North Clare

AN Ennistymon-based jewellery maker has been chosen from hundreds of crafts people nationwide to participate in a prestigious exhibition organised by the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland. Rowena Sheen is based at the Courthouse Gallery in the bustling North Clare town. She is among the highly skilled markers whose work will be on show in the National Design and Craft Gallery in Kilkenny until January 30, before the exhibition moves to Dublin and later the North of Ireland. The Made in Ireland exhibition has gathered together the largest visual and sensory feast of fresh ideas and craftsmanship and offers an insight into current activity in skilled making on a national scale. It is not only reflective of the skills of Ireland’s community of makers, but it also celebrates work by different generations of the same family, and by collaborative groups and partnerships. It also demonstrates the importance of passing on skills, of cross-pollination and innovation. Rowena takes inspiration from …

A RUAN mum is parting with her shoulder-length locks in a bid to give something back to the people she describes as “angels”, because of the support they gave her late father. Áine Courtney Murphy will shave her head on November 27 at Kenny’s in Killanena, in a bid to raise €5,000 for Milford Hospice so that other families can benefit from the support that hers did. Áine’s beloved dad, Patrick (Paddy) Courtney lost his battle with liver cancer at the age of 69. Thanks to the Milford team, he was able to spend his last weeks comfortably and free of pain at his home. “I really couldn’t thank the Milford team enough,” she told The Champion. “They were there to advise us when dad was ill. They treated him with so much care and respect and they were never intrusive. They were angels sent by God.” Paddy, a well loved and respected member of the community passed away two …

MEMBERS of Doolin Coast Guard have been invited to participate in a process with well respected national mediator Kieran Mulvey in a bid to resolve difficulties that have arisen in the unit, writes Dan Danaher. Six members of the Doolin Coast Guard unit including the officer in charge resigned unexpectedly on November 1, which resulted in the Department of Transport standing down the unit. The remaining 12 volunteers are not allowed to respond to search, rescue or recovery operations. Mr Mulvey is willing to meet separately with the parties in Doolin Coast Guard station house next Monday, November 22, from 6 to 8pm. If necessary, he will have meetings the following day to continue the mediation process. The Clare Champion has obtained a letter sent by the Maritime Strategy and Governance Division on behalf of Irish Coast Guard. The letter outlined that junior minister at the Department of Transport Hildegarde Naughton has decided, in response to the recent events in …

AN EXCITING new exhibition is to open at the Courthouse in Kinvara from Friday (November 19), in association with Kinvara Area Visual Artists (KAVA). Selected works by artist and sculptor Oliver Tennyson will be on show 11am to 4.30pm daily until November 28. The Louth-born artist describes his practice as lying “between realism and surrealism, with a tendency towards abstraction, influences range from Henry Moore to Frances Bacon, and beyond”. Oliver describes his current solo show as “a kaleidoscopic view of Ireland, the island we live on”. Themes explored in the show range from “mysticism, pagan origins, political upheavals, the work of poets and writers, its beauty and its scandals”, he added. Oliver was born near Dundalk, the oldest son of a farming family. He developed an interest in woodwork at an early age and by the age of 25 had become a self-taught musical instrument maker. He is also a multi-instrumentalist, playing mandolin, harmonica and concertina.  On the basis …

THREE Clare cheesemakers tasted success at the Irish Cheese Awards 2021, the Irish Farmhouse Cheesemaker’s prestigious gala. St Tola Goat Farm fared best with two gold awards and a silver. In the ‘Fresh/ Soft Cheese: Goat Milk’ category, the Inagh organisation took gold for their St Tola Divine. In the ‘Raw Milk Cheese: All milk types’ category, there was another gold for their St Tola Original Log. In the “Soft White Cheese: All Milk Types” meanwhile, they took silver for their St. Tola Ash. Burren Gold Cheese, Aillwee Cave, Ballyvaughan received the Bronze in the “Hard Cheese: Flavour Added’ category for their Burren Gold Cumin. Cratloe Hills, meanwhile, from Brickhill West, Cratloe, received the Bronze medal in the ‘Hard/Semi Hard Cheese Under 6 Months: Goat, Sheep, Buffalo’ category for its Cratloe Hills Sheep’s cheese. Organised by Cáis, the Association of Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers, the bi-annual event which took place in Bray, celebrates Ireland’s vibrant and thriving farmhouse cheese sector. Now …

ACCLAIMED Miltown Malbay duo O’Connell Brothers have announced their first-ever headline show later this month, and it looks set to be one of the gigs of the year.  Brothers Kieran and Jon O’Connell have plied their trade with local folk group The Fiddle Case for the past number of years and are well known for their performances in other bands, including The Walls and Serious Mischief.  When the first pandemic hit and with gigs cancelled, the brothers turned inward and seized the opportunity to forge a new creative path. They built a home studio and immersed themselves in a bubble of songwriting and recording, the fruits of which have proven hugely popular with music lovers.  Earlier this year, ‘Songbird’, their debut single, flew into the world and onto radio playlists and the reaction was hugely positive. “Some songs get tossed around for months, years; a lyrical idea or a bit of a melody, but some seem to just land in …

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine has praised the Burren Agritourism sector for a host of innovative food and farm initiatives which saw hundreds of visitors head to the Burren area recently.   Minister McConalogue said: “I was delighted to see the Burren Food Fayre returned for a series of unique food and farm visitor experiences with a return to in-person events.    “I congratulate the organisers, the Burren Ecotourism Network, who are marking their 10th year in operation.”   The Minister said that it was encouraging to see that agritourism initiatives were continuing to go from strength to strength, adding: “We are proud to be funding these projects under the Department of Agriculture, Rural Innovation and Development Fund.”   During the bank holiday weekend, the Burren region hosted food and farm tours, walks, talks, cattle drives and tree planting which took place in locations all over the Burren which showcased the strong collaboration between farmers and tourism business owners. …

A CLARE hotel has received national recognition for a renewable energy project which sees it produce its own green energy. The Falls Hotel & Spa in Ennistymon were among the winners in the SEAI Energy Awards. The hotel took home the trophy in the most ‘Innovative Deployment of Renewable Energy’ category for their hydroelectric turbine project that provides clean, renewable hydro energy to the hotel. Michael McCarthy, General Manager, Falls Hotel, said, “We are delighted to receive this recognition, especially given the huge investment we have made with our hydroelectric turbine. “We are extremely proud of this award. With 145 bedrooms, a leisure centre and a spa complex, we went from having a large carbon footprint to being carbon neutral in five years. We love knowing that we are powering the hotel with a clean, sustainable energy source.” Being based in the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark hotel owners the McCarthy family were conscious of trying to …