Tag Archives: Cairde

THE energy of youth and the wisdom of age are combined to great effect through the Cairde group at St Joseph’s Secondary School, Tulla. For more than 17 years, the initiative has brought together students and older members of the community of East Clare for all kinds of activities from baking and knitting to music, song and discussions about life in bygone days. While the pandemic has put the normally popular face-to-face sessions on hold, Cairde has been a lifeline for members over the last year. Students have learned the art of letter writing and correspondence has been exchanged regularly between the 14 older members of the group and their younger counterparts. At 98 years of age, Dun Purcell, from Feakle is the intergenerational group’s most senior member and very popular with the 48 students taking part. And, because some former members of Cairde now live at Raheen Community Hospital, the group has also been staying in touch – remotely …

A BAREFIELD woman, whose quick action helped save the life of a man in Ennis at the weekend, is calling for greater availability of defibrillators and urging people to get CPR training. Modest Trish Baker says she was “just in the right place at the right time”, when she came to the aid of a man who had gone into cardiac arrest in Cairde café on Barrack Street on Saturday morning. The trained nurse sprang into action, when her daughter raised concerns about one of the customers. “I was out the back in the store room, when my daughter, Erin, came out to tell me he was asleep and he had gone a very funny colour. I came in and realised that he actually had arrested. On assessment, he didn’t have a pulse and he wasn’t breathing. “My training as a nurse and as a CPR instructor just kicked in. I surprised myself. I’ve taught hundreds and hundreds of people …

THE retail community in Ennis have created a series of magical, sparkling windows allowing the public to dip into the world of Christmas fantasy. Their imagination was inspired this year by the theme of The Clare Champion’s annual window display competition, Frozen in Ennis. This is the 11th year of the competition and entrants were invited to, once again, give free rein to their creative sides and they certainly Let it Go. The wide interpretation of Frozen in Ennis, inspired by the 2013 Walt Disney film, the highest grossing animation movie of all time, was reflected in the glittering shop fronts all around the town. Since its release last year, Frozen has become a firm favourite with children of all ages. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Snow Queen, it tells the story of a fearless princess who sets off on an epic journey along with a rugged iceman, his loyal pet reindeer and a naive snowman, in …