The Clare People Archive

AN effort to adapt to the changing needs in a parish in east Clare will be made over the coming weeks When locals compile a community TOTS H ESE

Through the initiative, all 1,200 households in Parteen, Meelick and Coonagh will receive ‘listening census’ forms in the coming weeks. They will be asked to fill out the forms and return them to the organ- isers of the initiative, the parish pas- toral council.

The aim behind this project is to compile a list of events and initia- tives that locals feel are lacking. The organisers then plan to do as much as

they can to implement key changes in the local community and address the needs highlighted in the census.

The forms are divided into three areas – how local communication can be improved, suggestions regarding social improvement in the commu- nity and involvement in church ac- tivities.

Residents are also being encour- aged to make any additional sugges- tions which they think would help develop the community.

Project manager Peter O’ Mahony explained the idea to carry out this research.

‘Towards the end of last year, we realised it was getting more difficult to get in touch with every household

in the county. We then came up with the idea of a listening census.

“It means that we will listen to the community and then inform them we do have an active community. They will be asked if they would like to be involved locally,” said Mr O’ Mahony.

This census will vary in some ways, to the national census of population, which was compiled last year.

“It is different in that it 1s option- al. You are not obliged to fill it out. While the national census 1s to iden- tify future needs, we don’t have in- dependent funding as it is voluntary work,’ he added.

“One of the first things we will do is get an email address, phone number

and postal address for every house in the community. It is about forming a key part of our new communications strategy which is going to allow the community to communicate better with itself,’ he added.

They said that the third part of the census, which relates to the church, will give people the opportunity to get involved in this particular area.

THE players of the Corofin Drama Society will next week make the long trek to Strabane in Tyrone where they will fly the flag for Clare in the All- Ireland One-Act Play Finals.

The society has cleaned the boards in all competitions so far this year, taking four first-place and two sec- ond-place finishes out of six com- petitions, and are full of confidence going up north.

Local people are being offered one last chance to catch their spectacular production of “The Beauty Queen of Leenane’, which will be staged in Corofin this Friday, April 11 from §.30pm.

“It’s a great play in the first place. It’s a lot easier to get an audience to really enjoy a play if it’s a great play to begin with,’ said producer John Clancy.

“Our cast in this play deserve a lot of credit. They have won a lot of awards among them for their per- formances. But the unsung heroes are the guys who work behind the scenes, who set off at eight in the morning and get the show ready and then bring the whole lot home at God knows what time when everything is finished. You can’t do it without these people.”

This will be the society’s last time to play in front of a home audience before they take on the best in the

country at the national finals, which will take place in Strabane from Friday, April 18 to Saturday, 26 of ele

“This is our second time reaching the All-Ireland. The last time was in 1985 with a production of *Phila- delphia Here I Come’. We still have a few of the people involved from those days. We have Eileen Lahiffe, Peter Daffy, Rhona Lyons and Willie Lahiffe, of course,’ continued John.

“We did the play in Corofin before we Started on the circuit. We got a great response. There would always be a good regular crowd here in Corofin who would come along and tell you what they thought about it.

“But now that we have had that bit

of extra success, we are hoping to get some local people who might not usually come to plays to come along. The parish is buzzing with talk about the play so we are hoping that we will get a lot of new people in for a look.”

The Corofin Drama Society are the only Clare group to make it as far as the All-Ireland Final this year.

LIGHT, darkness and all the (lumi- nous) grey areas in between form the driving thematic forces behind this year’s Masters Of Fine Art Exhibi- tion at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan.

The exhibition, which is entitled ‘Quiet Dark Bonkers’, opened over the weekend and features the work of graduating Masters students Pam O’Connell, Aoife Cassidy and Cas- sandra Dorer.

“My focus in this exhibition is darkness in art. When I came to the Burren originally I was focusing on

brightness and happy paintings. But when I had my tutorials, my tutors used to say that my work wasn’t re- ally very happy at all. I disagreed with them and, instead of knocking it, I started to explore the darker side in art,’ said Pam O’Connell.

“T work in a diverse range of medi- ums. I am working firstly with clay and from the clay comes the paint- ings and the photographs. So there is a connection and a progression through the pieces.”

Pam, Aoife and Cassandra are the only Masters of Fine Arts Students that will graduate in Ireland, outside of Dublin, this year.

“Like Pam, I am quite drawn to the darker side, but I use a lot of humour as well. So I use a lot of glitter and fluorescence and childlike materials, so you wouldn’t know straight away exactly what the work is about,” said Aoife Cassidy.

“The work is really a homage to people who suffer from mental ill- ness. In this exhibition, I am really trying to push my own limitations and the audience’s limitations. For example, I have one room, I call it the Bird Hide, and I’m hoping to invoke the feeling of panic.”

Cassandra Dorer said, ““My work is nearly the opposite of the other two.

I am looking to create a quiet area of stillness with the idea that people can reflect on their own thoughts.

“The painting are based loosely on the landscape but there is little or no definite imagery in them. So a lot of it is based on colour as an emo- tive force. I think that the landscape here plays a big part in the work, the feeling or sense of spirituality in this area and in the west of Ireland as a whole.”

The exhibition will run daily until JDuCCl \Avate ul mene

To view some images from the exhibition, turn to page 45 of Clare- LIFE.

AFTER breaking the €100,000 mark last year, organisers of the sixth annual Micheal Dunleavy Walk in Doolin are hoping to push things even further this year.

The Michael Dunleavy Foundation was set up in memory of Michael Dunleavy, who died from a rare brain tumour when he was just eight years old in 2002. The charity organises a number of fundraising events both in Ireland and the US.

Michael himself lived most of his life in America, but often came to Clare to visit his aunts, uncles and erandparents in Doolin. Hopes are

high that this year’s walk will be one of the best yet.

“In total, we have raised more than €100,000 for the Irish Cancer So- ciety. We tipped over the €100,000 mark last year which is really won- derful. It shows the commitment and the generosity of the people taking part,” said Mary O’Connor, organ- iser of the Doolin Walk.

“We usually have about 200 peo- ple. It’s a good day, nice and relaxed. It’s like a family day. We have peo- ple who bring the dog along or bring the pushchair. It’s a good family day with lots of children involved.

“We would usually have walkers from all over. We have people who

come down from Miltown and Mul- lagh and that side of the country. We also have a lot of people from Bally- vaughan and an awful lot of locals. It is something that people really keep in mind and look forward to.”

The walk will take place this Sun- day, April 13, at lpm. Registration will take place at Doolin’s Russell Cultural Centre at 12.30pm.

“It 1s a three- or five-mile circular walk, so there 1s a bit of choice de- pending on how fit you are feeling. It’s going to be a really enjoyable day with great fun and a lot of relaxing.

“If the day is clear, and I hope it will be, we will get brilliant views of all the local scenery and even the

Aran Islands,’ continued Mary.

“All money raised goes to the Irish Cancer Society paediatrics research and to our local fund which is there to assist terminally ill local people and their families.

‘We have sponsorship cards avail- able and people can come along on the day and give a bit.”

Anyone looking for a sponsorship card can contact Mary O’Connor on 7074332 or Maurice Dunleavy on 087 2912916.

SOME of Ireland’s top athletes and running enthusiasts will be in Kilnaboy this weekend for the annu- al Michael ‘Sonnie’ Murphy Memo- rial 1O-Mile Open Road Race.

The race, which takes place this Sunday from 2pm, commemorates the life of Sonnie Murphy, the local legend who took part in the two-mile Steeplechase of the 1932 Olympic GF Trslone

This is the 24th running of the event and organisers are expecting another bumper year, after record numbers took part last year.

“It’s the last of the four Munster 10 Mile Spring Classics. There is a prize for anyone who competed in all four events and, at this point, with three events completed, there are 177 still in the running,” said Vincent McCa- rthy of Kilnaboy Athletic Club.

“We get a good mixture of athletes. We would get eight or 10 elite men and five or six elite ladies taking part each year. The rest would come from every different class of runner.”

This year, local athlete Tracy Guil- foyle will be back looking to defend her title. Tracy last year became the first local athlete in the history of the race to win one of the major titles.

“She is training very hard at the mo- ment so she will be hoping to regain the tithe again this year. Last years men’s winner was John Byrne in a time of 54.24. We had 397 finishing the race last year which was the big- gest number ever,” continued Vin- cent. “It is growing away all the time. It grew up to about 200 and it stayed at that for a long time. But since we have been involved with the Munster Spring Classics, it has grown again. The number looks to be going higher again for this year.”

Before the business of the road race, the annual 10km fun walk takes place in Kilnaboy from 1.30pm.

“The fun walk is more relaxed, it’s non-competitive. People come to that and have a nice relaxing time,’ says Vincent. “We have used the race for years to make money for char- ity. We have raised about €15,000 or €20,000 for Cystic Fibrosis over the last number of years. We don’t have a designated charity this year but what- ever profit we have from the race will go to charity.”

The entry fee for the race is €10 and €5 for the walk. Anyone in- terested in learning more about the event or taking part should contact Vincent McCarthy at 065 6837875 or 086 1704471 for details.

A GROSS profit of more than €3,000 was generated through the St Patrick’s Day parade in Shannon, according to preliminary figures. The event generated an income of €5,658.99, while expenditure came to €2,671.80, a meeting of Shannon Town Council heard last week. Stressing that these figures are not the final amounts, the chief organ- iser of the parade, Councillor Greg Duff paid tribute to the efforts put in by those who participated in the

Joye NereKO Con

He pointed out, however, that the parade may have to meet at a bigger venue other than the Wolfe Tones GAA clubhouse in future years, giv- en the huge turnout this year.

Fianna Fail councillor Geraldine Lambert said she believed that the parade should receive more support from the community.

“We still aren’t getting the support from the clubs and organisations that we should get. It costs very little for clubs to turn out in their colours. This parade is not for the town coun-

cil. It’s for the people of the town,” she said.

She added that traffic management was an issue this year.

“While the GAA itself is a fine as- sembly point, traffic management would have to be looked at,” said Cllr Lambert.

Councillor Mike McKee (Inde- pendent) suggested that the parade would assemble at St Senan’s rugby club, where there would be more space for the huge crowds taking part every year.

Councillor Sean Hillery (FF) said

the parade was “the most important community exercise in Shannon in the 12 months. It’s our heritage and it’s our childrens’ heritage.”

“TI think all the clubs should be rep- resented, even one or two of them, with the names of their clubs,” said Cllr Hillery.

Labour Councillor Tony McMahon added that industries in the town should play a more prominent role in the parade.

“If we keep having the same few floats each year, the thing can get a bit stale,’ he said.

THE gymnastics club in Shannon has been basking in glory after one of its members won a medal at a prestigious international event.

12-year-old Becky O’Donnell won a bronze medal, after she came third in the Coimbre Open in Portugal.

Becky, who is one of the top eight tumblers in Ireland, was selected to participate in the event in the wake of a string of impressive performances in Clare and the wider Munster area, over the past year.

She was delighted to come third in the Coimbre Open, where she fought off stiff competition from more than 10 other entrants, in the under-13

category.

This follows on from her success last year, when she competed in Lithuania and was placed in the top ten in a world cup event in Poland.

Her coach Elaine Ryan said Becky deserved the honours and everyone in the club was thrilled for her.

“She has been building up, with good performances in past competi- tions,’ said Ms Ryan.

“This is the first international med- al the club has every got. We are very proud,” she added.

Becky travels from her home in Kildysart for training at the Shan- non club and hopes are high that her fine achievements will encourage her club colleagues.

“There are 80 members in the club and hopefully this will encourage the others,” said Ms Ryan.

The club has been busy over the past few months and after being without a permanent home, it has re- cently secured a new base.

It is currently located at the Stone- hall Business Park, but will move to a permanent home near Newmarket- on-Fergus later this month.

“We are delighted with this. There is a great backing from the parents,” said Ms Ryan.

“Children travel from all over to the club, from as far as Gort and from Raheen in Limerick, three to four times a week,” she added.

While Becky is still absorbing her

latest success, she is already plan- ning her next trip and is hopeful that she will be selected for future inter- nationals which are due to take place throughout the year.

Her ultimate aim promises to be a huge challenge, which she is ready to tackle. “She will be hoping to go to the world championships in 2009,” said her coach. No doubt she will do her best to ensure qualification for this event.

A RESIDENTS association in Shan- non has played a key role in buying a defibrillator for a local primary school.

The Gleann an Oir residents as- sociation raised more than €3,000 and bought the defibrillator for St Conaire’s National School, which is located close to the housing estate.

All of the 40 houses in the estate sold tickets for the worthy cause. Not

only did it raise the money, but the initiative also raised the profile of the local residents group, which was formed last year.

The group had hoped to raise €2,000, but when this was surpassed by 50 per cent, they decided to also donate money to the neo natal unit at the maternity hospital in Limerick.

This was in memory of a young baby from the estate who died.

PRO of the residents group, Michelle Hayes explained the think-

ing behind the idea.

“Our chairman Mike Fleming had been talking to people at the school and they said they wanted to raise money for a defibrillator and that was where the idea came from,” said Ms Hayes.

“This will raise the profile of the residents association in the area,” she added.

“It is important to have a defibrilla- tor. A lot of young children die sud- denly and every school should have a

defibrillator,’ added Ms Hayes.

She said that locals are pleased with the success of the residents as- sociation, since its formation.

“The estate is kept very clean and tidy. It is good to have a residents group, for initiatives like tidy towns and grants which may be available,’ she said.

“It is also good to get to know the neighbours as a lot of the residents are young families,’ Ms Hayes add- ed.

is the 26th publica- tion of the local GAA club and has just hit the bookshelves at a cost of oe Compiled by the club’s chairman John Guilfoyle, PRO Robert Meehan and Games Development Officer Brian O’leary, the 28-page glossy booklet outlines details of the club’s successes and activities over the past IPB rtenndetcy Not only does it contain details about the GAA, the booklet also focuses on the wider community in

Newmarket-on-Fergus, with space also dedicated to the local Macra na Feirme Club, Newmarket Celtic soc- cer club, the local ploughing associa- tion, the handball club and the four parish schools.

Pride of place in the booklet goes to the parish’s under-18 hurlers, who won the Minor A championship last year. Their success is highlighted through photographs and several ar- ticles.

The club’s decision to honour Kay and the late Fergus Marren last year for their decades of service to the club, is also marked in the publica- nen

There are also tribute articles to former player, the late Michael Considine and the late Dr Brendan O’Regan, who lived in the parish for

many years.

History plays an important role in the local area and an article on the monument at the Fair Green, writ- ten by local woman Mary Grogan, 1s also included.

John Guilfoyle said the scope of the publication had expanded over the years, since the first one was pub- lished back in 1983.

“Tt initially came out as asole GAA publication. It has evolved over the past couple of years, to include other groups,’ he said.

“It is a mixture of everything, with several colour pictures,’ added Mr Guilfoyle.

He explained the decision to pub- lish the booklet at this time of year.

“We used to bring it out at Christ- mas, but there was so much much

happening coming up to Christmas. Five years ago we decided to go for St Patrick’s weekend and we then de- cided to bring it out for Easter,” he rE nLem

500 copies of the booklet have been printed and it is currently on sale in local shops and schools in the New- market-on-Fergus area.

Last year was a successful one of the club, particularly with the minors winning the county title and the un- der-21s reaching their county final. The club is now hoping that details of the achievements will be widely read in this publication.

A CLARE County Councillor has called for measures to be put in place to ensure that the taxpayer will not have to pay for security operations at Shannon Airport when expected dig- nitaries do not arrive.

The Green Party’s Brian Meaney wants to know who will pay for the security operation at Shannon last weekend when US President George W Bush was expected on a refuelling stop, and how much was spent.

“This is the second time Mr Bush has failed to land here, despite costly security operations being undertak- en. I appreciate there is a reciprocal protocol between states to provide security for visiting dignitaries but where that dignitary does not turn up, their government should pay the bill, not the Irish taxpayer,” he said.

Air Force One was expected to land at Shannon at 4pm on Sunday but the Presidential jet overflew Shannon while a second support aircraft, Air Force 2, believed to have been carry-

ing senior US officials, made a tech- nical stop at the airport.

Security around the airport was tight from early morning with over 200 personnel from the Garda and Defence Forces drafted in, although it had never been confirmed to gardai or Shannon authorities that Mr Bush would definitely land. He was re- turning to Washington from a NATO summit in Bucharest and a visit to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s holiday retreat on the Black Sea.

The operation involved the US Se-

cret Service, Gardai, Army and Aer Corps. Gardai were posted at loca- tions around the airport while all access roads to the aerodrome were closely monitored by mobile patrols. Checkpoints were also mounted while an Aer Corps helicopter car- ried out aerial surveillance.

A team of garda motorcycle outrid- ers from Dublin Castle was sent to Shannon in case the President had to be taken from the airport for any rea- son. A mini-cavalcade, comprising one of the President’s official cars as

well as personnel carriers for Secret Service agents, was also on standby.

The security operation was wound down shortly after 3pm following confirmation that Air Force One would not be landing at Shannon. It is estimated that the deployment could have cost as much as €250,000.

On May 10, 2005, a security op- eration was mounted in anticipation of a similar stop by the President. However, that was cancelled just two hours before his plane was due to touch down.