5 minute read
Project Launch
PROJECT LAUNCH EAST BELFAST AUGUST 2019
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ABOUT THE LAUNCH
Welcome to the launch of the RECONNECT heritage project which aims to locate, and liaise with former members of the Independent Orange Institution (ILOI) and their families and followers in Belfast to collect and collate an oral history and archive of material to tell the story of this unique working class urban organisation through innovative modern means.
The I.L.O.I. has recognised the need and the urgency of reaching out to former members, their families and followers in Belfast where it was once a formidable force in working class areas. We are also aware of the difficulties given the passage of time and the age of many who would once have been involved.
The aim is to reconnect with former members and recognise their service and provide an opportunity for them to become involved in the project and the wider life of the Institution. In particular given the age of those former members there are welfare concerns and the project would also offer advice, and practical welfare support as well as an opportunity to reminisce and recollect the history of the Order.
The Institution recognises that they also hold a valuable oral history of the Institution in Belfast where it has in its original form become extinct. We also aim to collect artifacts and produce a history of Independent Orangism in Belfast and its legacy.
The ILOI was a unique cultural, political and social movement in Belfast and understanding it from a grassroots perspective will help us understand working class Belfast, its mind, motivations and means of expressing itself.
Independent Orange Order Twelfth Parade Shaftesbury Square, Belfast
A heritage project based on locating, and liaising with former members of the Independent Orange Institution (ILOI) and their families and followers in Belfast to collect and collate an oral history and archive of material to tell the story of this unique working class urban organisation through innovative modern means. Mission A heritage project rediscovering the rich roots, the historic role and the lasting relevance of Independent Orangeism in Belfast by reconnecting with former members and families.It will endeavor to locate and liaise with former members of the Independent Orange Institution (ILOI) and their families and followers in Belfast to collect and collate an oral history and archive of material to tell the story of this unique working class urban organisation through innovative modern means. Vision To Capture, Collate and Conserve the history and heritage of Independent Orangeism in Belfast through an oral history and artifacts collection Speakers
ILOI Reconnects with its Past
REV. MERVYN GIBSON Minister of Westbourne Presbyterian Church grand and secretary of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland
WALLACE THOMPSON Worshipful Master of Pride of Ballymacarett Purple Start ILOI No 6 former special Ministerial adviser; secretary Evangelical Protestant Society, editor of the Ulster Bulwark; Clerk of Session Knock EPC; Chairman of the Caleb Foundation
LAUNCH EVENTS
The RECONNECT Project will be formally publicly launched in Dee Street at the spot where the ILOI Orange Hall once stood. In a symbolic act of reconnection shared by members of the other Loyal Orders.
Garryduff Independent Orange band will play a short recital and the ILOI Imperial Grand Master will speak with a welcome back from members of the local Orange Order given by Rev. Mervyn Gibson.
PEACE CELEBRATION PARADE For the first time in over a 40 years the ILOI have been involved in organising a parade in East Belfast which was once one of their heartlands in East Belfast. As part of the Unionist Centenary Committee, they have helped organise a parade to mark the Centenary of the end of the Great War. The parade route runs from near where the last Independent Orange Hall at Knocknagoney was situated to the location of the Dee Street Hall where ILOI District No.3 met. A visit to Craigavon House and an act of commemoration and wreath-laying will mark the start of the day.
The Launch will move indoors with a number of short presentations on Orange Heritage and its benefits, The history of Independent Orangeism in Belfast and an introduction to the RECONNECT Project. The audience will enjoy lunch and afterwards will be included in a social event and fundraiser with live music and a chance to experience a Belfast Orange community event. LAUNCH LUNCH
Public Project Launch
Dees Street site of former ILOI Hall
Eastside Arts Festival
Family Fun Day
Visit and Act of Commemoration at Craigavon House
Parade from Cairnburn Road to Dee Street 10.30
Launch Lunch
