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A UNIQUE event has been organised by a group of Ennis teens to keep alive the spirit of one of their friends who lost her life to cancer.

The ‘C the Bright Side’ Masquerade Fundraiser will celebrate the positive outlook of the late Ciara Conroy while raising funds for the support group CanTeen Ireland.

The brave and inspiring 16-year-old passed away from cancer in 2010.

A young fashionista, Ciara kept a blog inspiring people to C the Bright Side.

When she was diagnosed with cancer, Ciara was supported by CanTeen, a nationwide support group for young people aged 12 to 25 years old who have or have had cancer.

CanTeen organise day and weekend outings throughout the year and provide a much needed supportive social network for teenage cancer patients and survivors.

A member of the organising committee said, “Ciara made many friends through CanTeen and this provided her with an unspoken support system that helped her flourish in times of difficulty and offered her strength.”

Now ten of her friends from Coláiste Mhuire and St Flannan’s College in Ennis have decided to raise awareness and support for this charity in memory of their good friend.

The masquerade fundraiser will take place on April 3, in the West County Hotel, Ennis.

The event will allow those attending to put their best dress or suit on, as it is a formal wear event. Those who don’t have their own masks can get some at the door on the night.

The event is strictly over 16s, with parents, teachers and older friends also invited to attend.

One of the organisers, Doria Orfali, who is Ciara’s cousin, said that there would be a bar sectioned off and available to the adults only on the night.

“Entertainment for both adults and young adults will be provided separately to ensure everyone will enjoy the evening,” she said.

Tickets for the event cost € 25 and are on sale at the Irish Music Shop and the West County Hotel reception.

Special guests and entertainment include popular and upcoming band Hermitage Green, talented singer Clodagh Lawler and Spin South West DJ Eoghain Fitz.

There will also be a casino table as part of the adult entertainment on the night.

Those planning the event are hoping for a night of colour, fashion, fun and laughter – a reflection of the courageous Ciara Conroy.

RYANAIR wanted to pay out just € 1 per passenger it brought into Shannon in return for maintaining a low-cost hub at Clare’s international airport, a leading travel agent has claimed ahead of this Friday’s visit to Shannon by Minister for Transport, Leo Varadkar.

The claim was made by Tony Brazil of the Irish Travel Agents Association at an economic and policy meeting of Limerick City Council last week as he revealed how Shannon Airport chiefs refused to bow to Ryanair pressure on landing fees, despite the fact that the decision has resulted in a meltdown of traffic at the airport over the past four years.

“Ryanair did a deal with Shannon to land passengers for € 2 each when the norm was € 8 per passenger,” said Mr Brazil. “They landed 1.8m passengers when the deal was they should have landed two million. When the deal came up for renewal, they wanted this reduced to € 1, but they were only bringing in 400,000 passengers,” he added.

Ryanair spokesperson Stephen McNamara has said that the reason for the collapse of Shannon’s traffic of over 55 per cent from 3.6m passengers in 2007 to 1.6m last year was down to “the DAA’s refusal to extend Ryanair’s low cost base at Shannon, the Government travel tax and a 33 per cent increase in passenger fees at Shannon last November, even as the DAA’s traffic was collapsing”.

“It is the high DAA monopoly costs at Shannon Airport that have ‘driven out’ these lusted-after “foreign carriers” from Shannon and it is these same high costs that keep them out of Shannon.

“Maybe Shannon should start this process by addressing their high costs, facing up to the mistakes they have made and looking forward for a solution to the traffic collapse at Shannon, instead of backwards with the sole purpose of trying to blame others for their failure,” he added.

MAKING the new Shannon Airport debt free is key to its future prosperity and growth, business interests in the region will tell Minister for Transport, Leo Varadkar, this Friday when he will be the keynote speaker at a Chamber of Commerce lunch in the Oakwood Arms Hotel.

The meeting comes just as Minister Varadkar prepares to act on the Booz & Company consultants report, which put forward a number of proposal with which to create a new model for Clare’s international airport.

Now, business interests in Shannon have been urged to have their say with Minister Varadkar as D-Day for the airport fast approaches, with Chamber of Commerce president, Damian Gleeson, saying “opinions only turn into action when they are heard, and by the decision makers”.

“This is possibly the last opportunity for engagement on a very pertinent issue for the mid-west region before the final decision is made.

“Shannon Airport is a vital piece of infrastructure which supports the economic development of the midwest. Every viable option to sustaining its future must be assessed for its ability to generate meaningful economic activity for the region. As we have stated in the past, any new structure should not be overburdened with debt but supported by solid business and financial plans,” continues Mr Gleeson.

In a presentation to the Minister earlier this year, Shannon Chamber made the case that Shannon Airport should be separated from its current structure but remain under some other form of State protection / ownership to ensure its survival as a key piece of national infrastructure, for the mid-west in particular.

“We emphasised that the airport should be run with a commercially driven ethos – which in conjunction with no debt, adequate working capital and an improvement of its cost structure would eventually allow it to be self-sustaining,” says Mr Gleeson.

“Of the two options now recommended by Booz & Company, the scenario whereby Shannon moves to a local concession model giving a role to the local authorities in Clare and Limerick, to local commercial interests and to Shannon Development in a holding company, offers the most potential for Shannon’s future development. It places decision making for the airport’s future at a local level.

“As long as this proposed autonomous structure comes without debt, Shannon could look forward to a new future, whereby every avenue for its development could be examined for its innovativeness and its ability to add value, traffic and revenue to Shannon. Harnessing the support of all stakeholders in the mid-west would lead to energised thinking and a new impetus for taking the airport in a new direction.

“We hope that the Minister, in addressing attendees on Friday, will elaborate on the findings of the Booz & Company report and be forthright is his views on how he feels a very strategic piece of infrastructure, such as Shannon Airport, can be re-energised to make its rightful contribution to the national economy,” adds Mr Gleeson.

PLANS are in place to extend one of West Clare’s tourist and family attractions. Clare County Council is considering ambitious plans to add a museum and craft units to the Vandeleur Walled Gardens.

Under the blueprint for the future of the historical garden, the old stable block on-site is to be re-developed along with a maritime-themed museum and a small number of craft units. It is also proposed to enhance the entrance to the garden and provide an entrance from the main top car park.

All of these ambitious plans will be carried out subject to funding.

“It is expected that these works, if approved, will begin towards the end of the year,” said marketing manager for Kilrush, Siobhan Garvey.

Meanwhile, the Board of Kilrush Amenity Trust Ltd this week made the decision to extend the offer of free entry to the Vandeleur Walled Gardens for the remainder of 2012. Following the success of the free entry trial in August 2011, it was decided to offer free entry again from October 11 to April 12. However, the Board has now agreed to extend this offer further to include all of 2012.

As it is, the Vandeleur Centre complex currently includes a coffee shop selling home-baked treats, breakfast and lunch from 10am to 5pm daily.

The Vandeleur Walled Garden offers a complete range of plants for sale and advice is available at all times from the head gardener and his staff.

Children can follow the ‘butterfly trail’ and play within the live willow structure and garden maze and, for bigger children, there is a life-size chess game on the lawn.

If the plans to extend the facility go ahead, there will be even more to attract families to the tranquil gardens on the outskirts of Kilrush town.

The garden will host an open day on Sunday, April 22 from 1pm to 5pm. This will include a local craft fair, and the head gardener will be on hand to give advice on planting, with special offers on plants sold on the day.

Nora LEAHY
of Rathflynn, Maurice’s Mills. Funeral mass onTuesday at 11 o’clock at Inagh Church with burial after in adjoining cemetery. May she rest in peace.

Kevin O’NEILL
of Ballanacragga, Newmarket-on-Fergus. Late of Carolville, SteelesTerrace, Ennis. Funeral Mass today,Tuesday, at 12 noon in Milford. Burial afterwards in Lemenagh Cemetery, Newmarket-OnFergus. No flowers please. Donations, if desired, to Milford Hospice, Limerick. May he rest in peace.

Ellen MORRISSEY (née Walsh)
of St. Patrick’sTerrace, Kilrush. Formerly of Ballynakea, Quilty,. Laid to rest in Mullagh. Donations, if desired, to Regina House, Kilrush. May she rest in peace.

Patrick (Paddy) CULLIGAN
of Lissycasey. Formerly of Ballycorane, Knock and Brooklyn, NewYork. Laid to rest in Burrane Cemetery. May he rest in peace.

William (Willie) MacNAMARA
of Inagh, Ennis. Laid to rest in Inagh. May he rest in peace.

THE streets of Ennis should be closed to traffic at the weekend during the summer to encourage more people into the town.

That’s according to independent councillor James Breen, who put forward his proposal at yesterday’s meeting of councillors in the Ennis West Electoral Area.

He called on Ennis Town Council to “completely pedestrianise the streets in Ennis for the month of June and July between 5pm to 10pm on Fridays and 5pm to 9pm on Saturdays and 11am to 6pm on Sunday”.

Cllr Breen said, “This would turn Ennis into a hive of activity that we’ve never seen before.”

In his response, town clerk Leonard Cleary, stated that the pedestrainisation of O’Connell Street and Abbey Street is an objective of the current Ennis and Environs Development Plan (2008-2014). He explained that a pilot pedestrianisation was introduced in 2010 “but was abandoned after a short period”.

“Ennis Town Council has since undertaken a series of pedestrainisation initiatives in selected streets/areas aimed at delivering a unique customer and visitor experience. Pilot pedestrianisation periods in Ennis were preceded by public consultation. These pedestrianisation initiatives have been designed to maximize the level of business generated for commercial rate payers in Ennis town,” he said.

Mr Cleary said the council had received positive feedback in relation to recent Christmas and St Patrick’s Day pedestrianisation pilots. “During the recent public listening process for developing an Ennis Hub Strategy (Ennis 2020) Visioning Process, Ennis Town Council has received a very strong indication that customers wish the council to continue to develop a permanent pedestrianisation experience. The matter will continue to be progressed with the elected members of Ennis Town Council who is statutory authority for the area.”

Cllr Tony Mulqueen (FG) said businesses had concerns over gangs of young people hanging around the streets at night. He said that some businesses had to close their doors on St Patrick’s Day because of kids using spray paint. “If you’re going to take cars off the streets, you need a visible Garda presence,” he added. Cllr Mulqueen said issues around parking for deliveries and collections also had to be addressed.

Town manager Ger Dollard told the meeting that pedestrainisation remains a target in the medium term for Ennis. He said work would first have to be completed on the inner relief road before the council could consider pedestrianisation of the town centre. Committee chairman Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) recommended that the proposal go forward to Ennis Town Council.

ONGOING delays to the completion of a € 100,000 conservation job at the 13th century Ennis Franciscan Abbey have been branded a “disgrace”.

The Abbey has been closed to the public for three years to facilitate works carried out by the Office of Public Works (OPW).

According to the OPW, the Abbey is expected to open in a limited way to the public in June.

A roof has been installed over the 18th century church in order to provide protection for the collection of carved features, which survive at Ennis Friary. The OPW also plans to improve visitor access at the site.

Authorities on medieval sculpture have highlighted the importance of the Friary’s unique collection, which contain a complete set of panels representing the 12 apostles and stages of the passion of Christ.

Since care of the Friary was vested in the Board of Works in the late 19th century, concern has been expressed about the vulnerability of the collection. However the duration of the works came in for strong criticism at yesterday’s meeting of councillors in the Ennis West Electoral Area.

Fine Gael councillor Tony Mulqueen said the closure of the Abbey is hurting tourism in Ennis. He said, “The amount of tourists standing up outside is amazing and they can’t even take a photo. It’s a disgrace.”

He added, “The Franciscans seem to have built the Abbey faster than the OPW can put up a few slates.”

Cllr Mulqueen, whose father kept the keys to the Abbey at his nearby business during the 1960s for use by visitors, requested an update on the works at yesterday’s meeting.

In his response, senior executive engineer Eamon O’Dea, stated, “The project is the responsibility of the Office of Public Works. We understand from contact with the OPW that there have been some delays in relation to the project at Ennis Friary. The discovery of a large number of burials where the floating foundations for glazing panels in the transcept were to be placed has resulted in a short delay.”

Mr O’Dea continued, “The intention is to open to the public in late June but in a limited way. The advantage is that the visitors will get to see the masons working and will see progress being made. The OPW is also looking at an extension to the season and some flexibility on charges.”

FIANNA Fáil members of Clare County Council mirrored the feelings of the rank and file of the soldiers of destiny when it emerged that the one-time popular general was to face a dishonourable discharge.

The majority said he had to go, more refused to comment publicly and more said he should remain, as he was not proven guilty of any crime in a court of law.

One of Clare’s most experienced county councillors, Cllr Bill Chambers (FF), said that nothing has been proven against the former Taoiseach yet. “If it is proved then fair enough, but all that there is is allegations.”

Describing the fallout of the Mahon Report as a media witch hunt against Bertie Ahern, the Cooraclare man said he “should be innocent until proven guilty”.

Prior to the former Fianna Fáil leader’s announcement that he was to resign from the party, Cllr Michael Hillery (FF) said, “If the information is correct and stands up with the DPP, he should be expelled. Anyone who has broken the law of the land should be expelled.”

For Cllr Pat Keane (FF), the decision was even more clear-cut: “He should (be expelled) when he has been found to lie to the tribunal. It is unbecoming of the party.”

“The leadership had to take a stand,” according to Cllr Pat Daly (FF).

For young councillor Cathal Crowe, who Bertie Ahern once described as the future of the party in Clare, there was no decision to be made – the former Taoiseach had to be removed from the party.

“It beholds someone in high elected office to be truthful to his job. We have to have high standards in office,” he said.

Cllr Pat McMahon said “absolutely” damage had been done and Bertie Ahern could no longer be a member of the Fianna Fáil party.

Cllr Tom McNamara (FF) was in agreement saying, “This type of politics is gone and it is no harm to see the back of it”. Councillors PJ Kelly (FF) and Michael Kelly (FF) were less forward with their opinions. Michael said he would not be commenting on the issue, while PJ had a slightly more colourful answer – “judge not and ye shall not be judged.” The Clare People was unable to make contact with councillors Richard Nagle and Pat Hayes (mayor) on the subject.

Almost all agreed the outcome of Mahon had a negative affect on the party in general, but Cllr Daly maintained that the outcome “had cleared the air. We can move on now”.

“It also damages the whole system. It shows corruption among officials, councillors and right up to Leinster House. Fianna Fáil damaged again. It is a setback for the party’s fight back,” said Cllr Crowe.

“We were damaged before this. Even though we were damaged, I think we can recover,” said a slightly more optimistic Cllr McNamara.

“There are a lot of good people in Fianna Fáil. The majority of people are disgusted. There is some shortterm damage to the party but the party will rise again,” said Cllr Keane.

CLARE will have a huge say on whether disgraced Fianna Fáil politicians will remain within the party following the findings of the Mahon tribunal, as three of the members of the party’s Special Ard Chomhairle hail from the Banner county.

Party Vice-President Timmy Dooley TD and Gareth Greene, one of the Committee of Twenty, said they would have voted to expel former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and former minister Padraig Flynn had they not resigned, and will be supporting the motions to throw the other disgraced members out.

The third Clare man on the party’s national executive secretary of Clare’s Fianna Fáil Comhairle Dáil Cheantair Gerry Reidy said he would be follow- ing the direction of the leadership and the committee on the motions.

Of Mr Ahern, Mr Reidy said, “What he has done (in resigning) is a very honourable thing as it allows the party to move on without any divisions. He was very well received in Clare and did a lot for the county while he was Taoiseach.”

Mr Greene said that he feels his association with the party has tainted him after the findings of Mahon.

“It is that that informed our determination to put a clear distance between those people and ourselves,” he said, referring to those to come before the Ard Comhairle for expulsion. “There isn’t a doubt in the world that the reputation of the Fianna Fáil party has been prejudiced by a small number of people. There is a sense of hurt and pain to thousands of good and decent members who are struggling to man- age household budgets.”

Deputy Dooley described the findings of Mahon as a “bitter pill to swallow”. He said, “While all the evidence was coming out, you always had a view there was something else there to mitigate against them.

“I am disappointed with the facts throughout all of this. I had assumed there would be an explanation but obviously the judge who heard all the evidence found Bertie Ahern untruthful.”

The Clare TD said there was no doubt that the former Taoiseach had to be expelled from the party.

He maintains, however, that while Fianna Fáil has been damaged by the revelations of the Mahon Report, history will provide a kinder report. He said he believes history will point to a lot of good the party has done, while mentioning the corruption.

A DOOLIN ferry owner charged with passenger “overloading” has been told to pay a contribution to the Royal Lifeboat National Institution (RNLI).

The charges were brought against Bill O’Brien of Lickeen, Kilfenora, by the Department of Transport at Ennis District Court on Friday.

Mr O’Brien, who has operated a ferry business in Doolin since 1970, was charged in relation to two passenger vessels in his ownership, ‘The Queen of Aran’ and ‘Tranquility’.

The charges state that in failing to comply with the conditions and re- quirements of the Merchant Shipping Act, the owner did cause the vessel to contain a number of passengers exceeding the maximum number as required.

Captain Neil Forde, a nautical surveyor with the Department of Transport, told the court that a colleague had observed “overloading” on ‘The Queen of Aran’ and ‘Tranquility’ on August 18, 2011.

Capt Forde explained that 101 people were on a ship that had a maximum capacity of 96. In the other incident, Capt Forde explained, 103 passengers boarded a ship with a maximum capacity of 93. The court was told that Mr O’Brien has no pre- vious convictions.

The court was told that Mr O’Brien and his crew operated a clicker system to record the number of passengers that board ships. Under questioning from solicitor John Callinan, Capt Forde agreed that the overloading occurred as result of a breakdown in the clicker system.

The court heard that the business has now moved to a position of issuing individual boarding cards rather than group boarding cards.

Capt Forde told the court that both boats had sufficient lifesaving equipment and lifeboats on board. He explained that one of the dangers of overloading was that, in the event of an emergency at sea, rescue crews might not take into account extra passengers.

Mr Callinan said Mr O’Brien had operated a “very significant” familyrun business in West Clare for over 40 years.

Judge Patrick Durcan said that overloading could lead to a “tremendous tragedy”. Noting Mr O’Brien’s guilty plea, his good record and his prescience along with that of his crew in court, Judge Durcan ordered him to pay a sum of € 1, 500 to the RNLI. He also ordered him to pay costs to the Department of Transport, bringing the total to € 1,855. No conviction was recorded against Mr O’Brien.

A 67-YEAR-OLD man who has pleaded guilty to charges of indecent assault will be sentenced in May.

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was due to be sentenced at Ennis Circuit Court yesterday. However Judge Caroll Moran said that given the “very serious nature of the abuse” he was not happy to pass sentence immediately.

He adjourned sentencing until May 14. “I will finalise it then,” he added.

The assaults occurred over a twoyear period in Clare in the late 1960s when the man was in his twenties and the victim was a young teenager.

The court heard that the man, who now suffers from health problems, was arrested by Gardaí in July 2009. His barrister, Mark Nicholas said his client had co-operated and owned up to the abuse. He said his client had expressed remorse about his crime to Gardaí during interviews. Mr Nicholas said that this was in no way meant to minimise the hurt suffered by the victim. He said, “What happened was despicable, disgraceful and should not have happened.”

Mr Nicholas paid tribute to the victim’s bravery in coming forward.

Mr Nicholas told the court that the man had received a very poor education, is illiterate and could be regarded as someone who is in a “lower intellectual bracket”.

He said he suffered from Jacobs Syndrome, a sex chromosome ab- normality. He said the man has been the care of the Clare Health Services since 1984. He said the man’s significant regime of monitoring and antitestosterone medication is closely supervised by medical professionals and the man’s family.

The court heard that the man has been placed on sex offender’s register. Mr Nicholas said the moniker of “pedophile” will forever be attached to the man.

The victim, who is now in his 50s, previously told the court that he twice tried to commit suicide to end what he called the “pain of my life”.

In a victim impact statement, the man said the accused had robbed him of his “innocence, childhood and my sanity”.