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GARDAI have renewed their appeal for anyone who may have informa- tion about a 23-year-old, missing since a night out with pals in Killa- loe, to come forward.

James Burke from Ballinruan was last seen near the bridge in Killaloe on Sunday, December 9 just after LO oyere

He was heading for The Anchor Bar after an evening socialising in the town with friends but never showed up.

The alarm was raised the next day When he didn’t arrive for work or contact his parents.

A widescale search on land and wa- ter has been going on since then but has produced no results.

Last Sunday search and rescue divers entered the river Shannon for the first time since James’ disappear- ance, having been prevented from doing so before then by the huge pull created by the Ardnacrusha power station turbines.

A Garda spokesman said that they “have to keep an open mind on the matter. We have no concrete evi- dence that he went into the water and nothing has been found so far that would support that so we must allow for all possibilities”.

The spokesman asked that people

who were out in Killaloe on the night to think carefully about whether they may have seen Mr Burke.

“Someone may have some small piece of information which might prove helpful. There may be some- one who was away for Christmas and has just returned or even if one of his friends knows something that they may be worried about telling us, we would appeal for them to come KO MWe n Ke

“This is a terrible thing for a fam- ily at any time but particularly at this time of year.”

Anyone with any information can contact the incident room at Killaloe garda station on 061 620540.

AS the final experiments take place ahead of next weeks BI Young Scientist Exhibition in Dublin, one north Clare teacher will be travelling to the RDS with an extra spring in his step.

For John Sims from Mary Immac- ulate Secondary School in Lisdoon- varna, this year competition marks the 20th consecutive year that he has brought students to compete against the best in the country.

Since the first group from Lisdoon- varna competed back in 1988, John has overseen more than 120 projects from some 500 students.

‘“[ had always had an interest in the

Young Scientist and when I was in secondary school I did a project my- self. I enjoyed it greatly and I always said that when I was teaching myself that I would give something back and get involved from the teaching side,” he said.

“The first year I had two or three groups. But it was a much different competition back then. That was back in 1988 and in those days you had to type everything up manually on an old typewriter.”

Mary Immaculate has grown into the county’s leading school in the competition with more than half of all Clare’s entries coming from there this year.

“This year 60 students from the

school originally put down their names. Now some of them failed to come up with ideas and a few are be- ing held over until next year. In the end we entered 18 products and 14 of them were accepted. Which is good going considering that they only ac- cept 500 projects from about 1400 from all over the country,” continued John.

“We work here a lot over the Christ- mas and usually the group that goes up tend to remain friends afterwards. They have a great camaraderie, they really look after each other and help each other.

“Of course, if you want to get it to that high standard then you need to put in time outside of school. You

have to bring in a lot of different strands together.

“Td say PU be at this until I retire. I love the buzz. Some days you can be so tired over Christmas and you’d wonder why you would be doing it. But only for my wife and my kids al- lowing me to do this. I’m lucky, they know that this is my passion and they let me away with it. It’s my passion.”

To see a full preview of the Clare entrants for this years competition check out pages 37 to 44.

have predicted.

Recent developments in Limer- ick city will present an even greater challenge to Clare, with the green light being given to the €250 mil- lion Opera Centre shopping complex as well as the opening of Tesco at the massive Coonagh Cross facility, which will open fully in April.

Marks and Spencer have announced they will come to the Crescent while a €150 million Parkway Valley retail development is planned on the Dub- lin road, along with major refurbish- ments of the Parkway and Arthur’s Quay shopping centres.

Clare businessman Tom O’Callaghan, who has extensive business interests on William Street, Limerick and who 1s now involved in the building of a new shopping centre for that area, believes the improve- ments are good for both counties.

“My thinking is that anywhere there is progression, that’s a step forward,” said the Kildysart businessman.

“If we have strong developments in both Ennis and Limerick then every- one benefits.

“The important point is that Lim- erick City Council is now working positively with the traders to rejuve- nate the heart of the city.

People still want to go into town to do their shopping and that’s true eve- rywhere,” he said.

Meanwhile, East Clare Fianna Fail councillor Cathal Crowe has asked county manager Alex Fleming to consider a park and ride facility which would reduce traffic and allow people on that side of Clare easier ac- cess to Limerick.

THE highlight of the underage bas- ketball year in Ennistymon took place last Friday with the final of the Lorcan O’Connor Cup.

The cup, which is contested each winter between mixed U12 teams from the Clare Cascaders Club, is played in memory of the late Lorcan O’Connor who was one of Ennisty- mon _ basketball’s biggest support- ers from its early days back in the Toes

This years final was won by the Celtics, who scored a dramatic ex- tra time victory over the Cobras. The winning team included Laoise

Bucholz, Ciara O’Connell, Aisling O’Connell, Shane Doyle and John Dillon and was coached by U17 play- er Sean Devitt.

“Lorcan would have been one of the original founders of the club, that’s going back 53 years now. In those days they used to play all of their basketball in the old market house which is where the Holywell is now. It was the old market house where people would bring their pro- duce but when ever it was empty they would be inside in it playing basket- ball,” said Vincent Leigh of the Clare Cascaders.

‘From the early 60s right the whole way along Lorcan would have been

a great supporter of the club. He was heavily involved in getting the com- munity centre up and running and was a great supporter. He especially loved getting young people involved hie ned

Meanwhile, on January 5, the club will invite outside teams to take part in the Frank Kilkenny Cup for the first ttme. Clubs from Shannon, Lim- erick and Galway will make their way to Ennistymon for the UI7 com- petition which has up to now been contested by teams from the Cascad- ers Club.

‘Frank was a member of the Ad- mirals National League team back in the ‘80s and was a great club worker

over the years. This is the first year that we are inviting outside teams to take part.

“It will be good to open up that competition and hopefully it will catch on and we could invite more clubs next year and the year after.”

On January 20, the girls U14 and U16 teams will host a series of matches in Ennistymon. A number of boys involved in the U17 team are also now half way through a referee qualification course being hosted in Dublin.

All going well members of the eroup will be fully qualified referees before the summer comes around again.

THE welcome mat is being dusted down and celebrations planned for the army of Clare volunteers bound for South Africa to build a hospice.

On board are 180 of the 200 vol- unteers needed for the Building of Hope project for Lissycasey nun, Sr Ethel Normoyle.

Thousands of South Africa’s poor- est people live in the Port Elizabeth township mostly in huts and shacks made from waste corrugated and tin sheeting.

Unemployment runs at more than 70 per cent while seven in ten people are infected with the AIDS virus.

The hospice will give township residents a place to end their days in dignity as well as providing a centre where people can learn positive ways of caring for their own health.

Builders, plasterers, carpenters, electricians, and general helpers will be working flat out for ten-day stints at a time to get the project sorted in 40 days.

People have been hard at work fund raising the €3,000 per head neces- sary for the trip and in Purcell’s Bar, in Ruan on January 6 there will be a special night of trad and the auction of a valuable painting.

The ever popular Sharon Shannon will be joined by the famous Begley

family from west Kerry, including Brendan, Cormac, Niall and Owen. A fantastic night of traditional music is guaranteed.

Hot food will be served on the night and a painting by local Artist Peter Daffy of Corofin will be raffled dur- ing the night along with many more fabulous prizes.

Tickets costs €15 and are available from Purcell’s Bar or by calling An- nette at 086 3294982 or Mary at 086 3332780.

There are still places available on the trip for people willing to travel between February 14 and 25 and de- tails of accommodation, flights and transfers have now been finalised, said Olive Halpin, one of the Clare organisers of the trip.

“We would appeal now to anyone who has money outstanding to get it to us immediately,’ added Ms Halpin.

“The people of Missionvale are so excited about us coming to give them some help,” said Maureen McCarthy, another of the Clare organisers of the vale

Bishop Willie Walsh and Ennis priest Fr Tom Hogan will be along to lend support to the crews.

Anyone who would like to fund raise or even come along on the trip should call Olive on 087 6994599 or Maureen on 087 7803808.

THERE is growing concern in rela- tion to the number of private rented houses which appear derelict in Shannon town. Several residents have raised concerns about the is- sue and have asked for a report on the numbers of derelict houses to be compiled.

The matter has been raised by In- dependent councillor Patricia Mc- Carthy, who has called for a progress report to be presented on derelict sites which are under investigation.

“A number of derelict sites have been creating a nuisance. There is a growing concern about the number

of private rented houses which are derelict or there could be someone living in them and there is an air of dereliction about them,’ said Cllr McCarthy.

In response to the motion, Clare County Council Acting Senior Ex- ecutive Officer, Myles Carey out- lined the latest situation, regarding numbers of derelict houses in the redwa ee

He stated that during the 12 months of 2007, nine properties have been removed from the derelict sites reg- ister, “in that the owners complied in full with the requirements of the statutory notices as issued”.

These properties represent single

dwellings in various housing devel- opments in the town.

Five or six other properties were identified as derelict but through correspondence with the owners, they were all rendered non-derelict, even before being included in the register through the co-operation of the owners. These were also single dwellings in various housing devel- opments.

One of the buildings removed from the register, having been rendered non-derelict, was the old ESB site in Shannon.

The council said a number of sites in the Drumgeely, Tradaree and Foyle Park areas are considered der-

elict and are being followed up.

‘In a number of cases, the owners are or have applied for planning per- missions and in most cases the own- ers have had recent correspondence with the gardai. These will be fol- lowed up under the provisions of the act,” stated Mr Carey.

“One property is currently under investigation and a report is awaited. This is a single dwelling in a hous- ing development,’ he added.

However Cllr McCarthy said the council still hadn’t “identified which ones they have moved on”’.

“The council can prosecute and make people render them non-der- elict,” said Cllr McCarthy.

ONE of Clare’s most senior local politicians has just been awarded a new honour.

Long-serving county council- lor Flan Garvey was unanimously elected chairman of the Institutes of Technology in Ireland by the cathao- irligh of the 13 Institutes of Technol- ogy at their recent annual general meeting.

Speaking after his election, Cllr Garvey said he regarded it “as a great honour for myself and my family and for the Clare Vocational Education Committee.”

He is a former chairman of Clare VEC and served as Mayor of Clare for a term. He was vice-president for two years of the Irish Vocational Ed-

ucation Association, the national ad- ministrative body of city and county vocational education committees. He is also chairman of Tralee Insti- tute of Technology where is also a student, studying for an MA degree.

A native of Ballyea, Inagh, he was educated at Gorbofearna National School, Inagh; St Flannan’s College, Ennis; St Patrick’s Training College, Drumcondra; UCD and UCG where he obtained a BA and D Dip in 1972- 23

He taught in Mary Queen of An- gels, Ballyfermot, Dublin, from 1963 to 1965, Gortbofearna National School from 1965 to 1973 and Inagh National School from 1973 to 2000, being principal of both schools.

THOUSANDS of music lovers will visit Sixmilebridge for the ninth an- nual Winter Music Weekend, which takes place between Friday, January 11 and Sunday, January 13.

The festival of music will feature a wide range of music including blues, classical, jazz, bluegrass, set danc- ing, morris dancing, folk and trad.

This year, one of the main attrac- tions will be the mandolin concert

on Friday night, which will feature Simon Mayor and Hilary James, at the Courthouse venue. Simon Mayor is one of the world’s foremost man- dolinists and composers and will travel from the UK for this gig.

Among the other attractions will include an appearance by the Niall Toner band, in an acoustic concert, on Saturday evening, also at the Courthouse.

The Mill Bar will play host to the Cork-based Two Time Polka on Sat-

urday night and the North Cregg Tra- ditional Group from Cork on Sunday evening. For the first time this year, the Klezmer Jewish Band will play at the festival.

The festival will be spread among seven premises in Sixmilebridge – the courthouse, church, GAA club and four pubs – while the morris dancers will perform on the streets.

Organiser Brendan Walsh said there have been phone calls from interested music lovers from all over

the country and overseas and hopes are high that last year’s attendance figure of 3,000 will be surpassed.

“We have a big contingent com- ing from Germany and from France, while the core group of people will come from locals, along with people from Ennis, south Galway and Lim- erick,” he said.

The event is supported by Failte Ireland. For more information con- tact Brendan on 0868464509 or view the website on Www.wmw.ie.

THE University of Limerick is seek- ing to have the imposition of over €300,000 in levies waived on its new Irish World Academy of Music and Dance.

Last month, Clare County Council gave the university the go-ahead for the centre at Garraun, Clonlara, but imposed a charge of €304,000 in levies towards the provision of pub- lic infrastructure.

However, the university has now appealed the imposition of the con- ditions to An Bord Pleanala.

UL claim that “the development is located on the Clare Campus of the university and deliberately so to celebrate the rich tradition of Clare music and dance through learning, accreditation and research”’.

The university state that it 1s cur- rently seeking to raise over €6mil- lion and the UL foundation is plan- ning to raise this amount in Clare.

Donors have expressed interest in funding the project for its “connec- tion with the deepest roots of Clare culture and for the longevity which universities bring to great tradi- WON ae

The appeal states that the imposi-

tion of development contributions would impede the viability of the project and contradict the spirit and letter of the scheme by applying commercial levies to non-commer- cial voluntary work. The develop- ment 1s not intended for profit or gain, but would be a major contribu- tor to the social and educational life of the campus and the area.

“The project is dependent on volun- tary donations to go ahead. Donors both in the US and at home normally attach a condition to the making of donations that the State should at least match the amount of the private donation.Donors have been persuad- ed to make an exception in this case but the imposition of statutory lev- ies or contributions would dent their gsoodwill.

The building will house the univer- sity’s Irish World Music Academy under Michael O’Suilleabhain and be solely dedicated to education.

The university maintains that it should be exempt from this charge as they are a voluntary organisation and the development is to be used for social, recreational and education purposes and not for profit or gain

A decision is due on the appeal in the new year.

THERE was plenty of festive cheer in west Clare on Christmas morning as hundreds took part in the tradi- tional Christmas Day swims.

The largest crowd gathered in Mil- town Malbay.

More than 120 people braved the elements at the White Strand in aid of the Mid West Cancer Unit in Lim- erick.

Describing the swim now in its 15th year as “excellent”, participant Tony Cogan believed it wasn’t as cold as other years.

More than 200 people gathered to

watch the fun in Spanish Point, and enjoy some warm festive drinks.

While it rained just before and after the charity swim, the only time the swimmers got wet was when they hit the water.

In Kilkee the swim is in its 25th year.

Around 50 people took part in the swim in Kilkee at 12.30pm.

Due to the low tide, the swim was moved from the traditional point at the slipway to the beach. The event, organised by Kilkee Sub Aqua Club, attracted swimmers of all ages who braved chilly winds and choppy seas.

Half of the proceeds from the sponsored swim event will again go to the Scoil Realt na Mara Astroturf and playground project. Punch was served to swimmers after the event by Eileen Mulcahy of Kilkee Thalas- sotherapy Centre.

The people of Kilrush were out ear- ly this Charistmas Day – at 9.45 am. Despite the early start the tide was on the way out, but the determined swimmers made the most of it.

A huge crowd gathered in the freez- ing cold to watch the 30 swimmers who took to the waters for Kilrush RNLI and Multiple Sclerosis.

Santa Claus also swapped the air

for water and came ashore with the crew of the lifeboat and enjoyed the hot drinks with the locals after a very busy night.

Kildysart was the only fresh water DW bes meme etom ern yA

More than 50 people decided to take to the water of Gortlass Lake at midday.

According to one of the organisers John O’Connor, the conditions for the festive event now in its fifth year, were “reasonably good”’.

Again a crowd gathered to watch the swimmer raise money for the mini marathon cancer fund and enjoy a warm, much appreciated drink.