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IT’S been a long, sometimes difficult journey for Valentyna Dalifhevska, but she is now looking forward to the next chapter of her life in Ennis.

12 years ago, Valentyna left her home in the Ukraine to move to Ire- land. It was a hard start to life in a new country. Valnetyna’s young son was very ill and needed to be hospi- talised. Over the course of the next year, he underwent 18 operations at hospitals in Dublin and Limerick. The treatment was successful and af- ter a while Valentyna and her young family settled in Ennis. On Sunday, Valentyna opened Valans Bistro, in the Friary Car Park, Ennis.

The bistro specialises in serving mainly eastern European food but the menu also includes many famil- iar dishes.

After the trials of her early years in Ireland, Valentyan is delighted to be opening her own business in her new home.

“It was very difficult for us when we came here first. My son was very sick, he was in hospital a lot. He 1s still living in Ennis and he is doing fine now and my daughter is has just finished school.”

Valentyna worked for a while as chef’s assistant in Ukraine. It has always been her dream to open her own restaurant.

“We will be serving eastern Eu-

ropean food, Russian food but also we will cook Irish meat, Irish food. There are a lot of Russian type res- taurants in Dublin and Limerick. This is my idea, to open a restaurant in Ennis. It is my dream to do it”.

During the period of her son’s ill- ness, Valentyna received support from campaigner Adi Roche. Roche is the founder of the Children’s Cher- nobyl Project (CCP) and has worked tirelessly over the past 20 years to provide aid to the children of Belarus and the Ukraine.

Roche along with the former Presi- dent of Ireland, Mary Robinson, championed Valentyna’s case for staying in Ireland when she faced deportation.

So, by way of thanking Roche, Valentyna turned the opening day of her business into a fundraiser. Food at Valans Bistro was free but custom- ers were asked to make donations to the CCP.

“She (Adi Roche) helps a lot of chil- dren in Belarus but also sick children in Ukraine. I wanted to do something to pay them back. I wanted to do something from my heart”.

Valentyna feels she has really set- tled in Ennis, where she calls home.

‘It is the best town in the world. I have settled down for good. I can still visit my family in Ukraine but I love this country. I can start my life again from the first page. My children are happy and I am happy.”

The Citizens Information Service will host an information seminar on wills, inheritance and tax at the Temple Gate Hotel Ennis on Monday September 29 at 8pm.

The event which is open to every- one and free of charge will explain the steps to drawing up a will and will also discuss the legal situation where a person dies intestate. There will be a detailed consideration of the tax implications on gifts and in- heritances and the various reliefs and exemptions that are available.

The information evening will also address the rights of spouses and children to the estate of a deceased person and the issue of legal compe- tence in making a will.

Research undertaken by Amarach Research for the Irish Banking Fed- eration (IBF) indicates that only 45% of all adults have made a will; and among those who have not, only 21% intend to do so in the next 12 months. and only one in five intend to make a will in the next 12 months

Paul Woulfe Manager of the Citi- zens Information Service believes that for Irish consumers property- based wealth has made the issue of drawing up wills more urgent than ever because legacies can be conten- tious and having a will simplifies matters for those you leave behind. The costs should not be excessive and can be invaluable when offset by the benefit of exercising personal

planned choice and control in your affairs while also likely reducing tax liabilities.”

‘Everyone who has both property and loved ones should have a will. The reality of the human condition cannot be denied. Do you want your property ultimately to be distributed in accordance with your wishes or a forty-year-old statute? Arrange to see a solicitor today. Make a will. It won’t kill you!” added Paul Wolfe

Catriona O Connor BCL LLM Dip Property Tax with Kerin, Hickman & O Donnell Solicitors will discus the legal formalities to be satisfied when drafting a valid will. She will also consider the limitations on a person’s freedom to dispose of their property as they wish in a will and what happens to a person’s property where they die without having made a will. Also discussed will be the various steps involved in adminis- tering an estate and explain what the role of an executor 1s 1n this process. She will explain the tax implications for beneficiaries of inheriting prop- erty and detail the various reliefs and exemptions that could be availed of in order to minimise any potential tax liability.

For further information on your rights and entitlements you can contact your local Citizens Infor- mation Centre who offer a free and confidential service by phone and to personal callers at any of their of- fices throughout the county Tel : 065 6841221

THERE were times when Kilmurry Ibrickane looked irresistible. The Wheel that they’ve used this past generation and more was turning nicely; Shane Hickey in his debut as permanent captain was having a blinder; Odran O’ Dwyer was charg- ing through tackles; Noel Downes was showing that fleetness of foot

and class that should have him as a fixture and fitting in Clare teams for years to come.

All this with a bench top heavy with Munster club medal winners. It looked as if Kilmurry could cruise to a comfortable victory, but somehow manager Micheal McDermott knew it would never happen.

“Wolfe Tones are a very good team and we knew it would be close,’ Mc-

Dermott said seconds after his side had weathered Wolfe Tones’ sec- ond half comeback. “We knew they would come at us in the second half — they were put out of the hurling championship last week and this is all that was left for them, so we knew they were going to give it a right lash. We showed a lot of character, a lot of fight and a lot of heart to hold out when we were reduced to 14 men.

That’s what championship football is all about.

“From our point of view the timing of the goal was superb — it gave us that little bit of breathing space going into the second half. It was a big turn- ing point when Declan Callinan got the goal. I’ve always said that when you get to this stage of the champion- ship it’s goals that win games.”

Now for Kilkee, something that

McDermott relishes. “We’re two very evenly matched teams. There’s nothing between us, which was proved when we drew in the first round. They seem to be a bogey team going back a few years, so hopefully the draw we got might eliminate that kind of fear. You are going to have a rip-roaring contest with two teams going hammer and tongs at each oth- er to try and to a county final.”

CANCER patients who may have been misdiagnosed at Ennis Gen- eral Hospital were last night urged to come forward. The call was made by Karl Henry, the husband of Ann Moriarty, whose cancer was misdi- agnosed at the hospital. Mr Henry reiterated his calls for a full inde- pendent enquiry. Ms Moriarty died from cancer last April, at the age of 53. She had been given the all- clear at Ennis General Hospital, just months earlier.

He made the comment in the wake of another misdiagnosis case emerg- ing over the weekend. 26-year-old Edel Kelly lost her battle with cancer in June, having also been misdiag- nosed previously.

“My concern from day one was there may be others. I wasn’t expect- ing there would be another situation quite as appalling as that of Edel Kelly appears to be,” he said.

“The Department of Health seems to think the people of Ennis and Clare are entitled to a sub-standard health system,” he added.

In the wake of Mr Henry going pub- lic with details of his wife’s misdiag- nosis, the HSE said it was an isolated case. The revelations about the Edel

Kelly case angered him, but he said he is trying to leave those feelings to one side and continue the fight on be- half of his wife.

“That my wife’s case was an isolat- ed one has a particularly hollow ring to it,” he said.

Mr Henry met with the Health Minister Mary Harney last week. Although he did not receive a com- mitment that an independent enquiry would be carried out, he feels that his case was listened to.

“I was reasonably happy. She is now very familiar with the full facts of my wife’s case,” he said.

He will continue to fight for an in- dependent enquiry. “All we have is Ennis investigating Ennis. That is not acceptable,” he said.

The Kellys yesterday called for Minister Harney to resign. However, Mr Henry said he would not support Wee

“IT wouldn’t support calls for the re- moval of the minister that this time. We do need to know what is going on. There are serious failings,” he said.

Both the Kellys and Mr Henry have expressed an interest in meeting up, to discuss their cases.

‘I know the difficulties they are en- countering,” he said.

to every primary school in Northern Ireland.

Jim, who is chairperson of Rural Resettlement Ireland, wrote the book in an effort to help bring communi- ties together and reflect on the posi- tive elements of the human condi- n(n

“I have been involved in humani- tarian work for the whole of my life.

It is of great interest to me and that is what was in my mind when I wrote the book. I believe that there are ba- sic humanitarian principles which are natural to all of us and in a sense they are counter balanced by a number of animal instincts which are in us all as well,” said Jim.

“The book is trying to articulcate these ideas in some acceptable form – in a non-judgmental form which doesn’t mention religion, God or morality – but basic humanitarian principles. It was to help promoting or exploring the better sides of our human nature that I decided to write this book for schools.

“The book starts off with ‘I am a human’ because that is the basic

starting point for all of us.”

The book is illustrated with photo- graphs from St Nicholas’ School in Galway. The school, which houses more than 40 nationalities, was in part the inspiration for the book. Jim hopes that the book might prove a help for people to overcome divisions in society, whether formed around gender, ethnicity or religion.

‘“T approached the Northern Ireland Counsel for Integrated Education be- cause I heard him speaking on the radio one morning. I thought that the ideas in my book might be some- thing that would assist up there, so I sent him a copy of my book.

“I offered to donate one copy of the book to each and every primary

school in Northern Ireland to mark the amazing transformation that has been going on there since the Good Friday Agreement. They were de- lighted to take the book and we have sent off nearly 1,000 books to school sin Northern Ireland,’ he continued.

“IT was shocked to find out that nearly 95 per cent of the schools up there were separate, either Catholic or Protestant. I am delighted that they found the book acceptable and that all the different church authori- ties found it acceptable.

“IT have got some lovely feedback from the book – with cards from some of the children. I’ve got a great response and I’m delighted that I am fulfilling a function there.”

THE Clare ladies football panel won’t be resting on their laurels for two long if they win Sunday’s AIll- Ireland intermediate final against Tipperary in Croke Park.

Instead, they be looking to the fol- lowing weekend as a number of them have pledged to take part in the Run to Africa, which a “Playing for Life’ abu NCebe-DKSDONoMNDODIOT-IN Ros

Playing for Life was founded by well-known sportswoman and broadcaster Tracy Piggott following a visit to Ethiopia in 2004. Tracy

was determined to do set up a project that would use sport as a tool to help young people in some of the worlds’ poorest places, since sport has al- ways played such a huge part in her own life.

In order to continue providing sup- port to some of the world’s poorest countries and communities, Play- ing for Life is undertaking a major fundraising initiative throughout the island of Ireland with the support of Tesco Ireland, the Ladies Gaelic Football Association, Sport News Ireland and well-known sports per- sonalities like Sonia O’Sullivan and

Eamon Coghlan.

The Run to Africa will take place over the first weekend in October. Volunteers, who will be asked to raise €100/£100 per kilometer, will be able to see the collective progress of the 9500 km run from Dublin to Addis Ababa on a video screen (similar to the flight path display on a plane).

The Clare contribution to the project is being spearheaded by the ladies intermediate team, with Emma O’Driscoll coordinating their efforts. ‘There are six of us on the team who form the committee Louise Henchy

our captain, Majela Griffin, Niamh Keane, Aine Kelly, Marie Considine and myself. Many of the other girls on the team are also helping out,” O’Driscoll reavealed.

“To raise money we have asked schools around the county to hold a colours day where by they wear the jersey of their favourite team into school and bring in two euros so far 18 generous schools have agreed from the 24 pupil school of Rineen outside Lahinch to the Holy Family here in Ennis.

‘Teachers from these schools then can either run the kilometres them-

selves on the treadmills or nominate one of the clare ladies or one of the other sportspeople who will be run- ning. Many of us are past pupils of these schools so they have kindly nominated us! The colours day will take place the week of the 29th to the 3rd.

“Diarmuid McMahon, Niall Gil- ligan, The Clare Camogie team, and Seamus Power are some of the well known sports people who will run. Clubs all over the county will be asked to run as we have to cover 300km,’ she added.

DEVELOPMENT contributions re- ceived by Clare County Council have fallen sharply, figures in the financial reports for the first six months of 2008 reveal.

The council received €750,000 in contributions for the first six months of 2008 compared to €3 million for the same period last year.

It is forecasted that the 12 month figure will not be higher than €1.5 million, compared to €10 million in 2007. The report states that “this will adversely affect the council’s ability to fund projects which require matching funding from Clare Coun- ty Council”.

The report concludes that “the buoyant income experienced from some sources in recent years can no longer be relied upon to compensate for any expenditure in excess of the YOO) o) Kee mol U(OLome

Speaking at yesterday’s meeting of Clare County Council, County Man- ager Alec Fleming outlined a bleak financial picture for the year ahead.

He said, “Things are looking ex- tremely tight next year. It’s looking like the local government fund will be flat out at around two to three per cent. Our take from the fund is al- ready one of the lowest in the coun- (ry.

“I do think we have prepared quite well but the conditions this year are

particularly challenging. The budget for 2009 is going to be very difficult indeed.”

Mr Fleming said that the depart- ment-issued directives to cut payroll costs had already been met in part by some staff taking up a volountary re- dundancy scheme.

“We are going to be under tremen- dous pressure. Income streams have dried up and there are extra pressures on our cash flow,” added Mr. Flem- ing.

The reports also stated that the Department of the Environment has been “slow in approving new loans”.

The council has not received ap- proval for a loan to carry our reme- diation works on Doora and Lisden

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“In the absence of loan approval, the council must carry the costs and this will have a negative impact in cash flow,” the report states

Independent councillor Patricia McCarthy said the council criticised the Department of the Environment for failing to meet financial commit- ments, despite the council’s policy of prudent financial management.

“Every time we practice good housekeeping we get a kick in the you know where. They are kicking us with contempt. The better we man- age our affairs, the worse we seem to be treated. Let the message go out, there is no fat in County Clare. We have trimmed to the last”.

ALTHOUGH major honours eluded Shannon in the national Tidy Towns awards, the committee is celebrat- ing its sizable increase in marks this year.

Shannon increased its tally by 12 points, to 266. Although that was significantly less than the 300 marks achieved by the county winner En- nis, the Tidy Towns committee in Shannon was thrilled by the increase and is optimistic that the points will continue to increase over the coming years.

Of particular pride was the increase in marks for the overall development approach, where Shannon scored 46

marks out of a possible 50. Although points were lower in the areas of wildlife and natural amenities, litter control and roads, streets and back areas, the town received eight points out of 10 in the ‘general impression’ category.

The adjudicators were impressed by the schools in the town, particu- larly St Aidan’s – which displayed a ereen flag – but said that St John’s school in Drumgeely was in need of some attention as weeds were grow- ing in the gutters. St Caimin’s Com- munity School was commended for its shrubbery.

Several buildings were also praised, including Murphy’s Cottage restau- rant, the shops in Ballycasey Cres-

cent and the river walk.

“The Pope John Paul II Jubilee Garden outside the church of SS John and Paul is a fantastic feature, with a suitable sculpture of Pope John Paul II and the area was adorned with an excellent floral display. The sculp- ture of the fish cut in stone at Bal- lycaseymore is an attractive feature,” stated the adjudicator’s report.

The adjudicator suggested that a notice board be erected at the en- trance to the river walk, outlining details of the huge amount of wildlife and the visiting birds that migrate to the area. The report also noted that while litter was well controlled over- all, isolated bits of litter were noticed in the river walk.

Overall, the adjudicator was pleased with the efforts being made to keep Shannon clean.

“It was a pleasure to spend a few hours driving and walking around Shannon. I feel that other towns could learn a lot from what has been achieved at Shannon,’ stated the re- port.

Secretary of the Tidy Towns com- mittee in Shannon, Tess Barry, was encouraged by the remarks, but said a lot of work remains to be done.

“We have to do the roundabouts and our approach roads are not up to scratch yet. However, the county council has done a lot, particularly in relation to lights and footpaths,’ she said.

INSPIRE – Munster’s biggest fashion event returns to the Crescent shop- ping centre in Limerick for the third successive year from this Thursday to Saturday, September 20.

The programme will include four free fashion shows as well as a “Demo Nite’ with demonstrations and ad- vice from hair, beauty and skincare professionals.

The fashion shows are a must-see for the latest up to the minute looks and prizes on offer include a Crescent

Shopping Centre makeover to the value of €1000 and a €150 voucher from Peter Mark at the Demo Nite, on Thursday at 6.45pm.

The fashion shows will be held on Friday at 2.45pm and 6.45pm and on Saturday at 11.30am and 3.30pm. Fashion expert Celia Holman Lee will help you choose the look you want from the many superb fashion stores at Crescent and you’ll also be in with a chance to win vouchers from Shaws and McCabes.

On Saturday, a judge from RSVP magazine will choose the Best

Dressed shopper at the Crescent GO TNKMA INOUE USM ADONI BESO RIAN IToaE:| €500 shopping voucher.

Pick up a form at the centre and pop your completed entry into the infor- mation booth in the centre concourse at the Crescent Shopping Centre be- fore Saturday.

BREAKING down language barri- ers has become just another part of the curriculum for two schools in Syivavtcm-velemeyercneveCeyee

Sixteen different languages are spoken by the 78 international stu- dents who make up roughly 20 per cent of the total student population in Ennis Community College.

The picture in St Patrick’s Compre- hensive College, Shannon, is equally

diverse where students from 24 dif- ferent countries attend classes.

The big influx of new students who don’t speak English as a first language, is altering the traditional teaching environment and imposing extra demands on school resources.

“There have been challenges al- right, but at this stage we have fair idea of what methods work best,’ said Matt Power, Principal of Ennis Community College.

“Typically, foreign students that

enter the school at first year, tend to have little problems in adapting. But we have found that problems do arise when you have kids who are 16 and over where English isn’t their first language.”

Teacher’s Union Representatives have also warned that a lack of Eng- lish for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teachers is hindering inte- gration in many schools.

“We are not getting enough sup- port,’ said Bernie Ruane, Vice-Presi-

dent of the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) and a teacher in St Patrick’s Comprehensive, “The Government are talking about these three per cent frontline cutbacks and if that’s the case, one of the areas targeted in schools in special education needs”. She added, “Children and parents are being put into a system where they don’t know the language and that, at times, can lead to friction.”