Wonderful golden jubilee celebrations at popular Mayo B&B business

ONE of the longest established bed and breakfast businesses in Castlebar is celebrating its golden jubilee - under the one proprietor.

Michael Derrig has been running the six-bedroom Green Bay, on the Mall, for 50 years, while his mother, Catherine, ran the establishment as a restaurant for 16 years before that.

Michael tells how he became involved in the family business: “We are 50 years in business this year and my parents ran the business before that.

“I can go back to September 1959 when my parents bought the Green Bay. My mum, Catherine Derrig, ran it up to 1975. She ran into bad health in 1975 and she passed on in July of that year.

“My dad, Philip, brought me down and signed the business over to me. It was a restaurant then with a small bit of bed and breakfast. We had only a few rooms at that time and I built on as time went by.

“My sister Nora McGrath and my sister Mary helped me out. I was only 19 years when I took over.

“It was pretty hard going. I had 26 years of doing the restaurant and the B&B by myself. I got really burned out.

“I had to make a decision to continue with one or the other. I liked the B&B so I decided on that.

“I like meeting people and it was getting busier and busier all the time. In the B&B people were coming to me and they were coming back again. I was doing breakfast for them as well as people from outside coming in for breakfast. I had to make some time for ourselves.”

Michael got married in 1979 to Noreen Heneghan and she and their children, Kevin, Brian, Catherine, Steven and Cathal, helped him out a lot.

Michael continued: “Even in my mum’s time we used to do a special rate in the restaurant where we would get people in for five days a week. We would give them a good deal.

“We got a lot of business from the county council office, the council yard and the bacon factory. They would all dine here and some would have weekly or monthly accounts.

“I don’t do airb&b or booking.com. A lot of my business is repeats. At this stage of my life I am not bothering with those.

“Thank God most nights I am full. People who come here come back again. Our location in the town centre is perfect from where people can walk down town.”

A WORD OF THANKS

The Green Bay has had a long association with the adjoining Castlebar Garda Station.

Michael explained: “Since my mother’s time we have been supplying meals to the garda station for people in custody.

“We used to do all the meals, breakfast, dinner and tea, depending on who was in custody.

“Since we closed the restaurant we are just doing the breakfasts.

“It's a long tradition with the gardaí.”

Michael said he would like to thank all those who have supported him over the years, those local, from far away, and those coming home on holidays from England, America and different parts of the world, that stayed and kept returning over the years.

TRAIN INCIDENTS

He concluded: “One incident I remember was when I was bringing a couple to the train, who had been here for the walking festival. But as we arrived at the station the train was pulling out.

“The couple panicked because they had to catch a flight in Dublin later that evening. I told them not to worry that I would get them on the train.

“We got back in the car and headed for Claremorris. We were really hopping it going up the road. When we got to Claremorris, thank God, the train was just pulling in.

“In another train incident we had an American couple staying and we brought them to the station and put their bags on the train. But before we could get off, the doors closed and myself and my son Steven had to travel to Claremorris.

“I usually have a lot of the walkers staying with me. One man from Athlone, Paddy McGrann, has been coming for 40 years.

“The location of the Green Bay is right and so are the prices. I do stick to my prices all year round. It a good policy.”