague’s Bar on the 29th Dec.
In the past, lots have included sheep, heifers, bags of turf, chickens, gates, bags of nuts and bales of silage to name but a few!
Phone bids are taken on the night, contact the committee for info:
Cathy Boyd 087 613 3085
John Breslin 087 826 5334
Gerard McHugh 087 648 8628
For updates visit Teagues Bar on Facebook here: www.facebook.com/teaguesweebar
Where did the Poor Farmers Association come from? Here’s the funny story:
“He’ll find it for you, but when you do find it make sure you throw a few coins into the box.” Anyone in who has visited Teagues Bar in Ardara and have had the pleasure of being served by the lovely Eileen Teague will had heard her say this now famous phrase ( well, Famous in Teagues Bar)
The Poor Farmers Association and subsequent Poor Farmers Auction was established on a cold wet night in the winter of 2005, where a couple of locals were sat at the bar counter in Teagues Ardara putting the world to right.
The St Anthony box on the counter was in tatters and needed a new cover, Eileen was giving out that it needed to be fixed up, “How could you expect anyone to throw a few coins into the box when you couldn’t see St Anthony on it,” she said.
Lord knows Poor St Anthony was owed a small fortune, what with all the things he had located in Teagues…Car keys, mobile phones….to name but a few.
The bar man Paul Molloy decided to cover the St Anthony box with an Ardara GAA lotto envelope but instead of writing St Anthony’s name on it, he wrote “The Poor Farmers Fund” , to the amusement of his customers.
Around a hundred euro was raised in the St Anthony Box and it was decided the money would go to the Donegal Hospice. The idea was given legs and grew and grew it was discussed at length to hold a livestock Auction for the Poor Farmers in the Bar, with all the proceeds going to the Donegal Hospice. So, the Poor Farmers Association was formed, the Livestock Auction was to be held that Christmas in Teagues,
Twelve years later, the committee with all the original members are continuing to go from strength to strength, raising huge amounts of money for local charities.
James Mc Hugh ( “The Black Doctor” as he known locally in Ardara) and a founding member of the Poor farmers Association tells us “ This Auction is a unique experience for those people from both the farming community and those looking for an unusual night out over Christmas while also raising money for worthy charities.”
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