The Clare People Archive

STUDENTS and staff at Scariff Community College are this week celebrating the talent that is spilling over from the school.

National art titles, handball titles, construction and fund-raising chal- lenges and an adventure to Barcelona are just some of the exciting things going on in the school.

When the Applied Leaving Certifi- cate students decided they would do a construction project for their ex- ams, they took on one which would be of practical use to their school.

They came up with the idea of erecting a poly tunnel in the grounds of the school which could be used

like an extra classroom for agricul- tural science students.

The determined dozen had to source the materials, raise the funds to buy it and then erect it.

The tunnel will be used by the stu- dents to grow vegetables and other crops as well as to bring on graftings and cuttings as part of their agricul- tural science course.

As well as providing space for the ovuescau: Reeve som A OCcmm REDON OSIM BON mmerelubOLE towards the school’s bid to win back their Green Schools Flag.

“It’s an extremely practical project which will be of great benefit to their fellow students on the agricultural science course,’ a school spokesman Sr HKOe

While the applied leaving certs are busy digging and building, 37 other students are busy packing their suit- cases for a school trip to Barcelona.

The transition year students are off to the Spanish city to hear Spanish spoken first hand, to look at the ar- chitecture and the museums and to enjoy cultural differences including tasty tapas.

Sporting winners are not forgotten in Scariff either. First year student, Paddy Fitzgerald, took gold recently in the Munster 60 x 30 schools hand- ball competition.

The school itself 1s sponsoring gear for transition year students, Aisling Fitzgerald and Sarah O’Donnell who are into the FBD National Fi-

nal Handball Trials representing schools.

Last but certainly not least in terms of community college pride, is 13- year old Abbie Koomans-Reilly, who took first place in the Energy Effi- ciency for Clare art competition.

Abbie was presented with her prize at a special ceremony by the Mayor of Ennis, Tommy Brennan.

KILLALOB’S twin town in Wiscon- sin is inviting all and sundry to join in their all singing, all dancing cel- ebration of St Patrick’s Day

The City of New London – known as the city of New Dublin for the week around the Patrick’s Day fes- tival – is getting set to paint the town ate te

The Shamrock Club, which rep- resents those of Irish descent and those who wish they were, sent a del-

egation to the Shannonside town last year at the invite of local councillor, Tony O’Brien.

The reception which the visitors got copper fastened their decision to get the twinning process underway.

The annual parade and Irish Festi- val will kick off on March 15.

The week-long celebration of all things Irish kicks off on Monday March 10 when the “Leprechauns” officially change the name of the city from New London to New Dublin. On Tuesday, March 11 it’s Hooligan’s

Day the official beginning of all area restaurants serving corned beef and cabbage – some serving as much as 1,500 pounds over the week.

Other events planned include Irish singing at the city apartments for the elderly and an evening of Irish enter- tainment.

As well an Irish céili on the Fri- day while on the same night the residents of the city will say farewell to Michael Finnegan as his Wacky Wake makes it’s way to various es- tablishments in the area, including

Pup’s Irish Pub.

On Saturday, March 15 the Irish Fest tent opens with lots of Irish mu- sic followed by a Grand Parade fol- lowed by more music.

“Any one from Killaloe or Clare who wants to visit will be assured of a warm welcome,’ a spokesperson for the festival organisers said.

For more information on the “New Dublin’ week-long St Patrick’s Day festival log on to www.newdublin. com or Wwww.newlondonchamber. oro) e0

ONE of Clare’s and indeed the mid- west’s best known hotels, the West County Hotel, Ennis will this year celebrate 40 years of being at the social and business heart of Coun- ty Clare. The landmark hotel was opened as a twenty bedroom opera- tion in 1968 and was the culmination of a vision by its founding Directors Michael and Christina Lynch.

Since then it has evolved over the years to become a 152 bedroom ho-

tel with large banqueting, conference and leisure facilities. Over the years the hotel has been a tremendous as- set to tourism in the County being the venue for the World Irish Danc- ing Competitions, International L1- ons Club Conference and All Ireland Darts Competition to name but a few events.

Looking forward, the hotels propri- etor and Managing Director Michael B. Lynch believes that the hotels edge of centre location to the town of Ennis will dawn a new and inter-

esting future for the hotel. The West County is currently very active in the conference and event markets and its strategy 1s to bring and create large National and International events for Ennis with the West County at their fe) Ken

SW slomectbe mee) (oe) e:18 (er moaLo tlm Bel mole a spectacular banquet in March, de- tails of which will emerge over the coming weeks. In addition to cel- ebrate the milestone of 40 years in business the hotel also plans to re-in- troduce for a limited time during the

year some old favorites like Saturday night dining and dancing, Club Oasis and the year’s celebrations will cul- minate with a gala Mistletoe Ball on New Year’s Eve.

The West County Hotel is a mem- ber of the Lynch Hotel Group which has hotels in Clare, Mayo, Limerick and Dublin.

BAREFIELD National School con- tinued their push for green school status last week with events focusing on healthy eating.

Barefield has been a green flag school since 2002 and since that time staff and students have really embraced the programme.

There are seven steps in the pro- gramme. The school must set up a green school committee, carry out a green review and decide on an ac- tion plan for the school. All progress must be monitored, measured and evaluated. Then green schools pro- eramme is also incorporated into

school curriculum work.

The school must also involve and inform the local community and cre- ate a green code before being award- ed full green flag status.

So far the school has made great strides and received recognition for work done on litter and waste man- agement, energy and water.

Ata presentation on Friday, students presented a report on the progress so far. Last year the school initiated a healthy lifestyle programme with the help of all teachers, pupils and parents. Students are encouraged to bring healthy lunches to school and the programme is to form a major part of the school’s push for green

flag status in the coming years.

Other projects undertaken include the reporting of leaking and dripping taps and compiling surveys on water conservation.

School principal Paddy Conroy praised the enthusiasm of students and teachers.

He said, “Well done to all of the school and a special thank you to all the teachers in every single class and all your help and patience in helping the school with the all the different projects. We also got great support and advice from the environmental section of Clare County Council”.

The green schools programme is an international education programme,

which helps students to recognise the importance of environmental issues and take them more seriously in their personal and home lives. In Ireland the programme is administered by An Taisce.

The Green Schools initiative has gone from strength to strength since it was launched in Ireland in 1997. Eleven award ceremonies are being held this month. Over 2,000 Irish schools are registered for the pro- eramme, representing over 49 per cent of all the schools in the coun- a7

Barefield National School is hop- ings to achieve green school status by 2009.

NO CONSULTANTS have yet been appointed to oversee the develop- ment of a three storey, 45,000 sq foot library building and arts centre in the Post Office Field, Ennis.

Last November the government gave the go-ahead to Clare County Council to appoint a project design team. Town Engineer Tom Tiernan said an extensive consultation proc- ess was underway and final approval had yet to be given.

“It is a long procedure and there haven’t been any appointments yet,’ he said. “It can be a complicated process. Certainly it’s not what it used to be, in terms of appointing a

ENNIS Chamber is offering a new translation service for local busi- nesses. The service, facilitated by Chambers Ireland, is in response to an increased demand for dependable translation services by Irish firms, who continue to employ large num- bers of foreign nationals, and are do- ing business and setting up offices overseas more than ever before. Provided by Clare-based com- pany e-lIeams, Chamber Transla- tion Services offers multi-lingual translation services and localisation solutions for every business transla- tion requirement. This includes, for

team for a project. There are a lot of procedures to go through.”

When the Post Office Field was identified in November 2006 as the favoured site for a new library, Ennis Town Council approved a request to apply for funding from the Depart- ment of the Environment and An Comhairle Leabhrlanna.

However, Mr Tiernan said, “As far as I am aware, no specific funding has been approved for the project.”

He added that any development on the field would not cause impact on flooding in the town.

“It accommodates flood storage when there are prolonged periods of high rainfall, but it is not critical as a flood plain. It is not critical in terms

example, the translation of website content, marketing materials, pres- entations and contracts.

It offers clients access to a global team of localisation experts, who will assist businesses in successfully communicating with target audienc- es in their native language(s).

Ennis Chamber CEO Rita MclIner- ney commented, “Chamber Transla- tion Services offer the flexibility to enable businesses to cost-effectively communicate with their international target market, be it customers, sup- pliers or employees. To successfully deliver their message on a global

of flood management for Ennis.

“Certainly, on the section of the field where the new library is pro- posed, any development there would not have any impact on flooding.”

The proposed state-of-the-art de- velopment will incorporate a public library, headquarters, local studies centre, performance arena, commu- nity meeting facilities and a range of ancillary exhibition areas for Clare County Library and the Clare Arts Office.

The Post Office Field is currently zoned as amenity, so any develop- ment would constitute a material contravention to the Ennis and Envi- rons Development Plan and require the council to adopt a variation to

scale, businesses must consider the context, channel and culture, not just the multilingual translation.”

Chamber President Michael Evans welcomed the service, saying, “The Irish workforce is increasingly di- verse, making this new service very opportune. I believe that results from a recent Labour Force Survey by Chambers Ireland shows that nearly one fifth of employees in Ireland are foreign nationals. Therefore it is im- portant that employers are able to provide documents, such as Health & Safety and contracts, in a multi- tude of languages.”

derchamo)e-n0e

Members of the Ennis arts commu- nity have questioned the merit of the project, given that Ennis already has two major arts and cultural venues in Glor and the recently redeveloped Cois na hAbhna.

Library and council officials say the need exists for a new library in Ennis and re-development of the existing De Valera Library site is unfeasible.

Head of the Clare Regional Game Council, Jimmy Allured opposes the development. “Where will the water go if they do build there?” he asked.

“The water is right up the wall. If they block off that corner, the water will flood onto the corner of Parnell Street.”

eleams Director, Martina Minogue, said she was delighted that her com- pany was Selected to work with Chambers Ireland to provide this translation service.

“As a small, indigenous business ourselves, we understand the con- text in which Chamber members are operating, and feel we can therefore serve their needs better than an over- seas supplier,” she said.

“We are excited about this opportu- nity and confident that our extensive range of languages, coupled with our track record, will not disappoint,” she concluded.

A DRIVE to raise more _ than €200,000 for the Quin school field fund is to move to a new level, with the launch of a major initiative.

The Scoil na Mainistreach school development committee has _ pur- chased a field, at a cost of £100,000. It will cost another €100,000 to de- velop the pitch and the local commu- nity will have to foot the majority of

the bill.

While half of the total money nec- essary has already been raised, the remaining €100,000 still have to be collected. With this in mind, the committee will hold a *Who wants to be a Thousandaire’ in The Clare Inn hotel on April 18 next.

At a meeting last week, it was de- cided that parents on the committee would seek sponsorship, along with selling tickets for the event, at a cost

of €15 each.

A similar fundraiser raised up to €50,000 last year in Sixmilebridge. Scou na Mainistreach principal Ann Fitzpatrick is optimistic that this event will match that and is appeal- ing to everyone to contribute.

“There has been tremendous sup- port for the development and it will be a great resource for the commu- nity,” said Ms Fitzpatrick.

It is hoped that the field will be

ready for use next September and will be open to the community, along with the school.

“We will be allowing as much ac- cess as possible to the community, controlled access,” she said.

“Tt will be the only field of its type in the village. It is a resource for the community, as well as the school,” said the principal.

The pitch development is part of a three-year plan, launched in 2006.

A HOSPITAL for Shannon, the rail link and the future of the airport are among the main issues on the minds of the people of Shannon.

That’s according to the Shannon Area Network, which is a collective gathering, open to all community and voluntary groups in Shannon, Newmarket-on-Fergus, Sixmilebri- dge, Kilmurry and parts of Cratloe. It is one of five area networks across the county.

As the group prepares for its AGM on Thursday night – at the Bunratty Castle Hotel – Chairman of the Shan- non Area Network, Pat Gaughran, 1s

appealing to local groups to get in- volved with it and voice their opin- eyes

There are up to 500 voluntary and community organisations in_ the county and the Shannon Area Net- work has up to 150 members.

Mr Gaughran said the network or- ganised a very interesting discussion last year, but regrettably, it was not well attended. “It was dealing with the future of Shannon and asking the question ‘Where do we go from here?,” said Mr Gaughran.

The discussion was focused on a number of issues, including tourism, jobs and a rail link for Shannon.

“We were disappointed with the at-

tendance. We would appeal to people to come out to our events this year,” he added.

A schedule of events and discus- sions for the forthcoming year will be put together after the AGM and the committee is hopeful that many people will attend the various fora.

“We are asking people to come out and have their voices heard. We can only bring forward to the County Development Board the issues they raise. We can highlight things that need to be highlighted,” he said.

The network’s members have a number of interests, he said.

“The rail link has been a big one, along with the airport. A hospital

for Shannon was a priority, but it has been put on the back burner. We hope to get that going,” he said.

Dr Paula Russell, of University College Dublin, will attend the AGM and will speak to those in attend- ance, as part of research she is carry- ing out. Her research, funded by the Environmental Protection Agency, 1s based on sustainable rural develop- ment. The views of those present at the AGM will be taken into consid- eration by her, in her project.

The key posts on the network com- mittee will be filled at the AGM. Be- sides Mr Gaughran, the main posts are currently filled by Richard Cahill (secretary) and PJ Ryan (PRO).

THE positive response to the pur- chase of a defibrillator for Newmar- ket-on-Fergus has opened up the possibility of a second one being PYOe LUNN KSxOE

The village’s first defibrillator – which provides assistance to those who collapse due to cardiac arrest – was bought last September and a team of 15 people have been avail- able to operate it, on a rota basis.

While it has not yet been called

into use, the organising committee is delighted to have acquired it and are now looking at possibly buying a second one.

In conjunction with the purchase of the defibrillator, a local branch of the Irish Red Cross was set up in the village, through which those on the rota were trained. Chairwoman of the committee Mary Woods said the current system is working well.

“It has been so far so good. The person who is on duty holds it in his/ her home and is ready to go imme-

diately if a call comes in,” said Ms Woods.

“People are very positive about it being there and people realise the value of it. Its success depends on people knowing about it. If they don’t know it’s there, it is not going to be able to access the service.

‘There has been no actual require- ment for it, which is what you want in one way. Hopefully it will be suc- cessful if it’s needed,’ she added.

A churchgate collection will take place in churches in the Newmar-

ket-on-Fergus area this weekend. The proceeds of this will go towards retraining the committee members, along with possibly purchasing a second defibrillator.

While the first defibrillator was purchased by Obair and the training provided by the Red Cross, the cost of a second one would be in the re- gion of €3,000.

“The churchgate collection money will go towards funding the future development of the project,’ said Ms Woods.

THE new Kilrush Chamber of Com- merce president Paul J Coady has one over ridding ambition for the coming year – to make the local chamber big- ger and better.

Like his predecessor – Karen Whe- lan – the Limerick born Munster Group Director wants to increase membership of the busy chamber and get people more involved.

Last year was one of the most suc- cessful to date to encourage people to join the chamber.

Although attendance at the month- ly meetings was low the chamber came out in support of the numerous projects in the town.

The busy chamber has led the way with the St Patrick’s Day Parade,

Santa’s Den, chamber dinner dance, Spirit of Kilrush Christmas lighting project, parking refund initiative, Law and Order Committee and the pre-Christmas shopping promotion.

Mr Coady said he is determined to follow on the good work of his predecessors and build on the strong foundations already in place.

Paul Coady is no stranger to organ- isations in Kilrush.

Although a relatively new face to the chamber in recent years, he was secretary of the Kilrush Chamber of Commerce in the 1980s.

Not one to shy away from com- munity involvement Paul has been involved with organisations and groups in his adopted home of Kiul- rush for years.

He was president of the Kilrush L1-

ons Club, captain of the Kilrush Golf Club and has just finished a two-year stint as president of the golf club.

“IT thought this year I would have a free year but I got nabbed for this,” he said.

Although the year as president is very busy Paul is looking forward to it and is happy to be part of a vibrant chamber.

“I work in the business community. I felt a need to continue the develop- ment of Kilrush as a vibrant business town and continue on with the work of the previous presidents.”

The president realises that 2008 is likely to be one of the busiest ever for the chamber. Added to the busy schedule is further development in the town, including the planned de- velopment of the marina.

‘“Shannonside building supplies is one of the fastest growing businesses in Ireland,” he added.

A feasibility study is also taking place for more advance or warehouse units on the Cooraclare road point- ing to a developing economy for the west Clare capital.

‘There seems to be a lot of interest in Kilrush,” said Mr Coady.

The new president has split most of his working life between Ennis and Kilrush, firstly as a director of Shannonside Insurance and now as a director of the Munster Group.

He lives in Kilrush with his wife and three children.

Mr Construction, but neither of the chart toppers are likely to be as big a hit with the people of Kilrush as the RNLI calendar.

The fundraising object has a spe- cial calendar pin-up in local curate Fr Michael Collins, who is one of just two Irish people to make it on to the RNLI fundraising calendar.

The only other Irish member is a lady from Ballycotton.

Fr Collins has been a crewmember with Kilrush lifeboat station for two years.

His involvement began when the station invited him to look around. It was an inspirational visit that made his mind up to volunteer.

Despite his comparatively short time as a crewmember, he’s had his fair share of drama, particularly the rescue of a family of five whose boat had capsized and was drifting out to sea.

Fr Collins will feature on the cal- endar for the month of July, making him a household name in homes and offices around Ireland and Britain.

The calendar has been on sale since

late last year on the RNLI website or from its catalogue.

As a sea faring town, Kilrush has always been a huge supporter of the RNLI providing funds to maintain the life boat and people for its crew.

The “Rose West’ lifeboat has car- ried out great work for years provid- ing vital assistance to seafarers from Kilbaha to Limerick.

The 30 strong crew are trained and retrained for every eventuality.

The members of the RNLI meet once a week and take part in dilf- ferent exercises with the lifeboat. In case of an emergency a beeper alerts all the crew within a seven-mile ra- dius who make their way to the life- boat station, change and be on the water within eight minutes.

The first three to arrive set out on the boat, one person stays in the sta- tion to assist the crew with any direc- tions. Others open the doors to the lifeboat and see it safely to the sea.

All from 18 to 45 are welcome to ove