Category: Uncategorized

A NEW campaign aimed at reducing heart attack and stroke in Clare has just been launched.

According to Health Promotion Officer Geri Quinn, local research shows that two out of three Clare adults over 35 are overweight, have high cholesterol and high blood pres- sure, all of which increase their risk of developing heart disease.

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of chronic illness, dis- ability and early death in Ireland. 22 per cent of premature deaths (under age 65) are from cardiovascular dis- Cos

A person with high blood pressure or cholesterol feels well, looks well and rarely has any symptoms. How- ever, high blood pressure and cho- lesterol makes the heart and arteries work harder, causing damage over the years. This can lead to a heart at- tack or stroke.

Mr Quinn said, “Knowing your blood pressure and cholesterol is re- ally important. Blood pressure and

cholesterol can be controlled but first you need to know your numbers”. If you are over 30, the Irish Heart foun- dation recommends that you should have your blood pressure checked every two or three years.

During Heart Health Week, the Ennis Leisure Complex is offering a personalised fitness programme at the special price of only ©40. This includes blood pressure, lung capac- ity and flexibility checks and body composition assessment and a fit- ness programme is drawn up to suit the client’s individual needs. It also includes three free uses of the pool ZNO mcatenee

“Physical activity and stress reduc- tion help to lower blood pressure so we are delighted to work with the Ennis Leisure Complex to promote good heart health,” said Mr Quin

Heart Health Week is part of a three-week campaign to make Clare a healthier place. Clare sporting and health organisations including Clare Sports Partnership, the Clare branch of Mental Health Ireland, the En- nis Leisure Complex and the Clare Health Promotion Unit of the HSE will join forces to show three steps to

a healthy mind and a healthy body.

The campaign runs from September 22 to October 12. BNO OA Lered has a sep- Nel Kommn eI related message and there er Mee NUTS variety of activities, workshops and talks on of- fer, everything from rock climb- ing to sailing and brain training to laughter yoga.

O’BRIEN’S TOWER, the _ iconic landmark that stands on a headland at the Cliffs of Moher will undergo a major restoration in the coming weeks.

Millions of people have visited the tower since local landlord Cornelius O’Brien constructed it in 1835. The viewing platform is near the highest point of the 214 metre high cliffs and provides views of Clare, the Kerry Mountains, Galway Bay and the Aran Islands.

The tower has been closed to the public since the construction phase of the €31.5M Cliffs of Moher visi- tor centre and is due to reopen for the 2009 visitor season.

Clare County Council signed con- tracts with Taaffe Construction for the six-figure restoration project last Friday and the work will include re- pointing, dry-lining, and structural repairs as well as replacement of the interior staircases and fittings.

Mayor of Clare, Councillor Madeleine Taylor Quinn said that when the job is completed there will be safe and secure access to the tower which was not only a county landmark but also a place to which many people have fond and warm at- tachment.

“IT am confident that the restored landmark will encourage more peo- ple to visit the Cliffs of Moher and that the experience of viewing the Cliffs and the Atlantic Ocean from the tower will greatly enhance their visit’, she said.

According to county council di- rector of services for planning and economic development, Bernadette Kinsella, the tower is a vital part of the county’s heritage and its restora- tion will ensure the conservation of a protected structure which forms part of the draw for visitors from all over the world to the Cliffs of Moher’.

Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience director Katherine Webster said the restoration work was great news for the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experi- ence and Irish tourism in general.

The Cliffs of Moher are Ireland’s most visited attraction and almost a million people have been to the Cliffs Visitor Experience since it opened in February 2007.

A THIRD level Regional Learning Centre is to be established at the Clare Museum in Ennis.

A consortium of four existing third level institutions – University of Lim- erick, Mary Immaculate College, Tralee Institute of Technology and Limerick Institute of Technology – will operate the centre.

It is expected courses will be deliv- ered in 2009. Tom Coughlan, Ennis Town Manager, made the announce- ment at yesterday’s meeting of Clare Soi Geniale

He said the consortium had commit- ted to the programme for three years and that its viability depended on lo- cal support. Information on courses will be available at the County Mu- seum in the coming weeks, said Mr Sree TEN

Fianna Fail councilor and Chair- man of the governing body of TIT, Flan Garvey, who was involved in negotiations with the consortium, Ned exer ne MN ATOM OLea/odO)oyeetNL

However some councilors said the use of Ennis, as a base by outside third level institutions would have

implications for the establishment of an independent learning centre in OE Ker

Fianna Fail councilor Tom Prendev- ile said, “There is a lot of talk about the re-introduction of third level fees, which in my view would be a retrograde step. Nonetheless there is evidence to suggest that the numbers going to third level are dropping. I would be fearful that our ultimate goal of establishing an IT in Ennis in the short and medium could not be attained. Hopefully it could be done in the long term. Ennis is perfectly geographically situated”.

Fianna Fail councilor PJ Kelly said the “more we go down this road, the more other institutions are making sure that an independent college can- not be established in Ennis”.

Green Party councilor Brian Meaney said it would not be possible for and independent third level cen- tre in Ennis until Ireland had more internationally recognized 3rd level institutions. “We should play to what is feasible and what is achievable’, he said.

IT may be a bad time for the econo- my but increases in oil and electricity prices have made it a golden age for the matchmaker, with scores flocking to Lisdoonvarna looking for someone to keep them warm this winter.

That is the opinion of legendary matchmaker Willie Daly, who is also on the look out for a farmer on the dole to take an American millionaire off his hands.

‘This year has been good so far, it’s only been getting warmed up really but all things are starting to get into

it’s stride,” he said.

“The matchmaking is going well. I think with the promise of a cold win- ter coming up everyone wants to be with someone. With electricity and oil prices getting higher it’s easier to have a nice partner to keep them warm for the winter. With the high costs of living, it’s better to have two people than one to help with the run- ning of a house.

“We still have a lot of foreign people taking part but not as many Americans as in other years. There is agood amount of German and Eng- lish people the whole time but some

of the English would be more there for the dancing and the craic as for the matchmaking itself.”

This weekend, Lisdoonvarna will play host to a rich oil baroness from America who is looking for an Irish farmer to take home to Texas with her.

“There is young woman coming from Texas who is an oil baroness. She is going to spend about five or six days in Lisdoonvarna starting this weekend. She has fallen in love with Ireland – she visited here when she was 11 and it has always stayed in her mind,’ continued Willie.

“She has become a little disillu- sioned by American men and wants to try her hand with an Irish man. She has been in contact with me di- Kore AYAE-NOLOMAUG DN MOL oMCCO) UNDONE O(osKommN BION] an older woman. Hopefully now we want to keep her in Clare and not let her off somewhere else. She is look- ing for a man who will give her a lot of time so I was thinking maybe of a nice small farmer from off in west Clare, maybe someone who is on the dole and would have time for her.”

For more on this years Match Mak- ing Festival check out www.match- makerireland.com

THE small Kilkenny parish of Danesfort will this month host the National Ploughing for the sixth time in it’s history. The countdown officially began last week for this year championships, which will take place from September 23 to 25.

This years championship will in- clude more than 900 trade stands, require more than 15 kilometres of trackway to be laid and feature a host of marquees and other infra- Name eneh cen

This years machinery exhibition promises to be bigger than ever with up to 15 tractors brands on show. The new Claas AXOS tractor range will be launched while Tanco will be launching three new products and

Hi-Spec will be showing the new XCEL 1250 spreader.

This year’s championships will play host to no less than 19 All Ire- land Ploughing finals over the course of the three days.

The Under-28 and Under-21 Cham- pions will be selected Tuesday while the Queen of the Plough and the Sen- ior Horse Champion will be selected Wednesday.

The Supreme Senior Conventional Champion selected over Wednes- day and Thursday, the Kverneland Reversible Champion selected from Thursday’s Reversible Test and these are just some of the finals taking je e-leror

The winner of the Supreme Conven- tional and the Kverneland Reversible will qualify to represent Ireland at

the World Ploughing Championships in Slovenia in 2009.

Wexford Ploughman Willie John Kehoe won a silver medal in the erassland competition at the World Contest in Austria recently and team mate John Whelan scooped fourth overall.

“We are delighted to be back in Kil- kenny on these magnificent farms of the Woodcock and Barry families,” said Managing Director of the NPA, Anna May McHugh at the official launch last week.

“Its been a terrible summer for farmers with at least 25 per cent of the harvest still to be cut but as you can see the site is in excellent condi- tion despite recent weather and we are looking forward to what’s shap- ing up to be one of our best events

to date.”

Meanwhile, Concern will be cel- ebrating its 40th birthday at this year’s Ploughing Championships. Chief Executive, Tom Arnold, said the agency is using the ploughing ex- hibit to thank the thousands of farm families for their generous support over the past four decades.

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is also returning to the National Ploughing Championships this year as part of its campaign to promote road safety.

This year, the RSA will be offering 40,000 free high visibility vests for children and adults, in association atbe

TEE off time 1s approaching for com- petitors taking part in a golf classic organsied to honour one man’s 1m- portant contribution to sport in En- he

The tournament, organised by Lif- ford AFC, takes place at Ennis golf club on Sepetmber 27. Those tak- ing to the course in two weeks will be competing for the Frank Flaherty Memorial Cup. The late Frank Fla- herty was a member of the Lifford club and a passionate follower of sport. A generous and committed clubman, Mr Flaherty was primarily

involved with the Ennis club’s hugely successful ladies soccer team. He also served as president of the Clare Ladies Soccer League.

But Mr Flaherty’s contribution to sport in Ennis extended beyond his associations with any particular club oy erere oe

Mr Flaherty was one of the found- ing members of the Ennis Sports Development Committee, a group of local people whose work and cam- paigning resulted in the development of the Lees Road sports facility.

Ferdie O’Donoghue, Chairman of Lifford AFC, said Mr Flaherty made a massive contribution to promoting

sport in Ennis and that the club were keen to honour his memory. “Frank was involved with Lifford for a long time, mainly with the ladies teams. He and everyone else on the sports committee did tremendous work get- ting Less Road of the ground. I don’t know where we’d be in Ennis if we didn’t have it”.

“Frank was a great person and a great supporter of all sports. He was a pure gentleman. We are delighted and proud to be able to keep his memory alive. We decided to name the cup in Frank’s honour, to honour everything he did for Lifford and for everything he did for sport in En-

nae

Tee off times for the Frank Flaher- ty Memorial cup will be decided by timetable on a first some first served basis. Ferdie is advising anyone in- terested in taking part to register early so as to avoid delays. He’s also hoping that his club’s junior team can maintain it’s winning start to the season. “We’ve made a good start alright, buts its early days. There’s a good bunch of lads there at the mo- ment and we have a great pitch in Cassidy Park, so hopefully we can keep it going”.

For further information and enquir- ies contact Ferdie at 086 3289041

AN EXHIBITION highlighting the work done by service providers in north Clare takes place in the Com- munity Centre Parliament Street, En- nistymon on Friday, September 19. Minister of State Tony Killeen will formally open the exhibition at 12pm and all are welcome to attend. Organisers hope that by bringing service providers together under one roof they can provide a useful first point of contact for many local peo- ple. The exhibition is being organ- ised by the North Clare Area Learn-

ing Network.

The network is made up of a number of local and national groups.

Organisations that will be repre- Sented at the exhibition include, local secondary and vocational schools, FAS, Clare VEC, Teagasc, Clare Supported Employment Service, Farm Family Support, Citizens In- formation Service and the Brother’s Om Or TulAys

The event will provide information on a wide range of topics and organ- isers are hoping for a large turn out on the day. The diverse range of or- ganisations and community groups

represented at the exhibition reflects the broad spread of services pro- vided in the north Clare area. These include Clarecare, the Irish Farmer’s Association, Burren Connect, Rural Resource Development, Job’s Club, Enable Ireland, Clare Immigrant Support Centre, National Learning network, Family Resource Centre, Money Advice and Budgeting Serv- ice, NUIG access programme, Clare Sports Partnership, the Alzheimher’s association and the Traveller Enter- prise Project.

Information will also be available to the public on many other serv-

ice providers currently operating in north Clare.

A spokesperson for the North Clare Area Learning Network encouraged local people to come along and sup- port the event and to learn more about the services in your local area.

“If you have a half an hour to spare, come along to the community centre and check out what is available in your area.

“You will get the opportunity to make contact with a variety of or- ganisations and meet the people who are providing the services,’ the spokesperson said.

THE issue of accessability and the barriers faced by people with dis- abilities will be addressed at a con- KUO NI DION IIS C Molo)

The event, organised by Enable Ire- land as part of Action Week, takes place at the West County hotel on Wednesday, September 17.

The theme of the week is Access All Areas and aims to promote ac- cess for people with disabilities to all areas of life, from social and leisure activities, education and employment to infrastructure and buildings. Dur- ing Action Week supporters can buy a Gold Badge to raise valuable funds to help take action on disability.

The conference in Ennis aims to provide information on a wide range

of topics related to accessibility, from education to leisure activities.

Speakers at the event include repre- sentatives from Clare County Coun- cil and Clare Accessible Transport and James Murrihy, the sports inclu- sion development officer for Clare.

Anne O’Malley from the Ennis branch of Enable Ireland said acces- sibility remains a significant problem in Clare.

“There are huge barriers with re- gards to accessibility whether that relates to transport or education. This is something we want to high- light, but at the same time we also hope to show that these barriers and problems can be overcome.”

Information stands and members of Enable Ireland will be on hand on the day to offer help and advice. People

with disabilities and their families are especially encouraged to attend, to share their experiences.

Anne explained, “We get a lot of en- quiries from people who maybe have children with disabilities, wondering ~VoJOlUL Mm UND CODN Orca: DeLG mu elO\, au KOmecxO mr: 1ele)011 making their homes more accessible. We want service users to come along and avail of the opportunity to share WeToJD MSD. 4 OLS U (oOo IRY ALO UR

A major focus over the past year for Enable Ireland in Clare has been in the area of leisure activities. The or- ganisation implemented a wide pro- gramme of sports and leisure related activities with particular focus on watersports.

Anne explained, “What we have done in Ennis over the past year is try to create a situation where peo-

ple with disabilities could have pretty regular access to wide range of sports. Watersports was one area we focused on. It’s been a lot of fun for everyone involved. We had two wheelchair users going windsurfing. There was a wheelchair soccer tour- nament, trips to the swimming pool, lots of different things.”

The water theme continues next week when Liam Griffin, water safe- ty officer with Clare County Council, will officially open the conference.

Enable Ireland supports 3,500 chil- dren and adults with disabilities and their families and provide services in local communities throughout Ire- land. Covering childhood to adult- hood, expert teams work with the individual and their family on a plan for each life stage.

REVIVING the traditions around holy wells has been part of the work of Beagh Rural Development Asso- ciation during the last 19 years.

One of the most documented wells in the parish of Beagh was the centre of attention as it held its first Mass in 15 years was held there.

Tobar Ri an Domhainaigh or the well of the King of the Sundays is situated behind an old RIC Barracks close to Tubber, on the Clare-Galway

boundary.

This was the sixth well restored in the parish with the help of FAS and Galway Rural Development. The role of the holy wells had been for- gotten by newer generations and had become overgrown.

On Sunday last however the lo- cal community gathered again for a Mass. Now the development com- mittee hope to make the mass an an- LOE oad OL

Traditionally the day for visiting the well was the last Sunday in July.

There remains just a few final touches to be completed at the well that was first mentioned the writings of a friar that took refuge in Prague Anthony McBroady in 1669.

Situated in the townland of Rath- willadoon the well whose origin lies in Pagan times has long been associ- ated with Christian pilgrimage.

According to tradition St Coleman blessed the well.

On the old alter a plaque dated 1717 reads, “Pray for the soul of Helen O’Brien alias Kelly O’Shaughnessy

who made the wall around the well, May 9, 1717.”

A stone plaque also adds historic data to the well. Situated at the west- ern end of the well the plaque is in- scribed with “Pray for the soul of Nelly Ffrench who made this monu- ment 1711.”

The artefact of most note from the well is a medieval bronze crucifix now situated in the National Muse- um in Dublin. A replica of this his- toric cross can be seen in Shanaglish Sie

A REPAIR works scheme for dozens of homes in Ennis has ground to a halt after funding for the programme “dried up”.

Even as Ennis Town Council nears completion of phase one of a reme- dial works scheme on the council’s housing stock, Town Enginneer Tom Tiernan has said that he “wouldn’t hold his breath” in anticipation of the commencement of phase two.

Mr Tiernan was speaking at the September meeting of Ennis Town Soniete

He said the council had success- fully pursued an application of €4.1

million to carry out remedial works in 46 houses in Shalee Drive and Gordon Drive.

“We have submitted an applica- tion for the second phase and we got a response from the department that more or less told us that fund- ing wasn’t available due to the down- turn’, said Mr Tiernan.

He added, “I’m not in a position to be able to tell people when they might be eligible for the scheme. All we can do is try to push our case with the department. But, I wouldn’t hold my breath.”

“All indications from the depart- ment are that funds have dried up SIRS TUBELOr-vOLO NYA

The scheme mainly involves repair- ing broken doors and windows, and dealing with other structural issues. The works do not cover repairs to central heating systems as that is cov- ered under a separate programme.

Raising the issue, Independent councillor Frankie Neylon asked Mr Tiernan for an updated report on the repairs programme.

He said, “Some people are being told they have to pay to have their windows fixed and others say they elena

Over the next month could we get a report on the type of repairs needed? There is a lot of confusion out there especially in the Cloughleigh area.

People see the work being done in Gordon Drive and then it moves somewhere else. They are just won- dering if the council are going to do this for all the houses”.

Mr Tiernan said there was no emer- gency funding available, but that help would be provided to households in “exceptional circumstances”’.

“We are dealing with the replace- ment of windows as best we can. When there is a need we will respond as positively as possible. We will look at exceptional circumstances. We are sympathetic to people in a lot of cases. We are trying to stretch our resources. We will see what we can Coe