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TWO young Shannon men will defy medical advice in undertaking a nov- el challenge which will see them run no less than 12 marathons this year, in aid of charity.

Darren O’Connell (32) and Alan Mullin (30) from Tullyglass ran their first ever marathon a year-and-a-half ago and were so enthused by it that they decide to take up marathon run- ning on a large scale.

The two are now hoping to under-

take the multi-marathon challenge and stand to enter the record books, if successful.

The two friends ran the Dublin marathon in 2006, in memory of their friend Earl Duff (21), who died from Cystic Fibrosis 10 years earlier.

They then decided to set them- selves a challenge and run one mara- thon every month this year, in aid of Cystic Fibrosis.

They rang in 2008, running their first marathon of the challenge in Zurich on New Year’s Eve, with a time of four hours, 19 minutes. They are now in training for the next run in Valencia, Spain on February 17. They will also run marathons in Rome, Switzerland, Berlin and New York, along with five runs in Ireland. The challenge will wind up with the final run in Milan on December 2.

The two have been keen sports enthusiasts over the years, but mar- athon running is quite a new phe- nomenon. They are looking forward to the tough challenge that will lie ahead this year.

“We said we would do something to generate money. We have always been into sport,’ said Darren, who is a secondary teacher.

“The medical advice is we shouldn’t do more than two or three marathons a year. We have carried out research, which shows that it has been done before, in the UK and the States. We are not allowed to break any records. If we stay injury free, it shouldn’t be a problem,” said Darren, who has played hurling for Wolfe Tones for many years.

“It is not about the times. It is about getting through them. The trick is not to burn yourself out and do just light training in between the mara- thons,’ he added.

Both Darren and Alan – who works in Dublin – had just three marathons under their belts prior to taking up this challenge, but are confident they will get through it.

The two are hoping to raise €20,000 from the challenge and are due to set up their own website www.l2marathons.com within the next few weeks, on which they will invite sponsorship.

CLARE is bearing the brunt of the economic slowdown with a higher percentage losing their jobs here than in other areas.

Statistics released by the Small Firms Association last week showed that 3.5 per cent of all jobs lost in Ire- land last year were lost in Clare. This is despite the county only accounting for 2.5 per cent of the national popu- lation.

According to experts, this is as a re- sult of the county’s over-reliance on tradition low-skill areas such as con- struction, tourism and farming.

“We have a broad mixture of in- dustry in the county but we are more reliant on traditional industries in Clare and as a whole in the west of Ireland. There is that bit more di- versity on the east coast and that is why we need to keep attracting companies into the region that have a broader spectrum of sectors,” said Rita McInerney, CEO of the Ennis Chamber of Commerce.

“We have the location for this kind of development in Clare, like in the Shannon Free Zone and the Ennis In- formation Age Park. We have to try and attract more industry that will cover us Over the times when things like the construction industry taking a hit takes place. We don’t want to have all of our eggs in one basket on dene

A total of 714 redundancies were recorded in Clare in 2007. This plac-

es the county in sixth place nation- ally behind Dublin (10,844), Cork (2,/07), Limerick (1,250), Galway (1172) and Kildare (1,147).

In total, 25,459 redundancies were recorded nationally, with men ac- counting for some 61 per cent of all job losses.

‘We are also very dependent on the tourism industry in Clare. We need to diversify over the next few years to help off-let any downturn that might take place in these industries,’ con-

tinued Ms McInerney.

“We all knew that there would be a saturation point in the economic erowth. In fact, many economists thought it would come sooner.”

Meanwhile, further proof of the downturn in the local economy was seen last week with the release of the live register figures for Clare. They revealed a massive 165 per cent year- on-year increase in the number sign- ing on in Clare.

In December last year, 4,696 per-

sons were on the live register in the county, compared to just 4,073 during the corresponding period in pau ees

“We need to look at ways of up- skilling people who are in the tra- ditional industries which are being hit. This is where projects such as the One-Step-Up programme run by FAS will be so important,” contin- ued Ms McInerney.

“I do think that there is an area of renewal energy and waste manage- ment, the Green industries, which could be a very good fit for people who are coming out of the construc- tion sector.

“It could be a way for many local construction workers to diversify into this area. I think they would be seen as very complimentary industries to each other. It would go hand in hand with the construction industry.

“TI feel that this is not a total down- ward trend; it’s more of a levelling off. The next six months will be a time of consolidation and reorgani- sation before the economy can move forward again.

“As long as it is managed properly and businesses have time to think about where they are going in the future, then it will turn around and come good again. There is a chal- lenge here in the west in terms of get- ting over our over-reliance on con- struction and the tourism industry.”

A JUDGE said yesterday that ‘deal- ing in drugs is a pernicious activity’ and the State expects judges to 1m- pose tough sentences for drugs of- fences.

Judge Carroll Moran made the comment as he imposed a two-year jail term on an Ennis man, who ad- mitted possession of amphetamine and cannabis resin, for the purpose of sale or supply, at his home in En- nis in August 2002.

However the sentence imposed on Cathal Brohan (28), of 142 Hermit- age, Ennis, has been suspended for three years, on condition that he does not re-offend and co-operate with the Probation services.

Ennis Circuit Court heard that cannabis resin, valued at more than €5,500, was found, along with 90 ecstasy tablets, when gardai carried

out a search of the house. €2,200 cash was also seized in the

accused’s bedroom, which gardai believed was the proceeds of drug

dealing. Brohan denied this, saying it was money he had gathered to pay back a loan.

His barrister Pat Whyms said his client was “not a threat to society. He is a threat to himself. He needs to ad- dress his problems.”

Judge Carroll Moran noted that Brohan had stayed out of trouble since the offence, over five years ago.

“Dealing in drugs is a pernicious activity. The State expects judges to react and impose substantial sen- tences. It may well be that this ac- cused deserves a prison sentence,’ said the judge.

In suspending the jail term, he said he was “satisfied beyond reasonable doubt” the State’s suspicions about the money seized were correct.

TAKING inspiration from the worlds of classical and jazz music, the Jazzi- cal Quartet plays Danlann an Chlair on Thursday.

This is the second outing on stage for the recently formed four piece who also performed in the Ss Peter and Paul Cathedral during Christ- Tete

The band is comprised of Michael Hennessy on piano, drummer Danny Byrte, Deridre Frost on bass and flut- ist Tanja Fritschi.

They will be performing work by

renowned French jazz pianist Claude sXe)iunetee

A fusion of two apparently con- trasting styles of music Jazzical utilises motifs from classical piano repertoire as subjects for jazz inter- pretations for solo piano, chamber ensemble or jazz combo, and orches- tra. A true marriage of classical and jazz, it is designed to bridge the gap between classical and jazz music and its audiences while remaining true to both forms.

Michael Hennessy explained the kind of show audiences in the Dan- lann are in for.

He said “It is a classical jazz cross- over So the very music on the night will be all instrumental, very light, very easy listening. We have played together once before, 1n the cathedral on December 8, but we have been doing a lot of rehearsals”.

After the Ennis concert, the band hit the road for a show in Cork at the newly completed Cork School of Music. The school is the fist pur- pose building of its kind consists of specialist tuitional areas, rehearsal areas, live recording studios and lec- ture rooms.

A teacher in Colaiste Muire, Ennis

for over 25 years and vice principal there for six, Michael is currently pursuing a Master in Music from University College Cork.

He said “I took a year off to do the Masters down in Cork so it will be good to get the opportunity to down and play there.

The award winning Colaiste Muire Choir, led by Carmel Griffin, will provide support at Thursday’s con- cert in Ennis.

The band takes to the stage at 8pm with tickets €10 and €3 for students. The Jazzical Quartet plays the Cork School of Music on January 19.

THE outstanding work of local com- munity groups across the county was highlighted at the 2007 Community Environmental Awards ceremony in the Temple Gate Hotel, Ennis, on Monday evening when several awards were presented in competi- tions including Clare In Bloom, Best Public Seat, Power of One – Energy Efficiency for Clare, Keep Clare Clean and Pride of Place.

Ballynacally Development Asso- ciation was named overall winner of the Clare In Bloom competition achieving the highest marks for a second year in a row. The associa- tion scored highly for landscaping, range of planting, colour and overall impression.

Mayor of Clare Councillor Patricia McCarthy presented the Ballyna-

cally group with a cheque for €1500. As well as taking the overall award, Ballynacally was named winner in Category 3 population sector, beat- ing off competition from Labasheeda and Mountshannon.

Category | was won by Kilrush Tidy Towns Committee, who fin- ished ahead of Bridgetown and Shannon. Tuamgraney Development Association was named the winner of Category 2, with Kilmihil Tidy Towns and Quin Development As- sociation achieving second and third je Elen

Categories are based on population size with a first, second and third prize in each category of <€1100, €550 and €300 respectively. A Special Endeavour Award went to Bridgetown for the overall ap- pearance of the village, which was a blaze of colour during the adjudicat- ing period with the displays on the approach roads excelling. The Mayor’s Environmental Award, as well as a cheque for €1,000, was presented to Mountshannon. Spe- cial Merit Awards were presented to community groups in Bodyke De- velopment Association, Feakle Tidy Village Committee, Scariff Commu- nity Council, Obair Newmarket on Fergus, Kildysart Tidy Towns, Car- rigaholt Tidy Towns, Ballyvaughan Tidy Towns, Lisdoonvarna Com- munity Council, Ruan Tidy Village, St Mary's Community Development Lissycasey and Kilmurry McMahon Community Group. For the second consecutive year Ballyea claimed the Best Public Seat Award, which acknowledges com- munities for tasteful public seats that encourage people to take a few mo- ments repose in pleasant surround- ing. Ballyea finished ahead of Bal- lynacally and Decomade Lissycasey. A newly introduced art competition themed Power of One - Energy Ef- ficiency for Clare attracted an enor- mous number of entries from both primary and secondary schools. First prize was awarded to Jennifer Ly- ons, St Joseph’s Secondary School, Spanish Point, with Edel Curtin, St Joseph’s Secondary School, Span- ish Point second and Abby Koomans O’Reilly, Scariff Community College third. The primary school categories were won by Cillian Fennell, Ennis National School, Paraic O’Gorman, Kilmihil National School, Caolann O'Dwyer, Scoil losaf Naofa, Moy, Lahinch, second Class, Clarecas- tle National School, Laura Brassil, Dangan National School and Cai- triona O’Gorman, Kilmihil National Nye tere) Winners in the Keep Clare Clean competition included Louise Hill Ballynacally/Lissycasey; Eoin Mc- Namara, Ruan Toonagh; Liam Kelly, Cratloe; and Grace Kearney, Cratloe. The competition is organised with support from Clare County Council and runs in conjunction with Clare Community Games. The ceremony included an inaugu- ral presentation to local participants in the All-Ireland Pride of Place competition run with Co-Operation Ireland in conjunction with local au- thorities north and south of the bor- der. Clare County Council and Co- Operation Ireland honoured the lo- cal contribution that the Michael Cusack Centre in Carron, Kilmihil Community Development Ltd and the RAPID Community Pitch-In at Cloughleigh made in 2007.

A l7-YEAR-OLD who refused to co-operate with the welfare services after being in court on 12 charges re- solved to follow instructions after a stint in custody.

The youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was before Ennis

District Court on charges including stealing a car, theft of a generator and fraud.

Judge Joseph Mangan heard that the boy had been in custody since the be- ginning of November and read a re- port from the probation and welfare service which said he was not engag- ing with the after-care services.

But his solicitor, Marina Keane said the boy had been in custody since November 4 “and does not want to go back there. He knows now what he has to do and is willing to do a FAS course and co-operate with the Services.”

Judge Mangan said that the charges were of a Serious nature and he did

not want to see the accused go out of the hands of the court entirely.

He fined him €100 and disquali- fied him from driving for five years on the car theft charge.

On other charges he placed him on probation for two years and remand- ed him on bail on the two remaining charges to April 11.

GREATER representation will be given to skateboarding and rugby on the re-structured Ennis sports facili- ties committee.

The committee, established in 2003 to facilitate communication and dis- cussion on the development of sport- ing facilities in Ennis, is to be ex- tended from nine to 11 members.

This comes after concerns were raised about the effectiveness of the committee.

Currently the committee is com- prised of three elected representa- tives from Ennis Town Council, three elected members of Clare County Council and a representative from the GAA, athletics and soccer.

However with the development of a new skate park and the increased use of Lees Road by underage and

senior sections of Ennis rugby club, the Council is seeking greater input from both groups.

A report prepared by Ennis Town Council proposed that ‘the number of sporting bodies representatives be increased and that each body be asked to confirm their existing rep- resentative or to nominate a repre- sentative to the Committee’.

A vacancy, created when a repre- sentative from Clare County Council was elected to the Dail in 2005, will also be filled.

A proposal to create an extra po- sition for schoolboy’s/girls soccer on the committee was rejected at the January meeting of Ennis Town Council.

Speaking at that meeting Fianna Fail councillor Joe Reidy said greater commitment was needed from sport- ing bodies.

He said, “It’s not up to us its up to individual sporting bodies. The peo- ple that are chosen have to speak up for themselves. The sports we are looking to hear from are skateboard- ing and rugby”.

Mayor of Ennis Tommy Brennan said previous committee meetings had been poorly attended.

Committee chairman and _ inde- pendent councillor Frankie Neylon said, “I would suggest five represent- atives from five different sports. We already have one from soccer, GAA and athletics. We have a particular problem with communication on the committee. We need to hear from the people, like those in rugby and soc- cer, who are frequent users of Lees Road. Its better to have people like that, rather than six councillors sit- ting around a table”.

Fianna Fail councillor Tom Glynn

expressed concern that an en-larged committee could prove less effec- tive.

He said, “I would have some con- cerns. Do we need to extend com- mittee? What you find sometimes with large committees is that it can take longer to get things done. Would it make the whole process more un- wieldy?”’

According to the report “The com- mittee has an important promotional role to play in highlighting the nature of the facilities available amongst sporting clubs and associations. The committee can further promote ad- ditional facilities as these become available for use’.

CLARE firms interested in exploring innova- tion aS a means of becoming more competi- tive are urged to take a closer look at the new Design Shannon Skillnet programme, which tees off this spring. The two year programme, which will run concurrently in Ennis and Lim- erick, is funded by member companies and the Training Networks Programme, an initiative of Skillnets Ltd, which is funded from the Na- tional Training Fund through the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

“Design Shannon Skillnet represents a great opportunity for established manufacturing and service businesses — small and large — to ben- efit from the insight of leading national and in- ternational experts in the areas of design and innovation, and from the experiences of the other member firms in the network. The addi-

tion of more customised, one-on-one training to the new programme will further enhance the tangible benefits for each, individual company participating,’ said Laura Maye, Network Man- ager, Design Shannon Skillnet.

As a participant of the Design Shannon Skill- net programme, which recently finished, Frank Whelan, Sales Manager of Ennistymon-based Data Display, summarised how Data Display had benefited from the programme: “At a com- pany level, it has helped us to see and seize new ways of doing business. On a personal level, it has given me the skills to enhance my selling techniques, and to reap the ensuing benefits. Overall, worthwhile and value for money.”

For further information/registration, con- tact Design Shannon Skillnet at 065 6895282 (www.designshannon.ie).

A DUBLIN man who imported a haul of cannabis resin from Brus- sels, via Shannon airport, to pay off a drug debt has been jailed for four years.

Paul Hand (22), from Malahide in Dublin, admitted possession of drugs with a market value of €13,000 or more.

He was caught with cannabis resin, valued at €21,000, at Shannon air- port, on August 28, 2006.

Ennis Circuit Court heard yester- day that Hand had flown to Brussels on August 25 that year. On his return three days later, he was apprehended by Customs and when his suitcase was searched, the drugs were found.

The court heard that his own drug habit cost him up to €500 per week and he had imported the drugs to pay off a debt.

Hand’s barrister David Sutton, SC, said the accused had co-operated fully with gardai and had expressed remorse. He had since given up drugs, he said.

He pleaded guilty to the charge, which he said was at the lower end of the scale in terms of value.

He said it did seem to be a very “foolish enterprise” carried out for another individual and his client had

been naive.

Judge Carroll Moran said the im- portation of drugs was a serious mat- ter.

“Even though the value is small and the illicit drug is cannabis resin, which is not as poisonous as other substances, it’s still a Misuse of Drugs Offence,’ said the judge.

“You have to be living on another planet not to know that the legisla- ture expects and demands heavy sen- tences (for drugs offences),” he said.

The judge told Hand that investigat- ing Garda Michelle Holian had been fair to him and said “I hope you are appreciative of that.”

Noting that the accused was a pleasant individual, the judge said, “It is very difficult to send such a man to prison,’ and imposed a four- year term.

THE JESUIT COMMUNITY has been saddened by the passing of a much loved Ennis colleague.

Phillip O’Keefe spent most of his life as an SJ in Africa and came home just weeks before his recent olor hdee

He worked with his community in Mazabuca in South Africa, returning to Ennis to see his family every three to four years.

He was a student in Clongowes Wood before entering the Society in

1963 at the age of 17.

He studied Philosophy and Theol- ogy in Milltown Park, and was or- dained in 1975. Though Fr Phillip entered the Irish Jesuits, he subse- quently transferred to the Zambian province.

He worked at Maamba Catholic Church, Maamba and also St. Mary’s Parish, Monze.

His most recent appointment was as Superior and parish priest of Na- kambala Catholic Church, Parish of St Paul, Mazabuka, Zambia.

He was a keen golfer and wrote

little religious instructional books for the African children he worked wel80

At his funeral, Mass in Milltown Park, ex Jesuit Provincial, Fr Colm Brophy, paid tribute to Fr Phillip and his faith. He said that Fr Phillip, normally a shy man who didn’t like the limelight, “is awe-struck today, lying here listening to us, with what- ever ears death has, to find himself the root and centre of an enormous number of conversations of people who knew him. People in Zambia who admired and respected him,

people in Zambia who loved him.

Friends who are no longer in Zam- bia, many who are here. His cher- ished Jesuit family and his treasured own flesh and blood”.

He added that Fr Phillip was “very honest with himself” and had a “wry sense of humour which didn’t desert him, even at the end.

Fr Philip passed away peacefull in St. Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin aged 62.

He is survived by his brothers, Dan Rory, William and David and his twin sister, Molly.