The Clare People Archive

A YOUNG Shannon student’s skills in art have been recognised in a na- tional awards competition in which she scooped first place.

14-year-old Desislava Valkanova, a student at St Caimin’s in Shan- non, won the top prize in a postcard competition which was organised by Léargus, which promotes language learning 1n Ireland.

The event was organised to cele- brate European day of languages last September and the winners have just

been announced.

Junior cycle German students were asked to depict a site of cultural in- terest for another country and write a message in a language of that coun- try on a postcard.

Dessi, who is a native of Bulgaria and moved to Shannon with her fam- ily a few years ago, drew a picture of the Aleksandar Nevski Cathedral in Sofia and wrote a friendly message in her native tongue on the back.

She even went to the lengths of drawing a stamp on the back of the postcard. Her work earned her a

book token for €500.

Dessi and 16 others from St Caimin’s entered the competition. While Desi particularly impressed the judges, her schoolmates also fared well as they were all com- mended on their efforts.

Her teacher Anne O’Loughlin, who organised the competition in St Caimin’s, said everyone was very proud of Desi, who thoroughly de- served the award.

“She is deserving of the award and always puts her heart and soul into her work. It is great to see her getting

some kind of recognition,” she said.

“We are thrilled. We incorporated this into celebrating the European day of languages,” she said.

This was the first time that the school entered this competition and Ms O’Loughlin is optimistic that this success will be followed by fu- ture accolade.

A SHANNON councillor has been accused of painting a “bleak” picture in relation to funding available to Shannon Town Council.

The comment was made by the Town Manager Ger Dollard, after Cllr Gerry Flynn (Independent) said that lack of funding for the local au- thority was proving problematic.

The discussion arose amidst a de- bate on the effects of flooding in various parts of Shannon.

Cllr Patricia McCarthy raised the issue, Saying she wished to thank the council staff who worked so hard to get to the root of the flooding in Drumgeely.

Clare County Council Senior Ex- ecutive Engineer Donal Hogan said there are “always gulleys getting blocked in Shannon”.

He said that manhole covers in the Corrib Drive estate had been lifted and a section of the sewer which had been blocked was freed.

A similar problem had been recti- fied at St Conaire’s school, said Mr Hogan.

He added that he was confident that the problems in those areas will not recur.

Councillor Gerry Flynn said, “They have left you with no funding. You have no money. You haven’t enough of a crew. This is the facts of it,’ he Said.

He said he regularly walks and said he believed that 90 per cent of paths “were not accessible in certain areas’.

‘Planners allowed so much develop- ment in the Ballycasey area. Women with buggies couldn’t get out of their homes in the last few weeks. A lot of this is due to developers leaving infrastructure around,” he said.

“Money has to be found to do something with the infrastructure in general in Shannon,” he added.

Shannon Town Manager Ger Dol- lard reacted to Cllr Flynn’s com- ments and said, “Councillor Flynn is painting a very bleak picture. It is a phenomenon. Climate change is hap- pening in Shannon.”

Mr Dollard stressed that there had been “a huge volume of water in the past couple of weeks”’.

He said, “We certainly could do with more funding. We will contin- ue to try to improve the situation. I don’t think the picture is as bleak as it’s being painted.”

Cllr Flynn said he wanted to point out that improvements had been made in a number of areas such as lighting and footpaths, but there was a lack of funding in other areas.

“I have no problem working with the council to try and get extra fund- ing. I don’t think it’s fair of you to say I am painting a totally bleak picture. I have to tell the truth,” said Swe aise

THE FUTURE of Irish traditional music in East Clare is secure and well, according to Tulla concertina player and teacher, Mary McNama- ra. And Mary should know, having taught concertina and fiddle in the area for the last 12 years.

Now some of her young musicians Mary are to take centre-stage at the Comhaltas HQ, Cois na hAbhanna in Ennis for a seisitin that will showcase East Clare talent.

The 20 youngsters — aged 10 to 18 — will play the venue at the invitation of Comhaltas on January 25, and a fabulous night of music, song, poetry and dancing is promised.

“We have such a wealth of talent

here that I could have picked more than the 20 needed for the pro- gramme,’ said Mary.

Since before Christmas, the music students have been practicing the tunes, solos, duets and songs they will perform on the night.

‘We have a very varied programme including a couple of O’Carrolan ar- rangements. They had to learn the tunes and that comes naturally to these youngsters, but they also had to learn to play on a group Seetting or with other musicians. But they’re all very talented and capable.”

The seisitin is an informal evening, more like a gathering by the fireside of a home or cosy pub.

As well as the youngsters under Mary’s direction, students from the

Anne Burke school of traditional dancing in Scariff will perform.

Comhaltas have a programme of seisiun nights planned for their newly refurbished HQ, which gives musicians a platform to perform and families a venue to share the pleasure of music at a reasonable price.

An adult ticket for the evening costs just €5 and a family ticket can be bought for €10.

Mary has been preparing students for competitions and performances for many years. Her daughter, Sor- chadha Costello, won the All Ireland Under 12 fiddle title in August last year and her son, Padraig plays piano with the seisiun group.

As well as Mary, Mike Willis teaches piano, Conor Keane teaches

accordian and John Kelly teaches flute.

The evening fits in with the ethos that Mary likes to bring to her les- sons.

“T want the children not just to learn the tunes themselves but to en- joy their music and to be aware of the rich heritage they have in learning the tunes and the style of East Clare. And through evenings like this, they also learn that the greatest joy in per- forming is the pleasure they bring to an audience through their music,” she said.

AN INDEPENDENT radio producer from Scariff has been nominated for an award in the radio documentary category of the prestigious Interna- tional Celtic Media Festival which will be held this year in Ireland.

Paula Carroll of Rag and Bone Pro- ductions previously won the award, regarded as the “Oscars of the world- wide radio industry”, in 2004.

The Celtic Media Festival, held each year in one of the Celtic coun- tries, 1s a celebration of radio, TV and film work produced in those ar-

eas. This year the Festival returns to Ireland for the first time since 1998.

The radio documentary ‘I’ll Find a High Mountain’ tells the story of the O’Donoghues, one of the last Travel- ler families who still take to the road in the West of Ireland every year. Produced by Ms Carroll, it was made with the support of the BCI’s Sound and Vision Scheme and broadcast on RTE Radio One in 2007.

Radio listeners in Clare will be familiar with the work of Rag and Bone Productions through the re- cent, hugely successful series of live traditional music broadcasts “The

Kitchen Sessions’ on Clare FM.

Paula Carroll won the Celtic Media Festival award in 2004 for her docu- mentary ‘Living with Dara’, also broadcast on the Clare station. That also won the World Silver Medal at the New York Festival for Radio Pro- eramming.

Another independent radio produc- er associated with Clare FM, Mary Owens of Well Said Productions, has been nominated in the same category for her documentary on Hanna Gre- ally, who was forcibly detained in a midlands psychiatric hospital for al- most 20 years.

The aim of the festival is to pro- mote the languages and cultures of the Celtic countries onscreen and in broadcasting.

The Festival is an annual three-day celebration of broadcasting, film tal- ent and excellence from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Cornwall and Brit- tany and is supported by broadcast, film, cultural and economic develop- ment organisations throughout those Kosta (Once

The awards presentation will be made at the Celtic Media Festival in Galway which will take place from April 16 to 18.

Coie tre for Environmental Living and Training (CELT) in Scariff to plans for the development of eight 410 ft high turbines that will supply elec- tricity to 22,000 homes.

As part of the plan, the developers propose to remove 425 acres of for- est plantation.

Clare County Council is due to make a decision on the submission by Ventus Energy before the end of the month but local residents have

already lodged objections and the Department of the Environment has also expressed concerns.

In a fresh objection, CELT claims that “contrary to local community attempts to regenerate the economy, available data shows that house and farm prices in the vicinity of wind farms drop by up to 20 per cent”.

The group claims that this would be unacceptable to the local commu- nity who are “trying to regenerate the economy of this disadvantaged region’.

The objection continues, “Small turbines for single households or small communities are the only type acceptable. The proposal for new generation 3MW massive turbines is

totally out of the question; standard- sized turbines as at Derrybrien are unacceptable.

‘“Land-based wind farms should be a thing of the past. There is now the technology and opportunity to situ- ate wind farms at sea where they will maximise use of the Atlantic winds and minimise pressure on the envi- ronment, tourism and local commu- nities.

“If they must be situated on land, then it ought to be in an unpopulated area away from designated landscape and near to the coast and a smaller scale development.

“The size of designated areas is totally inadequate and on this basis CELT would be concerned that these

designations will be forcibly en- larged by intervention from the EU and any damage to the landscape/ ecology/habitats would then have to be rectified.

‘To interfere with this important ecosystem and habitats is contrary to all efforts to improve and enhance biodiversity in accordance with EU directives.

‘Several migratory bird species are known to frequent the area including protected greenland white-fronted geese, lapwing, golden plover, red erouse, merlin, peregrine, kestrel, snipe, curlew and a number of spe- cies of bat — all of these would be threatened by rotating wind turbine blades,” the CELT objection states.

has also learned that almost 180 new clients reported that they had been raped or sexually assaulted in the mid-west last year.

Rape Crisis Midwest, which offers support to rape and sexual abuse vic- tims in Clare, Limerick and Tipper- ary, believes this figure is “only the tip of the iceberg”’.

The Rape Crisis outreach centre in Ennis increased its counselling last year. It offered 258 counselling hours to victims of rape or sexual abuse last year, which is an increase on 223 hours in 2006. It provided 173 hours in 2005, after opening in May of that year.

14 new clients were seen at the out-

reach centre in Ennis last year. All of those clients were from Clare, while a number of other clients from Clare travelled to the centre in Limerick.

There is also a continuous waiting list of one or two people in Ennis.

The co-ordinator of Rape Crisis Midwest, Miriam Duffy, said there was a definite need for the outreach centre to be opened in Ennis.

“It was identified by a number of clients in Clare as it was much more difficult for them to have to travel to Limerick. It is a lot more convenient

for those who can access it,’ she Cr HOR

“We are constantly aware of the level of sexual abuse that is out there,’ said Ms Duffy.

The number of hours offered to cli- ents varies, depending on each ind1- vidual case.

‘There is a waiting list, but we al- ways prioritise somebody who is in crisis,’ she added.

Ms Duffy said that 90 per cent of victims know their attackers.

“This idea of being dragged down

a dark alleyway does happen but the risk of being sexually assaulted by someone you know is greater,” she added.

Some victims do not report the abuse for years and their bad memo- ries are triggered by media coverage of fresh cases.

Ms Duffy said victims should re- port abuse as early as possible. ““The earlier they can get on to us, the bet- ter for themselves, as it will be less negative for them as they get on with their lives,’ she said.

A NEW service aimed at maintain- ing and providing links with people who feel cut off from their local community was launched in Ennis last week.

The Clare Talking Social Club was launched in the Woodstock Hotel on Thursday last by the Mayor of Clare Patricia McCarthy; Pauline Mc- Naughton, chairperson of the Sunset Foundation; and Fr Tom Hogan, ad- ministrator of Ennis Parish.

The idea for the Clare Talking So-

cial Club was conceived by the Sun- set Foundation, a Clare-based group established just over two years ago.

The service is maintained by Pauline Naughton and Sunset Foun- dation co-coordinator Patrick Mur- phy. So far the service has contacted 64 people and it has been well re- ceived in the local community.

Patrick Murphy explained why the Sunset Foundation set up the serv- or

‘There are an awful lot of peo- ple out there who are on their own. They might be living in the middle

of a few hundred houses but they are still isolated. So we made a few calls to people and we got good feedback so we decided to make it a regular den beteae

Patrick added, “I usually do three days a week and Pauline Naughton would do two. So far we’ve made around 64 calls. People do appreci- ate it.

“We make contact with all differ- ent types of people. Elderly people living on their own or two brothers living on their own.

“It might be the case that no one

calls them or checks in with them, so that is what we do.”

The Sunset Foundation was found- ed in 2005 by Ennis man Patrick Murphy and Michael McInerney from Sixmilebridge as an awareness eroup for visually impaired people.

It now boasts over 50 members and is regularly involved in organising charity events and outings.

Last summer, the Sunset Founda- tion sent 30 blind and visually im- paired people to Lourdes.

The Clare Talking Social Club can be contacted at 065 6824875.

CHILDCARE facilities in Ennis are set for a significant upgrade as work gets underway on a new 5000sq foot community creche.

Mayor of Clare, Patricia McCarthy and Mayor of Ennis, Tommy Bren- nan yesterday turned the sod on the site on the Watery Road. When com- plete, the creche will serve all com- munities in Ennis, providing urgently needed childcare facilities.

An extensive programme in pre- school education will be delivered. The créche will also operate a full

Montessori run by fully qualified teaching staff, and provide for chil- dren with special needs with facili- ties to include state-of-the-art multi- sensory rooms and four classrooms.

The Clare Family Resource Centre will operate the creche with a staff of 33 full-time workers. There will also be a close working partnership with the FAS community employment scheme. A management committee will be made up of a voluntary board of directors.

The total cost of the project is esti- mated at under €2 million with the majority funded by the Office of the

Minster for Children. The remainder will be raised by the Clare Family Resource Centre (CFSC) through a series of fundraising initiatives.

The project was first mooted two years ago when it was established there was a need to expand the level of childcare services in Ennis. Mau- reen Keane of the CFSC said the cen- tre had received huge support from different organisations and groups.

‘There is a great need for a creche like this in Ennis. Since two years ago, when the idea was first put for- ward, we have received great support and it has made this project possible.

We received a lot of support from the HSE, Pobal and FAS,” she said.

The CFSC is currently based in Clonroad Business Park and provides creche services for 80 children.

Ms Keane added, “Our ethos is to provide an environment that is warm, safe and friendly, and supports and encourages children to be them- selves, grow and reach their potential at their own pace. And we will still be local and accessible to the town.”

Work at the site will commence in the next few weeks and should be completed in time for the creche to open in October.

JERRY Kitt will retire from partici- pating in the West Clare Mini Mara- thon this Sunday.

The determined Kilkee man has decided that the 10th anniversary of the marathon will be his swansong, although he has vowed to remain part of the organising committee.

This Sunday will be Jerry’s seventh mini marathon, which 1s no mean feat for a man who has suffered se- vere injuries in a car accident, a tu- mour and a stroke.

In 1982 he was injured in a car acci- dent in Darragh, followed by an op- eration for a brain tumour in 1985.

Just six months later he suffered a stroke.

Standing in his kitchen Jerry ex- plained how he learnt to live with the side affects of his illness and the af- termath of an operation that saw part of his skull removed.

He demonstrates how he some times looses his balance if walking alone but by merely having a lead, or someone or something to hold onto, he has the confidence and ability to keep walking securely. This is why his best friend and dog Radar was so helpful for so many years.

The loyal Alsatian escorted Jerry on his first four west Clare mini marathons. It was just before the

fifth marathon than the unfortunate canine broke his leg and Jerry had to look elsewhere for support.

Michael Gallagher from Doonbeg came to the rescue and walked with Jerry that year and the following year.

This year, for his swansong Jerry has encountered the assistance of friend and neighbour Tommy Mc- Grath. The inventive duo have taken Jerry’s wheelchair and attached pip- ing, using two plumbing fittings, to the back.

The detachable new “handle’ is high enough for Jerry to push the chair and will give him the confidence to walk the 10 km and finish the race. The

mini marathon expert expects to fin- ish in his usual time of three hours, accompanied by his son Michael and erandson David Kelly.

“IT am definitely going to pack it in this year,’ he told

THE schools of the Burren have continued to build on the regions blossoming reputation for scientific achievement with an excellent show- ing in last weeks BT Young Scien- tist Competition which took place in Dublin.

Students from Scoil Mhuire in En- nistymon, Mary Immaculate Sec- ondary School in Lisdoonvarna and Gort Community School all gained high marks from the judges in the RDS.

Indeed, Mary Immaculate were the second most successful school in the competition in terms of the amount of prizes that they brought home. With one first place, two second place, a third place and a number of

commendation under their belts, the students of Lisdoon did their school proud.

Sixth year, Laura Sims, took home the prize for first place in the Senior Social and Behavioural category with her examination of the importance of voter geography in elections.

Evelyn Linnane and Tess McGov- ern were awarded a second place for their project on tolerance and prejudice while Darren O’Gorman also came second in his category for his project on temporary limestone FEN Coh

Transition year student, David Crowe, was awarded third place in his category while there was also commendations for Ciara Griffin, Amie Barrett, Amy McGrath, Sine- ad McMahon, Catriona Callinan.

Meanwhile, the weekend proved very successful for transition year student Emma Hennessy who was awarded the SafeFood title and re- ceived a commendation for her KO) (em

In her project, Emma used ad- vanced scientific methods of testing to compare how many germs were present on cans of coke bought in a number of different locations.

The BT Young Scientist also proved to be a happy hunting ground for Gort Community School. In just their second year in the competition, the school put up another good show- ing this year with one project receiv- ing a commendation.

Leaving Cert James Mahon, fourth year Cian Brassil and third year Joe Murphy also received a green ribbon

for their project which attempted to investigate the possibility of using Zebra Mussels as an organic ferti- liser.

After the success of the “The Elec- tromagnetic Glove’ invented by Finn Krewer, Robin Flake, Michael Sell and James Mahon last year, Gort Community School continued to gain a place in the media at this year event.

Indeed, James Mahon, soimpressed the people from RTE that they asked him to present the section on the Ex- hibition for the DEN News2day pro- eramme.

More than 1400 projects from all over the country entered the BT Young Scientist Competition this year, with only 500 making it to the erand final in Dublin.