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Money management is a crucial skill that every child should learn at an early age. Learning how to manage finances is not just about budgeting and saving, but it’s also about building a healthy relationship with money. As parents, it’s our responsibility to teach our children about money and help them make wise financial decisions in the future. We’re going to set out five valuable lessons that you can give to your children about money. Teach them the value of money The first lesson to teach your children about money is the value of it. Help your children understand that money doesn’t grow on trees, and it takes hard work and effort to earn it. Encourage them to save money and avoid unnecessary spending. This will help them develop a sense of responsibility and an understanding of the value of money. One of the ways to teach your children this valuable lesson is to give them pocket money. This should …

THIRTY seven year old Keith McNamara from Cluain Airne is running in the upcoming local elections as an independent. “I’ve been thinking about it for a number of years. The town is being neglected in some ways,” he said. “There are lots of maintenance issues, its public spaces have been neglected, and I want to represent the voice of the people of Shannon. I feel like it has been underrepresented a little bit for the past couple of years. “I was never a member of a party. I like politics, I’ve been interested in it since I was in my teens. “I’ve also been involved in numerous community groups since I was a teenager. I like being involved with things that contribute to a better life for everyone, planning for the future and contributing to the town and its environs.” On his current community involvement, he said, “Currently I’m involved with Wolfe Tones, I’m a member of Limerick Lawn Tennis …

The sweet sound of ‘Goodbye from the White Horse Inn’ rang out around the old CBS Secondary School in Ennistymon one last time last Wednesday night, as the Ennistymon Musical Society bid farewell to their long time home. As the society prepares for one of their most ambitious productions ever next week, they are also saying goodbye to their spiritual home of more than 30 years. Last Wednesday night’s rehearsal for the upcoming production of Happy Days was the last that the society will have in the old secondary school. But before they move on to their new home at the Ennistymon Community School, they took a few moments to remember their long and proud history. “This is a big year for us, it is the 51st anniversary of the first musical. We did miss a few years because of Covid, but we had our first musical in 1973,” said Emma-Jane Brown of the society. “We had a bit of …

Clare’s county dog warden has said that Kilrush is currently a black-spot for dog-related attacks in the county. This comes in light of two serious incidents in relation to bulldog breeds in the town over the Easter holiday weekend where a man and a teenage boy were injured. And a third incident earlier in the week involving an Akita (Japanese large breed of huskie dog) attacking a springer spaniel also occurred in Kilrush. The Akita was handed in by its owners as it posed a danger to other dogs. “I hate to say it but Kilrush is our black spot at the moment…I have had up to ten dogs moved from Kilrush in the last few months and about six since Christmas. I have been very active there because it has become fashionable now with young men to own certain breeds, more aggressive breeds that are a fashion accessory to them. And they aren’t being looked after any more which …

Picture this: an eight-year-old boy experimenting with a camera at his home place, contentedly snapping away at the small things a curious young child observes in his back yard and a little further afield in the meadows and forests of southern Germany. For a while, the young German boy loses all interest in photography, until a holiday to Ireland as an adult inspires him and re-kindles his passion for the artform. The trip which got Carsten Krieger so hooked on Ireland prompted him to move to the emerald isle permanently in 2002. And the re-location revived a childhood fascination with nature, bringing about a career change from paediatric nursing to freelance photography. Since settling here, Carsten Krieger has photographed and written numerous books on Ireland’s landscape, nature and heritage. And now, 22 years on and almost 20 books later, the renowned photographer, author and environmentalist, who lives in Kibaha on the Loop Head Peninsula, has produced a new book entitled …

SMALL acts of kindness can make a big difference to a person living with dementia, according to Limerick dementia advisor, Sean Donal O’Shea. Mr O’Shea urges any family member who is caring for a person with dementia to contact their local dementia advisor. He also believes a person should also contact their local general practitioner who will know the family and their circumstances. “There is a dementia advisor in every county now. Six or seven years ago, there were only eight dementia advisors in the country. Now we have 31. This shows the Government is listening,” he said. “I have been lobbying with the Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland since 2007. There was nothing in budget after budget. In the most recent budget, ringfenced dementia funding has been provided, which is very valuable. “It is the small things that are the big things for a person with dementia. Covid-19 was an eye-opener for everyone when we were all locked in to …

Ennistymon woman, Pam O’Loughlin, has been unveiled as the Farmers’ Alliance candidate to contest the upcoming local election in the Ennistymon area this summer. Pam, whose younger sister Emer was murdered in a caravan on the border between Clare and Galway in 2005, says that she doesn’t recognise the kind of country Ireland is starting to become. Ms O’Loughlin has been campaigning for justice for her younger sister for almost 20 years and says she is well able to fight her corner. “I left Ireland in the 1980s and, of course, Ireland has changed a huge amount since then. But since I came home three years ago the values and attitudes of people seem to be changing,” she said. “We have changed from a country that feels safe to a country that doesn’t feel safe anymore, and I mean physically as well as psychologically. ”I feel so strongly that Ireland is going in the wrong direction. I have seen politicians, …

Rare footage recorded in the Burren by legendary RTÉ documentary filmmaker, Gerrit Van Gelderen, in the 1960s, 70s and 80s will be shown to the public for the very first time at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan this Friday, April 5. The footage was recorded by Van Gelderen while shooting episodes of his seminal nature programme, To The Waters And The Wild, in North Clare. The previously unseen footage has been compiled over the last number of weeks by Gerrit’s filmmaker son, Finn, to commemorate the 30 years since his father’s passing. “The film contains footage that was recorded in the Burren from as far back as the 1960s. The theme of the film is to commemorate 30 years since his father’s passing and to share tales about him,” said Ballyvaughan woman and friend of the Van Gelderens, Eilís Haden-Storrie. “Gerrit was the first documentary film maker in RTÉ, in fact, he started as a graphic designer on …