David Denieffe: 'It is about supporting our volunteers'
Speaking during the GAA, LGFA and Camogie Association’s official launch of the inaugural Club Summit, delivered by Amazon.ie, is GAA Planning and Training Committee Chairperson David Denieffe, at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
By Cian O'Connell
GAA Planning and Training Committee Chairperson David Denieffe says that the aim of the inaugural Club Summit is to empower, enthuse, and engage volunteers.
The event takes place at Croke Park on Saturday February 7 offering practical support, learning and networking opportunities.
"The Club Summit is aimed at anybody involved in a club," Denieffe explains. "It is about supporting our volunteers and supporting our clubs.
"Our clubs are the heartbeat of the organisation. We'd have no GAA without the clubs, and we'd have no clubs without the volunteers. It is really about supporting them.
"The aim of this is to empower our volunteers, to empower our clubs. We want them to leave empowered, enthused, and engaged in order to drive our clubs on."
Help and resources are available with Denieffe adamant that club officers and coaches will benefit from attending at GAA headquarters. "A day like this will help to make people aware of the breadth of supports that are available throughout the organisation," he explains.
"What we're trying to do is highlight the level of those supports and all the types of different supports that are available.
"The real power in the GAA is the volunteers. The fact that we've so many volunteers with different types of experiences is crucial.
"The breadth of abilities and capabilities we have in the organisation helps to empower our clubs and we need to keep getting the best out of what we do for our clubs and communities."
Denieffe is urging those involved in clubs to attend on February 7. "There is a lot of support there and we're doing a lot of really good stuff, but what an event like this does is it puts it all together," Denieffe says. "It shows people everything that we do.
"That is the real power in an event like this, and we're really encouraging people to engage with it because they'll learn so much.
"This isn't a series of PowerPoint presentations, this isn't about people standing up, talking at people.
"This is about people getting access to workshops, meeting other volunteers, meeting people who can supply services and supports to their clubs. That is why we want people to come along to find out about."
Tickets for the Club Summit, costing €20, are available now via gaa.ie/clubsummit
The full Dugout discussion forum panellists include:
- Declan Hannon
- Conor McManus
- Peter Canavan
- Liam Sheedy
- Denise Masterson
- Diane O’Hora
- Shane Curley
- Niamh McGrath
- Ursula Jacob
- Cahair O’Kane
- Denis Walsh
- Tom Ryan
- Helen O’Rourke
- Karen Dessain-Gelinet