Category: News

A GROUP of dedicated Clare parents have achieved the impossible by raising an incredible € 4.2 million in just three years to build a new adult Cystic Fibrosis unit for their children. The sod will be turned later this month on the new facility which will become the first and only facility for people with CF over the age of 16 in the western region.

The facility has been made possible by the TLC4CF group, which is a group of parents from Clare, Tipperary and Limerick, who have worked tirelessly to fill this gap in the services provided by the HSE and provide priceless treatment for their children.

The facility will be built entirely with money raised by TLC4CF and while the HSE has committed to staffing the facility – the parents group now face the challenge of rais- ing the final € 1 million needed to equip the facility.

Over the last three years the group have already raised enough money to employ the region’s first adult consultant for people with CF and then set about tackling the greatest gap in the system – the lack of any real facilities for people with CF once they turn 16.

“TLC is a combined front from parents in the three counties because the services were so bad for adults with CF in this entire region and you are considered an adult at 16 years of age. So we wanted to fight for better services and better conditions for our children,” said Linda Drennan, who has two children living with CF.

“This new facilities are vital for our children. TLC has raised € 1.2 million in the three counties and we have received € 3 million from the JP McManus Pro Am – so the money for the build is there, the fundraising now is about raising the money to equip the building.”

Facilities for adults with CF are currently very poor throughout the country. The achievements made by the TLC4CF group have inspired other groups in other parts of the country to begin projects of their own.

“A massive effort has been put in place by people in Tipperary, Limerick and Clare. We have reached the stage now where we just need to raise € 1 million to finish the project outright. The building will start sometime in October and will take around 18 months – we just need to make sure that the money is there to equip the building once it is finished,” said Marcella Clancy of the TLC4CF. For the full stor y a bout the rema r ka ble a chievements of TLC4CF tur n to page 44 a nd 45.

SEVEN cubic metres of grease were recently removed from a wastewater pumping station in Ennis, a meeting has heard.

The grease had built up over a two-year period at the Francis Street pumping station. Town Engineer Eamon O’Dea revealed the detail at yesterday’s meeting of Ennis Town Council

Mr O’Dea’s comments prompted Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) to remark, “Europe has a problem with Greece but Ennis has a problem with grease.”

In a report to councillors, Mr O’Dea stated that “the difficulty with the build up of grease in sewers and pumping stations has increased over the last number of years and has resulted in greater maintenance costs”.

Mr O’Dea was responding to a motion tabled by Cllr Paul O’Shea. Cllr O’Shea had called for an inspection of the sewage system servicing the Fioruisce estate.

Mr O’Dea explained, “Clare Coun- ty Council water services area staff monitor this section of sewer each week and the last occasion that difficulties were encountered was Tuesday, September 6 when the council jetter was unsuccessful in fully clearing the sewer and this was done on Thursday, September 8.”

He added, “The primary problem is the build up of grease in the sewer and this has become a more significant issue over the last 12 to 18 months”.

Mr O’Dea said the Council had delivered an advisory sheet to all busi- nesses involved in the production of food in Ennis in regard to their obligations in disposal of grease, oils and fats into the sewer network.

He said the discharging of oils/ grease from frying utensils directly into the sewer is a “particular concern”.

He said the Gort Road recycling centre has a facility for the collection of household cooking oils.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) told the meeting that the grease problems had resulted from people having a “lack of respect for public infrastructure”.

THE family of a young Shannon man who is undergoing treatment in the US for a brain tumour have appealed for assistance to help cover the costs.

34-year-old Keith Gibbons is currently in Texas on clinical trials for the tumour. Keith was initially diagnosed four years ago and after undergoing treatment in Ireland, the tumour disappeared and Keith returned to work.

In May 2008, he got married to his long-time girlfriend Brenda McGuane from Shannon. The couple tied the knot in Las Vegas and anticipated a long, happy future together.

Sadly, however, in March 2010, a routine scan showed that the tumour had returned.

His wife Brenda recalled what happened at that stage.

“Keith had another surgery in April where the tumour was fully resected once again. Gliadel wafers, a type of chemotherapy, were inserted at the tumour site. We hoped, like we always did, that this would be it and the tumour wouldn’t return. Keith returned to work again but the tumour returned almost straight away so Keith had another surgery in September 2010,” she recalled.

“We learned then that the tumour had been upgraded to the most malignant grade four tumour called Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM). Keith did not go back to work for a long time after this surgery. He also had a seizure and has had a couple since then. Keith had to under go more oral chemotherapy which seemed to help until the course of it finished and the tumour started to get more aggressive and spread to the other side of his brain. He was then put on an IV course of chemotherapy,” she said.

“All the time we were researching other options. We were always being told by doctors that Ireland had everything treatment-wise that was in the US but we didn’t believe that. The chemotherapy was making Keith very tired and took a lot out of him. We knew we had to pursue other options.

“Around March, I found out about a clinic in Houston, Texas, called the Burzynski Clinic which specialises in a treatment that involves a drug called Antioneoplastons. It is genetargeted treatment that has seen very good results on brain tumours. It is not a form of chemotherapy and is non-toxic.

“Dr Burzynski’s treatment is not seen as a fully approved treatment yet even though for years he has being curing people that were told there was nothing more that could be done for them after conventional treatment didn’t work. We sent off all scans and paperwork and after a lot of correspondence over and back we heard that Keith was accepted for treatment at the clinic. We knew we had to go for it,” said Brenda.

The couple travelled to Texas in recent weeks and remain hopeful that the treatment will be a success.

“So here we are in Houston hoping that treatment at the clinic will work out. Treatment is very expensive here as all medical treatment in the US is but we can’t let that stop us. We really hope that one day we can say the treatment has worked and finally one day we may be able to get on with our lives like every other couple in their 30s. Keith so deserves this to happen to him as he is the most amazing man you will ever come across,” said Brenda.

Friends of Keith and Brenda have organised a fundraiser to help cover the costs of the treatment. It will take place at the Mill Bar in Sixmilebridge on Friday night at 8pm. Tickets at a cost of € 10 are available on the door or phone 087 9370395 with donations.

CLAIMS that the cost of parking charges is “crippling” businesses in Ennis have been rejected by the Ennis Town Manager.

Ger Dollard was speaking at a debate on parking at yesterday’s meeting of Ennis Town Council.

The discussion was prompted by a motion tabled by Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) who called on the council to “urgently review public car parking usage” in Ennis.

Mr Dollard said a review of car parking in Ennis commenced in autumn 2010 and resulted in the introduction of the 2011 on-street payand-display and car park byelaws on March 21.

He said the 2008 Ennis Car Parking Study had made a number of recommendations. In a report, Mr Dollard stated that the council had implemented seven short term measures aimed at improving parking in Ennis, including: discouraging long-stay parking within 100m of Abbey Street; re-designation of 39 long-stay spaces in Friars Walk for use as short-stay parking only; and reviewing the use of Bindon Street and the extension of two-hour-maximum stay zone to Market Place and Friars Walk.

Mr Dollard stated that supply currently exceeds demand at the Friars Walk car-park.

Reacting to a comment from Cllr Paul O’Shea (Lab) that “car parking is crippling businesses”, Mr Dollard said, “I wouldn’t accept the suggestion that the price of car parking is crippling business in Ennis”.

Mr Dollard said the debate on parking in Ennis had initially focused on the shortage of spaces but had now shifted to cost.

He said that just three sources of funding are available to local authorities: government funding, commercial rates and parking charges. He added, “If all of your income streams are under pressure, you are limited about what you can do.”

Mayor of Ennis, Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind), dismissed the impact parking charges are having on local businesses. He said that the cost of shopping in Ennis is expensive, adding, “I don’t think Ennis is a cheap place”. Cllr Guilfoyle said the “doom and gloom (in Ennis) is blamed on car parking charges in the town”.

Cllr Flynn said he put forward the motion to stimulate debate on parking. He said businesses are down 50 per cent to 60 per cent on their Saturday trade.

Cllr Peter Considine requested that a report comparing parking charges in Ennis with 10 other similar sized towns be provided to councilors in advance of their annual budget estimates meeting. Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) claimed people are boycotting the Friars Walk car park.

BUSINESSES in Ennis have turned up the heat on local councillors by calling on them to vote against proposed changes in retail policy that could facilitate the development of a new “district centre” on the outskirts of the town.

Dozens of business owners have expressed concern over a proposed variation to the Ennis and Environs Development Plan, which would allow for the development of a new district centre at a site at the junction of Limerick Road and Tobertascáin Road. Planning permission is being sought at the five-hectare site for the development of a major retail centre.

The proposed variation will be voted on by members of Ennis Town Council and Clare County Council.

At a meeting to discuss Ennis Chamber’s submission on the proposed variation, speakers appealed to councillors to vote against including a new district centre in the plan.

The Chairman of the O’Connell Street Traders Association said it was the view of businesses on the town’s main street that it would be “too risky” to allow the proposed development to proceed. Gearoid Mannion told the meeting that the “town centre is practically on its knees”.

He said councillors should do whatever they can to oppose proposed changes in planning policy. Those views were echoed by Noreen Twomey Walsh of the Parnell Street Traders Association.

Another businesswoman Gwen Culligan (County Boutique) said that if councillors in Ennis “really care about the town of Ennis, they should re-think this proposal”.

John O’Connor (O’Connors Bakery) said that Limerick City centre is “dying” because of retail parks. He warned that the same would happen in Ennis if a similar policy were pursued. He said it is incumbent on councillors to oppose the proposed changes.

Councillor Frankie Neylon (Ind) said elected representatives have “no hand, act or part” in planning decisions. He said the planning application at Tobertascáin is separate from the preparation of the Ennis and Environs Development Plan.

Cllr Neylon said there had been numerous objections when Dunnes Stores proposed to set up in the town centre. “It was going to close the centre of Ennis. It did the opposite. It built up,” he said.

In relation to the proposed development at Tobertascáin, Cllr Neylon said it was important to look at the “bigger picture”, adding that Ennis had lost shoppers to shopping developments in Ennistymon, Kilrush, Limerick and Galway. Cllr Neylon said he would welcome job creation in any part of Ennis.

Describing a proposal to develop a large shopping centre at Tobertascáin Road as a “monstrosity”, Cllr Paul O’Shea (Lab) said he would vote against changing the zoning provision at the site.

A DANGEROUS and organised armed criminal gang has been targeting homes in Ennis and East Clare over the past two weeks, resulting in a large increase in the number of recent house break-ins in the county.

The gang, which were described as being not afraid to ‘take on a group of gardaí’, is operating in a co-ordinated fashion across three jurisdictions and are the subject of a major garda investigation.

Speaking at a public meeting of the Joint Policing Committee in Sixmilebridge last night, Clare Garda Chief Superintendent John Kerin said that the gardaí are monitoring the group and soon hope to be able to make a major breakthrough in their investigations.

“We have had an upsurge in burglaries in Ennis and East Clare in the last two weeks and 90 per cent of these burglaries are being undertaken by one criminal gang.

“We know who they are, we know the cars that they are using and there is an extensive investigation taking place across three jurisdictions in relation to this group,” said Chief Supt Kerin.

“They are very serious criminals. They are an organised group of serious criminals and they wont be afraid to take on a group of guards.”

It was also confirmed at last night’s meeting that gardaí in Clare have been in contact with the Armed Response Unit in relation to policing the gang.

Meanwhile, Gardaí have promised that there won’t be a repeat of last Halloween when residents were “trapped in the homes” in parts of Sixmilebridge.

The town was the sight of serious anti-social behaviour last year when a campaign to “Come to Sixmilebridge for a Riot” was started on Facebook.

Supt Kerin committed to increasing garda activity in the town over the Halloween period and to investigating any illegal activity in the Cappa Lodge area.

VOLUNTEERS are the unsung heroes of Clare, whose work is vital to a host of organisations around the county who are making a huge impact on the daily lives of people across the county.

On National Volunteer Day last Fri- day, this spirit of volunteerism was hailed by Mary Morrissey, the driving force behind the development of the Clarecastle Daycare Centre that’s a model for other elderly care centres around the county.

“You couldn’t find words to describe them and how good and how important volunteers are. There is tremen- dous work being done out there by volunteers in Clare,” she said. “We have volunteers and they’re coming in for the last 10 years. They are unsung heroes. Three artists giving their time; they’re from every walk of life and they come in because they love the elderly.

“The elderly benefit an awful lot from the love they get from them and they get that back. Volunteers are wonderful people,” she added.

The Clarecastle Daycare Centre co-ordinator made her comments when taking part in Volunteer Day in Ennis on Friday, during which a host of voluntary, community and healthcare organisations enjoyed a unique celebration built around the county capital’s sculpture trail.

“We dressed up the sculpture in the Parnell Street carpark,” Ms Morrissey revealed. “It was a great idea that Sharon Meany and Dolores O’Halloran came up with. It was just to show what voluntary groups are doing. Knitting was the theme. We had to dress the sculptures. Each person had a sculpture to do and everything we had on display was made in the daycare centre, made by the elderly with the help of volunteers.

“It was a great idea, a wonderful way of bringing volunteerism out to the people. People don’t realise what’s going on everyday in centres around the county because of the work of volunteers,” she added.

Others groups to take part in the Ennis celebratations were the Clare Haven House, Caring for Carers, Clare Crusaders, Carrigoran, Cahercalla and the Kilmaley Daycare Centre.

THE family of a young Shannon man who is undergoing treatment in the US for a brain tumour have appealed this week for assistance to help cover the costs.

Keith Gibbons (34) is currently with his wife Breda in Texas on clinical trials for the tumour. Keith was initially diagnosed four years ago.

“We really hope that one day we can say the treatment has worked and finally we may be able to get on with our lives like every other couple in their 30s. Keith so deserves this to happen to him as he is the most amazing man,” Breda told The Clare People

THIRTY people have signed up to take part in the Clare Conquest amateur boxing competition. Organised by Ennis Chamber and Clare Crusaders, the event sees competitors with little or no previous boxing experience square off inside the ring. The aim of the game is to raise money for the Clare Crusaders, one of the country’s best-known providers of services to children with special needs.

After being through their paces over a tough 10-week training schedule, 36 boxers took part in last No- vember’s White Collar Boxing night in the West County Hotel. A crowd of over 1,000 people turned up to support the fighters who came from a wide variety of sporting and professional backgrounds.

The event was managed by former Olympian and professional boxer Cathal O’Grady of White Collar Boxing. Thirty first-time pugilists will step into the ring at this year’s fight night, which will take place at the Queens Hotel on November 25.

But before the boxing begins, all participants will be put through a tough training regime to make sure they are in peak physical condition,

Coached by Darren Ward of Fitness Solutions and Ennis Boxing Club coach Ollie Markham, a former national champion, this year’s group are facing eight weeks of stretches, push-ups, skipping, sparring, weights and punch bags in order to be fighting fit on the night.

Training got underway on Monday night at St Joseph’s Doora Barefield’s redeveloped facilities at Gurteen. The training sessions will continue at Ennis Boxing Club in Chapel Lane, the spiritual home of Clare boxing, which this year celebrates 50 years in existence.

According to a spokesperson, the event “enables the hosts, Clare Crusaders and Ennis Chamber, to continue their services to disabled children and to promoting and enhancing the local economy respectively. Sponsors have an opportunity to be associated with the most sought after event of the year and the people of Clare enjoy a fantastic eight weeks of excitement and interest, culminating in the fever-pitched exhilaration and entertainment of Fight Night. There are no losers in this boxing event, it’s winners all the way.”

A FREE event aimed at helping parents to recognise the early signs of suicide in their teenage children will take place in Ennistymon later this evening, October 4.

The event, which is being organised by the North West Clare Family Resource Centre will see the HSE’s Suicide Resource Officer, Bernie Carroll, talk to parents about what to look out for in their children and what they can do.

“It really is an excellent talk. Infor- mation about this is power and as a parent, if you have information, then you know where you can go and what you can do if you notice something,” said Barbara Ó Conchúir, Community Development Worker with the North West Clare Family Resource Centre.

“I think a lot of parents can feel powerless when they are faced with an issue like suicide. I think the talk can help show parents what they need to do but also it can show them the supports that are there to help if they are not able to do it themselves. I think that the talk takes the fear out of the subject of suicide and that is great for parent and gives them the feeling that they can do something about it.”

The suicide prevention event is an early taster of a number of events planned to take place in North Clare to mark World Mental Health Week – which runs from October 10 to 14.

A series of four events are being organised by the Ennistymon Interagency Network and the North Clare Mental Association under the theme of ‘Building Resilience Together’.

“The event will kick of next Monday with laughter yoga at the new An Grianán Resource Centre. This centre is a great resource for us know and it gives us a place to run events like this,” continued Barbara.

“On October 13 they have a session called Happy Parents, which is an introduction to parenting run by Clarecare, while later that evening there is a Happy Teens event organised by Clare Youth Services.

“The following day there will be a musical evening with the Scoil Mhuire School Choir, Ennis Gos- pel Choir and Toonta Ceoil, which will take place at the Lahinch Seaworld. The whole theme of the week is building resilience so it is about getting people out to do things that make them feel well as well.”

The free suicide talk will take place at the Falls Hotel in Ennistymon from 7.30pm later today, October 4.

For more information or to book any of these events call the North West Clare Family Resource Centre on 065 7071144 or email info@northwestclarefrc.ie.