IT WAS a weekend of multiple birthdays for the Traditional Irish Horse Association ‘family’, starting with the stalwart himself Hugh Leonard.

The former TIHA chairman (2013-2021) celebrated his 90th birthday last Saturday with a gathering of family and friends in Co Meath, an occasion marked by a ‘Treasure Box podcast’ of 90 years of Leonard family history.

His daughter Louise, the current TIHA secretary, was at Mullingar where the TIHA performance championships were hosted.

Another cheerful steward, again none the worse for wear, was Jennifer Haverty. She and son David share the same birthday (September 13th) but with David back at college, his 21st birthday party was held instead last Saturday. Jennifer even obligingly cooked a full-Irish breakfast for all the guests the following morning before reporting for duty at Mullingar.

And once the very successful day was wrapped up, there was another birthday party for TIHA chairman Kevin Noone to attend back home near Mountbellew as his father Denis celebrated his 82nd birthday on Sunday.