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CONCERN has been expressed that the Family Resource Centre in Shan- non has not had a co-ordinator for the past nine months.

The centre offers a wide range of support for families and runs various initiatives including a parent and tod- dler group, traveller health initiative, personal development programmes and out-of-school pilot development schemes.

The absence of a co-ordinator was

raised by Fianna Fail councillor Ger- aldine Lambert, who said a number of representations have been made to her on the issue.

“The Family Resource Centre has effectively been without a co-ordina- tor for some time,” she said.

“It needs a co-ordinator to drive it. Without a co-ordinator, it is very dif- ficult for a voluntary committee to drive it.

“One person recently was look- ing for a room to do something and because there was no co-ordinator,

they had to wait for a committee. That is a very unfair burden,” said Cllr Lambert.

She urged Shannon Town Council to meeting with the board of man- agement, with a view to assisting them with the services it provides.

Councillor Tony McMahon (La- bour), who is on the board of the centre pointed out that the post had been filled, but the successful appli- cant turned it down.

‘The board decided the post would be advertised again,” he said.

“IT have been involved in the Re- source Centre for a long time. It had a lot of difficulties and there has been a lot of changes 1n personnel, because it is so dependent on voluntary con- tributions,” said Cllr McMahon.

He said it would be “ideal” for representatives of the board to meet with the town council.

Cllr Greg Duff (Labour) said he would support the motion. The coun- cillors agreed to invited the board of the Resource Centre to attend a meeting with them, later this year.

THE fallout from the loss of the Shannon/Heathrow route – a vital piece of transport infrastructure – will have a marked effect on the abil- ity of the mid-west region to com- pete, according to IBEC’s Mid West Region President, John Liddy.

He said that the need was now pressing to speed up the National Development Plan (NDP).

“With the withdrawal of British Midland from talks with Shannon Airport, it is now likely that there will not be a Shannon to London Heathrow service in January 2008.

“Companies in the mid-west have made substantial investments due to the availability of a Heathrow con- nection to Europe and beyond. The potential loss of connection will be a massive blow to industry in the re- gion.

“Tourism will also take a hit with warnings that over €100m in tour- ism investment and 10 per cent of the Shannon region’s US tourist market accessed through the Heathrow gate- way are in jeopardy.”

Mr Liddy called on the Govern- ment to “recognise its responsibility to the mid-west region.

“There is now a need to speed

up the National Development Plan (NDP). This is an opportune time to fast-track the construction of roads and other infrastructure priorities in the mid-west region. It is critical that NDP projects to the Limerick to Shannon gateway are delivered so that balanced regional development can become a reality and the mid- west region is given a fair chance to compete.”

Meanwhile, more than 250 publi- cans in County Clare have warned of serious consequences for their busi- nesses with the ending of the route.

‘70 pubs have closed in the county in the past three years, with dozens

more now facing a similar fate’, the Clare Branch of the Vintners Federa- tion said in a statement yesterday.

Michael Howard, Tourism Spokes- person for Clare VFI said, “The chal- lenges presented to local publicans should the Shannon-Heathrow serv- ice be lost will further compound the downturn in business that has been experienced in recent years.

“The facts indicate that pubs are closing and jobs are being lost, which is why vintners are furious with the Government’s failure to use its in- fluence in reversing the Aer Lingus O(STerTS(Os MO) mole DWDENSar- MB AoaY Ar NPM BE IToM Ke service the route.”

YOUNG people in Shannon are be- ing presented with an opportunity to help other young people, through a volunteer programme at the local youth club.

The Shannon Youth Office is en- couraging young people, aged 18 and over, to sign up to a volunteer programme.

The youth office is running four main projects, for youngsters aged between 13 and 25, and the organ- isers need adult volunteers to get in- volved.

The SkyView youth club, which is based at Rineanna View, is one

of the projects which runs weekly. Volunteers would help plan and run the club’s activities, between 7pm and 9pm every Thursday night, dur- ing the school term. One additional hour-long planning meeting also takes place every month. The club is Open to secondary school students aged between 12 and 16.

Drumgeely Youth Club, which is based at St Senan’s School, is look- ing for volunteers, every Monday night, between 7pm and 9pm. The club is open to secondary school stu- dents from the area.

The Shannon Music Project is also on the hunt for local adult volunteers who have a keen interest in music. A

committee of young people meets every Tuesday from 5pm to 6pm, to plan and organise music events, workshops and performances for young people aged between 15 and 25.

The project is particularly interest- ed in recruiting volunteers who have specific talents in drums, song writ- ing, sound engineering or guitar.

The other project which is run by the Youth office is the Kick Back Café. The café, which is based in Rineanna View, 1s looking for volun- teers to fill two-hour shifts at week- Teh

The café is open to all young peo- ple aged between 16 and 21 in Shan-

non on Fridays from 5pm and 10pm and Saturdays from 4pm to 9pm.

The basic role is interacting with young people in a café style setting, serving refreshments and sandwich- es and supervising members over a two-hour period. Shannon Youth Worker Cathal Dillon is encouraging new volunteers to come forward.

“Volunteering in local clubs and projects can be very rewarding. Itis a brilliant way to meet new people and use your skills as part of a team for the benefit of young people in your community,” he said.

A full range of volunteer supports and leadership training is available. For information, phone 061 364318.

THERE was a mixed reaction to the third Milk Quota Trading Scheme announced by the Minister for Agri- culture, Mary Coughlan, last week.

Reacting to the new scheme, Macra na Feirme national president, Cath- erine Buckley, said she was disap- pointed with the imposition of a 3:2 ratio on the amount of quota a young farmer could receive from the prior- ity pool relative to category one sup- pliers.

Ms Buckley said this could reduce the levels of allocations to young farmers in some co-op pools.

“This could put a greater financial burden on progressive farmers who are trying to expand their business

by acquiring quota. On the exchange young farmers will find it difficult to compete for quota against larger and more established farmers who have ereater resources,’ she said.

“In certain co-op areas some young farmers did indeed receive high lev- els of quota compared to category one producers in the last two exchanges, however these allocations were the product of ring-fencing.”

The Chairman of ICMSA’s Dairy Committee, Dominic Cronin, wel- comed the changes to the exchanged describing them as ‘broadly positive’. Cronin said he was delighted to note that the minister appeared to have acted on some of the ICMSA’s rec- ommendations concerning the short- falls of the existing system.

“There were specific anomalies in the old system that we had identified and to which we suggested the rem- edies. Those suggestions appear to have been acted upon,” he said.

“We’re particularly happy that the category one suppliers will now have a better opportunity of receiving an allocation from the 30 per cent fixed pool with a specific allocation now allocated to them.

“We also believe that the changes announced will address the problems thrown up in the northern counties — problems which again we had high- lighted previously.”

The third scheme will again be run in respect of each co-op area, and will again be comprised of a priority pool and a market exchange. Howev-

er, the method of distribution of pri- ority pool quota will be refined and a mechanism aimed at increasing the amount of quota traded on market exchanges in particular co-op areas will be introduced.

“T have listened very carefully to the views of the farming organisa- tions and ICOS in the course of a Summer of consultation on the op- eration of the Milk Quota Trading Scheme,” said the minister.

‘The very clear message has been that the scheme has functioned ex- tremely effectively. However, some farmers have continued to experi- ence difficulties getting access to quota, and some co-op areas have experienced trading problems due to supply and demand factors.”

THE establishment of a school bus run would ensure all young people in Shannon can get easy access to school.

That’s according to local Fianna Fail councillor Geraldine Lambert, who is calling on the Department of Education to set up a school bus Service, in the town.

She said it would be a cost effective means of addressing over-capacity and under-capacity in the schools.

Currently, St Aidan’s and St Co- naire’s Primary Schools are full to

capacity, while spaces exist in St Senan’s and St Tola’s.

St Aidan’s and St Conaire’s are lo- cated in the Tullyvarraga and Bally- casey areas, where there have been significant developments in house constructions over the years.

As a result, some children in those areas cannot gain access to those schools, due to over-capacity, while other schools in other parts of the town have spaces available.

The problem lies in the fact that some families do not have access to transport to bring their children across the town, to other schools.

Cllr Lambert said a simple solution to the problem could be found, if a bus route was set up.

“There are calls to build new schools and extensions. Some par- ents at the Ballycasey end bring their children to St Tola’s and St Senan’s, but some don’t have access. A bus should be provided to bring the chil- dren to the schools which are not full,” said Clr Lambert.

She said that a similar situation exists at second-level, where St Caimin’s is full, while there are spaces available in St Patrick’s Com- prehensive School.

“There 1s capacity at St Patrick’s, which is a mile from St Caimin’s.

‘There is pressure at one end of the town and capacity at the other end. It is too far for the children to walk. There is probably a need to look for a new school at a later stage. For now, why not take a cost effective method and put on a school bus from one end of the town to the other,” she said.

“The Department of Education should look at innovative ways, in- stead of sticking to a rigid rule. You would put on a bus for ten years for what you would pay for an exten- sion,’ she said.

The former president of the IMO was referring to the HSE announce- ment about cancer care during the week.

“In one paragraph, they talk about the orderly planned transfer of pa- tient care which will take place over

the next nine to 12 months. And d1- rectly underneath it, they say that as a consequence the following hospi- tals are to cease these proceedures with immediate affect and a long list that includes Ennis.

“I fear for Ennis hospital and I am familiar with the ‘golden hour’ and the far reaches of west Clare,’ Dr Roan UAYARy-B (OR

““T don’t believe that when and if the centre of excellence is up and run- ning in Limerick that people will want to see the A and E close here in Ennis as I believe you are still going to have the geographical difficulties.

“And certainly there is a lot to be said at being able to stablise a pa- tient, intervene at a level if necessary and maybe oviate ther necessity to travel,’ he added. “Nobody would be reasured by what is happening in the health service.”

Dr Reilly said that the minister’s vi- sion of a GP-led accident and emer- gency could work but man power would prove problematic.

“And I haven’t noticed the towns of west Clare or Ennis overbrimming with GPs who are stretched to the limit to do what they are doing at the minute as it is.

“Now, if she was to double those numbers, I would have no problem. I would say yes, these are very skilled clinicians who are making a very valuable contribution,” he said.

ENNIS St Johns Community Games have gone online with the launch of the organisation’s new website.

The website will provide up to date information on competitions and a comprehensive results services. It will also serve as a valuable resource tool and photographic archive, de- tailing the long history of Ennis St John.

The website was launched recently by Mayor of Ennis, Tommy Brennan at the Clare Museum. In his speech Mr Brennan congratulated the work of the committee and highlighted for praise the immense work done by volunteers to benefit the children in sport and other activities associated

with the community games.

Other speakers on the night includ- ed Eddie Power, Town Clerk, Coun- cillor Pat Daly, Councillor Mary Coote Ryan, Graham Meekins, Na- tional Officer Community Games and Joe Lynch, Chairman of Ennis St Johns Community Games, Fianna Fail TD, Timmy Dooley, Fine Gael TD, Joe Carey, Rev Bob Hanna and Rose Meekins, Mary Lenihan and Ann Chaplain representing the Com- munity Games county executive.

Local schools and sports clubs also attended the launch as did members of the Ennis St Johns under 10 mixed relay team and Tony Odubote, who won gold at the National finals in Mosney.

Most interest on the night centered

on results and sport star awards, which date from 1976 to 2006 and were compiled by John and Cecilia O’Sullivan, founder members of En- nis Community Games.

The first Clare Community Games were held in August 1971 when the county athletics finals were held in Cusack Park Ennis.

In that opening year, the new com- munity at Shannon made its mark by sweeping the majority of the titles.

Community Games in Clare has flourished in the interim thanks to expanded activity, which now in- volves 40 different areas, and the investment of time, energy and or- ganizational resources by committed voluntary groups.

The concerted community effort

behind Community Games in Clare has yielded rich rewards and contin- ues to add to its reputation with new initiatives, which are setting new standards for the rest of the country.

In 1971, Clare’s first Community Games team had a total of 71 ath- ei roh

Now almost 37 years later, Com- munity Games in the county involves some 12,000 people taking part in over 40 different activities and, with up to 1000 volunteers organizing events. Clare sends an average of 250 qualifiers to the National Finals annually.

The new website was sponsored and designed by Fanore Software and can be found at www.enniscom- munitygames.org.

ENNIS’ Valerie Hassett will fly the Clare flag on the Irish team that contests the Irish Seniors Home In- ternationals this week. Hassett won her place on the team after finishing joint-ninth behind Alison Murdoch in the Irish Seniors Strokeplay Champi- onship in Ennis early last month. Hassett was a member of the Ennis Senior Cup team that made history

in the centenary year of the club by winning the All-Ireland title for the first time thanks to a 3 1/2 to 1 1/2 win over Royal Portrush in the final at Miltown.

The Irish team in full that will compete in the Home Internationals at Royal Tara from this Tuesday to Thursday reads as follows:

Carmel Cahill (Hermitage) Valerie Hassett (Ennis) Marilyn Henderson (West Rhine)

Eileen MacMullan (Donegal) Mary McKenna (Donabate) Mary Madden (Ballinasloe) Sheena O’Brien Kenney (Grange) Reserve: Pamela Morgan (Lahinch) Team Captain: Rhona Fanagan (Milltown) Team Manager: Roma English CR Taite

Meanwhile, Gort were denied AlIl- Ireland glory at the weekend when they had to give second best to En-

niscorthy in the AA Insurance Jun- ior Foursomes final in Athlone GC. They were beaten by 2 1/2 to | 1/2. The scores were as follows:

Teresa Gill and Josephine Cummins halved with Ann Nolan and Joan Millar

Josie Collins and Celine Fahey

lost to Julie McCarthy and Pauline Byrne by 2 holes

Maureen Brennan and Margaret Whelan lost to Michele Browne and

Ursula Cousins 7&5

MEMBERS of Clare’s large Nige- rian community gathered in Ennis over the weekend to celebrate Niger- 1a’s day of independence.

A parade around the town and a full programme of song and dance reflecting the African country’s rich cultural heritage and history were held to mark 47 years of Nigerian independence.

The events were organised by the

Association of Nigerian Community in Clare and supported by the recent- ly formed Clare Immigrant Support Service (CISC).

Formerly the Irish Refugee Coun- cil, the CISC is steered by vari- ous agencies in Clare who have an interest and duty to support services for the immigrant community to facilitate and support integration in the area.

Ennis has one of the largest Nige- rian communities in Ireland, with an

estimated 600 ex-pats living around the area.

JSF-VU CMON KM or Dum O SoM EOUr DOME DOOE bassador to Ireland, Her Excellency Mandu Ekpo Ekong-Omaghomi, visited Ennis and highlighted the role played by Nigerians living in the town. She reserved particular praise for Taiwo Matthew, who in 2005 made history when he was elected to Ennis Town Council.

At the time, Mrs Ekong-Omaghomi said that the example of Ennis, as a

model of cultural integration, should be copied by other towns around the country.

Located on the west coast of Af- rica, Nigeria has a population of more than 140 million people, which includes 250 different ethnic groups.

In 1992 it began the transition to c1- vilian government folowing 23 years under a military regime. The transi- tion has not been an easy one, with ethnic rivalries and sectarian con- flicts continuing to flare.

WHEREVER Anthony Daly’s ca- reer path has taken him over the years, success has invariably fol- lowed. Whether it was with his na- tive club Clarecastle or with Clare, Daly always led from the front and this weekend, he hopes to add anoth- er title when he takes charge of Kil- moyley in the Kerry County Senior Hurling Championship final against Lixnaw.

Kilmoyley, along with fierce ri- vals Ballyduff, are the aristocrats of Kerry hurling but despite winning four-in-a-row from 2001 to 2004, they have since fallen on hard times due largely to their ageing side. John Meyler was the man in charge dur- ing that successful era at the begin- ning of the decade, but after getting the Wexford senior job last year, the club went in search of Daly who had himself left the Clare position.

The way it turned out was ironic really as Daly’s Clare inadvertently played a part in the vacant position in Wexford after beating them in two successive All-Ireland quarter-finals, thus opening the door for Meyler.

Kilmoyley are firm favourites to

win on Sunday after comprehen- sively beating Ballyheigue in the semi-final, but Lixnaw managed by another former Clare manager Ea- mon Cregan, will be no pushovers and Daly feels that the game could ome aALoNe

“It’s going to be close. A lot of people are making us favourites on the basis that we have won our two games well, but they won the cham- pionship two years ago so obviously they have a good team as well. Now they haven’t had them together with the football and that, but they won the football semi-final with Feale Rangers last weekend so they will be totally focused on the hurling for the Leto

‘This is one to look forward to any- way because they are die hards down there, they are fanatical about their hurling,” he said.

Daly originally got involved with the club through his love of grey- hounds and as aresult, he knew some of the Kilmoyley board who invited him down last year to give their mi- nors a training session before the m1i- nor final.

When Meyler left, they immediately thought of Daly who had just vacated

the Clare post and from there, the el- ements just seemed to fall in place. However at first glance, the Kiul- moyley job was a huge undertaking as the side had suffered a few very lean years and had a number of play- ers who appeared to be approaching

their end but Daly came in and re- vamped the side, beating bitter rivals Ballyduff in the quarter-final which gave them untold confidence.

As Daly recalled, “It was more a question of trying to reignite the players. There were some of them

that were very good players but had just lost enthusiasm, they’d been on the road so long. But I suppose a new voice was a help and once you got them going and once they started to bind, it came together. But they do have a few new bodies as well.

“There are a few young lads com- ing through and they won last year’s Under 21 and they are in the minor final as well on Sunday. They are a very good club and they really look after their young lads. But I guess there were a few lads there alright that were around the 32-33 age group and were possibly considering chuck- ing it and just decided to give it a lash for the year and so far so good.”

In addition, if Kilmoyley win on Sunday, they will equal Ballyduff’s record of 21 county senior titles, a milestone which they are eager to reach on Sunday and with Daly at the helm, they will conceivably never get a better chance.