Category: Uncategorized

has learned.

This is despite a number of ground- breaking developments made in the provision of integrated education in Gort over the past decade and the ad- mission by the Minister for Integra- tion Conor Lenihan, earlier this year that the village was a blueprint for successful integration in Ireland.

Founder of the Gort Brazilian As- sociation, Frank Murray has said that the best method for integrating

children is in one class, despite calls from Fine Gael last month for chil- dren to be segregated.

“The best method is to keep the kids together. The schools here in Gort have had no guidance on this issue and have had to figure it out themselves. There were no guide- lines in place here when the Brazil- lans started coming here ten years ago or more, so the teachers here de- veloped a groundbreaking system of their own,” said Mr Murray.

‘After the argument on segregation and apartheid a few weeks ago that cause such a storm, the government response was that research was being carried out on the issue. But I con- tacted all of the schools in Gort, be-

cause they are cutting edge in terms of integration policy, and no one had come near them.

“You have to wonder about the money that is being spent on this re- search and how effective it is going to be if they don’t consult the main players involved in integration in Ire- land.”

According to the Gort Brazilian Association, if a scenario 1s handled incorrectly it can actually lead to an increase 1n racism instead of integra- nln

“It can sometimes cause conflict with local parents if they fell that their kids are being held back, espe- cially in secondary school. That is a situation which can cause friction in

the community and can lead to rac- ism,’ continued Mr Murray.

“Tt is an awful strain on the teach- ers, they are the forgotten people in this situation. We had thought that the numbers of migrant children at- tending the primary schools here would go down this year because of the economic situation but they have been overwhelming.

‘That was a surprise, it shows how difficult it is to be on top of this situ- ation which is changing all the time. Because of this it’s a bigger shame that the people doing these surveys do not see fit to contact the teachers in Gort who have made some great innovations over the last ten years.”

KILKEE Strand Races are not just a nod to local history, but an insight into the future of horse racing in Ire- land.

What started out as a duel over a woman almost 130 years ago is now the event where world-renowned jockeys learn the trade.

On Sunday next these traditional races will take place as usual across the Kilkee dunes from 2pm.

The eight races, four ponies and four horses, will begin at the upper side of the beach.

The race is part of the Kerry and Cork circuit and was particularly popular from the 1930s to the 1950s.

In later years the races have become the breaking ground for a number of top jockeys.

“Itis the perfect training ground for young lads to get some race ridding experience,’ said committee member Pat Russell.

Last year top apprentice flat jockey Danny Mullins won three races.

Charlie Swan, Tommy Carberry, Norman Wilson, Alan O Keeffe, Jack Doyle and Wayne Lardan are just some of the famous jockeys that started their career in Kilkee.

For spectators the sight of the hors- es racing through the sand is a rare experience.

“It is unique for spectatiors as it is a natural amphitheatre looking down from the strandline,’ said Mr Rus- sell

The course is also distinctive as it is

determined by the tide, which means the organising committee have no choice but to hold the event on All- Ireland Sunday.

“T rang the GAA but they wouldn’t move the match,” laughed Mr Rus- sell.

The people of west Clare will have their sights firmly on the local inter-

est, which will be the McGrath fam- ily from Kilkee, who have a number OM eurewe-lerbeee

The event also has an impact on the local economy with local businesses paying out for sponsorship and the bookies hoping not to be paying out too much on the strand that day.

With the long-term weather fore-

cast promising good weather, organ- isers are hoping to see up to 2,000 people at the races.

Presentation of prizes will take places in the Stella Marris Hotel.

AS part of European Shiatsu Week which runs until next Sunday, the East Clare Co-op in Scariff is host- ing a special local event for people to try out Shiatsu, a traditional form of Japanese massage.

According to the World Health Or- ganisation, Japanese people topped the world table for longevity with a life expectancy of 86 amongst the women and 79 amongst the men. Contributing to these statistics is the integral role played in society by Shi-

aL

There will be an opportunity for people to enjoy taster sessions of the massage that works with the energy pathways of the body to re-establish balance and was a favourite of Mu- hammad Ali and Marilyn Monroe.

Simply drop by the Co-Op in Scar- iff between 9am and 5pm and experi- ence the many health benefits of Shi- atsu for yourself at the hands of local practitioner Joseph Kennedy.

A major study conducted by the University of Leeds found that 85 per cent of shiatsu clients reported a sig-

nificant reduction in tension, stress and problems with muscles, joints or body structure, including back pain and posture. It has also been found to be effective in the treatment of a va- riety of asthma, insomnia, digestive problems, migraine, joint pain and is becoming an increasingly popular natural pain relief tool in labour. Often described as ‘acupuncture without needles’, Shiatsu is a tra- ditional hands-on therapy. With its origins in Traditional Chinese Med1- cine dating back 2,000 years, Shiatsu uses the same energy channels of the

body or “meridians” as those used in acupuncture.

Aimed at rebalancing the body’s energy system, the therapist uses fingers, thumbs, palms, elbows, forearms and feet to specific points (called tsubos). In addition they gently stretch and pull the client to stimulate their flow of energy (ki) and innate ability to heal.

Different to more conventional massage in that there is no oily kneading of muscles — Shiatsu clients lie in loose clothing on a padded mat or futon on the floor.

THIS only confirmed what most peo- ple already knew. That Cratloe are a real emerging force in Clare hurling and now that they have finally made the breakthrough, they won’t want to stop at just a quarter-final place.

Due to the restructuring of the championship last year, their 2006 senior B win was somewhat devalued but they thrived in the senior cham- pionship to come within a whisker of the quarter-finals at the first attempt.

Ultimately a final round defeat to Kilmaley halted their quarter-final hopes but after an encouraging Clare Cup campaign this year, only acham- pionship quarter-final place would be sufficient for their young side.

And so it came down to this game, a meeting of last year’s surprise pack- age against the heirs to their throne with nothing but a win sufficient for the north Clare side to remain in the championship.

With their lives on the line, Corofin finally produced the type of battling spirit that propelled them into last year’s quarter-final but although they troubled Cratloe for long periods, it wasn’t enough to knock the east Clare side off their focus.

As ever, Corofin’s backs and mid- field were solid, led by county senior Dara Clancy who had an outstand- ing hour at centre-back but too few of their forwards excelled and that, added to Cratloe’s all-round better balance was the reason the east Clare side emerged with the two valuable points.

Damian Browne, and a star turn from county minors Conor McGrath did the majority of the damage on the scoreboard, with a combined total of 1-10 from Cratloe’s 1-16 but they also had impressive displays from full-back Barry Duggan, who held Corofin’s main threat Kevin Heag- ney scoreless, and Michael Hawes at centre-back who swept up con- tinually around the back-line to keep Sei eloeme i onuemenmse-le.e

Cratloe couldn’t have had a better start either, as they sprinted into a O- 5 to 0-0 lead by the 13th minute with Damian Browne (3), Aidan Browne and Barry Gleeson all pointing for the Blues and at this stage, it ap- peared as if it would be a rout.

However, Corofin shuffled the pack and bringing Dara Clancy to centre- back in a switch with Gerry Quinn, the north Clare side finally settled. Five unanswered points followed, SIPUMSDITSMMALNO Moye: eom PKOeemPODELeCornAr-DI midfielder Dara Shannon which was added to by Killian Neylon (2) and Ollie O’Loughlin.

Now level, it was Cratloe’s turn to shake up their line-up as they pushed Damian Browne to centre-forward,

Martin “Ogie’ Murphy to the wing and Aidan Browne to midfield. It had the desired effect as Aidan Browne and Sean Collins both pointed in in- jury-time to give their side a 0-7 to Q-5 half-time advantage.

The second period started in see- saw fashion as the sides traded points four times in the first fifteen minutes. At this stage, Jonathan Reidy was as- signed to curb Clancy’s influence

but still, they couldn’t halt his domi- nance and finally, they introduced James Enright to do the job. If noth- ing else, Enright’s robust style did have an effect and from that, Cratloe gained a foothold on the game. Two Damian Browne points and one from Sean Collins pushed the leaders 0-14 to 0-9 in front by the 53rd minute and it seemed as if they would see out the win from here.

Still, Corofin are nothing if not bat- tlers and two minutes later, Kevin Heagney was held and Corofin were awarded a 21 yard free which Clancy smashed to the net to give Corofin re- newed hope at 0-14 to 1-9.

It set up a nervous finish but Cratloe were spared their late jitters by their two minors Cathal McInerney and Conor McGrath who stood up to the plate in the final moments. First, sub-

stitute McInerney picked off a superb point from an acute angle in the right corner and only a minute later, Mc- Grath weaved his way through the Corofin defence to place the ball past goalkeeper John Williams to restore Cratloe’s six point advantage.

This was still some fight left in Corofin though and when a hurley was thrown at Gerry Quinn — now operating in the forward line — as he was about to shoot, Ger Hoey award- ed Corofin another 21 yard free.

Clancy again stepped up to take it but although this effort was just as powerful, goalkeeper Sean Hawes produced an outstanding full-length save to deny him.

There was still time for another point apiece but there was no deny- ing Cratloe this result and they held out for the crucial win. And they got an added bonus too as news filtered through of Tubber’s surprise defeat of St Joseph’s, a result that leaves both Doora/Barefield and Craltoe level at the top of the group, with only a toss of a coin to decide who tops the group.

THE HSE have remained steadfast that an independent investigation is not necessary into the case of a woman who was diagnosed with ter- minal cancer, just days after she was discharged from Ennis General Hos- pital for the second time her cancer having gone undiagnosed.

Ann Moriarty, who died in April, was misdiagnosed at least twice at the county Clare hospital and was not informed of blood test results that indicated tumours in her system.

Within two months the mother of

one had two chests x-rays at the hos- pital, both of which were declared to be free from cancer.

Last week the HSE issued a state- ment stating that it had “carefully considered the issue of a retrospec- tive review of the wider radiology service in light of the concerns that have been raised in this case.

‘Based on the review process and the wide range of expert opinion, in- cluding the Faculty of Radiology, the HSE has concluded that a retrospec- tive review is not warranted in this instance.”

Management at Ennis General Hos-

pital and the HSE confirmed that the hospital carried out a review of the care provided to Ms Moriarty at the hospital during the period April to August 2007.

‘When the issues were first brought to the attention of the Hospital Man- ager, he commissioned a review of the patient’s care at the hospital. A preliminary review was completed in December 2007 and following this a full Systems Analysis Review was conducted.

“These reviews made recommen- dations concerning patient care and organisational issues. All of the rec-

ommendations have now been im- plemented with the exception of the provision of a dedicated local CT scanning service.

“Accommodation for CT scanning facility 1s currently under construc- tion on the site of the Hospital and is due to be completed by the end of PAU eree

“The implementation of the rec- ommendations will be audited on a regular basis,’ said a spokesperson for the HSE.

“The HSE has apologised to the husband and family of this patient for the distress caused to them. Hospital

management and the HSE’s Head of Consumer Affairs have met with the family on a number of occasions and support services have been offered to the family,” a spokesperson for the HSE said.

“The hospital and the HSE are committed to providing the family with all of the information relating to this review and to maintaining com- munication with them.

“A further invitation to meet with the clinical and management team has been offered and the hospital and the HSE once again wish to apolo- gise to Mr Henry and his family.”

THE Going Strong club in Newmar- ket-on-Fergus 1s appealing to the lo- cal community to get on board and help with its efforts to build a garden for senior citizens.

To coincide with its 10th anniversa- ry, the club has decided to assemble a seniors’ garden beside the family centre in the village.

Volunteers will donate a variety of items, such as plants and shrubbery,

to be positioned 1n the garden and the committee is appealing for people to donate 12 railway sleepers. According to the chairperson of the eroup, Kay Murphy, the committee decided to open the garden as part of its plans for the 10th birthday cele- brations of the formation of the club. “When the garden is built, the sen- ior citizens will decide what goes into it. We will try to accommodate whatever they suggest. It will be therapeutic for them,’ said Ms Mur-

ya

“We are hoping that it will all be donated, especially the sleepers for the garden. We only need 12. If we were to buy them, they would cost €600,” she added.

The 40 members meet every week and engage in activities such as bowling and day trips, while they also host talks on fire safety, legal, health and financial advice.

A committee of eight people over- sees the work of the group which has

grown significantly in size since it was established in 1998.

During its initial stages, there were just four senior citizens in the club, but as word of mouth spread throughout the village, that quickly increased over the years.

The group is resuming its activities for the autumn, having taken a well- CFeWw OLex6 MB) Kore HGR DOMMLUN WiAr- Dele MPaNUESAU Kye

All senior citizens in the Newmar- ket-on-Fergus area are invited to at- tend its meetings every week.

WercLammau rea ote potential export compa- nies are doing well, de- spite the recession.

He was commenting on reports that there have been 617 redundancies in Clare since the begin- ning of the year and that unemployment figures have risen in the county month on month.

He said that applications for assist- ance with start-up funding are still rolling in from all over Clare and ex- pansion and building plans are going ahead in many areas.

Enterprise Ireland is supporting 123 enterprises in the region, em- ploying 1,843 jobs, a net growth of 87 on this time last year (as can be seen in the table on the right).

In indigenous companies involved in manufacturing and internationally traded service, there has been a net gain of 395 jobs. Enterprise Ireland supported 20 companies in Clare to the tune of €3 million in 2008 , ind1- cating a healthy potential for invest- ment and growth, he said.

“We support community enterprise also and we have applications in from Ennistymon, who are looking

to employ a business development manager and from Kilrush for a new community enterprise building, to the tune of €2 million. There is still a healthy interest in start-up busi- ness, particularly in the international services sector,’ Mr Moloney added.

Another sector doing well is high-

potential start-ups which

look to international

trade from the outset.

These have the potential

to grow sales in excess of

€1 million and create 10

jobs in three years. The

enterprise agency 1S cur-

rently supporting 27 such

oyenhey-bavCow pom melomucscele)E

“The slump in the con-

struction sector has ac-

counted for a large number of jobs

losses but companies which have

found a niche market and companies

which are dealing internationally are still doing well,” he said.

‘People who have the best potential to do well from a start-up are those coming from a multi-national back- eround. We’re currently talking to people from companies like Avocent and Sykes who are interested in their own start-ups.”

Mr Moloney pointed out that ex- ports have risen nationally from €10 billion in 2003 to €13.18 billion in 2007. “This year’s figures will prob- ably be relatively static because of the strength of the dollar and for companies to hold their position would be a good result. But it’s not all gloom and doom,” he said.

that she had made

up her mind to “call it a day” some time ago.

Her career with the PAUL Partner-

ship in Limerick has become even

more demanding and she has also decided to study for a Master’s de- gree in Partnership Studies.

“IT had put off study at different times due to council commitments,” she added.

At the time of the next local election Cllr Lambert will have dedicated 24 years to the council.

She believes that it is now time to “move on and let new fresh blood into the council”.

od Bobet lam se(oKcme-DiomR (om Mme OT DE (ote ing times ahead for Shannon. There have always been challenges but new ones are coming and I think that new blood may be able to meet them with fresh ideas and enthusiasm.

“The council has changed over the years and there is a lot more de- mands. I feel I can’t adequately meet those demands and keep the day job,’ said the woman who served as chair- person of Shannon Town Council a record breaking four times.

Cllr Lambert said that although she will miss life as an elected rep- resentative she would remain active in politics and continue to support Fianna Fail.

“It has been a privilege and honour to represent Fianna Fail and Shannon for 23 years to date,” she said.

“I would hope that I have contrib- uted and represented the people of Shannon to the best of my ability.”

The Sean Lemass Cumann met last night to discuss its nominations for the town council and county council elections.

Meanwhile, Sixmilebridge Cu- mann has already nominated former council candidate PJ Ryan and new candidate Pascal Lenihan to contest the newly expanded Shannon Elec- toral area.

Sitting Fianna Fail County Coun- cillor Pat McMahon and Robert Frost have been nominated by New- market-on-Fergus.

Former County Councillor Pat O’Gorman has been nominated by the Cratloe Cumann to contest the Shannon area.

MAJOR population growth in New- market-on-Fergus and Sixmilebridge should put the possibility of building a secondary school for the area on the agenda.

That’s according to Newmarket-on- Fergus based Councillor Pat McMa- hon (Fianna Fail), who said the pos- sibility should be explored.

Several new housing estates have been built in both villages over the past few years and there is a belief that educational facilities should increase, to cater for the increasing numbers of residents.

Speaking at a meeting of Shannon area councillors last week, Cllr Mc-

Mahon said he accepted, even if con- firmation was given, it would take more than a decade for the project to be completed.

“They are two areas of growth. They should be now looking for a secondary school for that area for the future. Some person may wake up in the department and investigate it and send down a team,” he said.

His calls were supported by Sixmi- lebridge Councillor John Crowe (FG), who pointed out that the pri- mary school in Sixmilebridge has become heavily populated in recent years.

“Within three years, there will be 600 pupils in Sixmilebridge Na- tional School. That’s bigger than a

lot of schools in the country. There are at least three buses a day going from our area alone to the schools in Shannon,” he said.

‘These children have been born in Sixmulebridge. There are an extra three prefabs in Sixmilebridge this year,” he added.

Shannon-based Councillor Gerry Flynn (Independent) pointed out that some schools in Shannon had closed their books as they were full.

“It’s down to the proliferation of houses. Houses do not make commu- nities. Infrastructure and community facilities do. The problem in Limer- ick is that community facilities were not put in. That’s what it’s all about, a bit of joined-up thinking,” he said.

Fine Gael Councillor Tony Mulc- ahy said that thousands of new hous- es have been built over the past few years, adding, “where the schools are going to come from is beyond me.”

Saying he would support the mo- tion, he said, “I wish ye well, but re- alistically it is hard to see where it is going to come from.”

Councillor Patricia McCarthy (In- dependent) suggested that a feasibil- ity study should be carried out and this would ascertain the needs in those areas, given that some Shan- non schools were full and the in- creased population in Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus. “Maybe the VEC should be involved,’ she SHOE

EMPLOYMENT opportunities in Clare will be highlighted when over 300 jobs go on offer at the Western Development Commission’s Look- West.ie Expo on Thursday.

Last year’s event attracted over 500 visitors, all of them interested in working and living in the west. This year there will be a strong emphasis on the benefits of starting or expand- ing a business to the western region with a seminar on the supports avail- able and case studies of companies successfully operating in the west.

Commenting on the event, WDC chief executive Gillian Buckley said

that since the launch of the Look- West.ie campaign in November 2004, there were over 350,000 visits to the LookWest.ie website.

“Our partners from Clare County Council and Clare County Develop- ment Board, Enterprise Ireland, FAS and Shannon Development will be at the Expo to tell entrepreneurs how they can help those thinking of set- ting up a business in Clare.”

The Expo at the Alexander Hotel, Merrion Square, Dublin 2, starts at noon on Thursday and goes on all day until 9pm to give those at work the chance to attend. It’s open to individuals and companies and it’s free.