THE long-standing service of retired vet PJ O’Driscoll to the Clare SPCA was honoured this week at a special awards ceremony in Ennis. Mr O’Driscoll has been involved with the organisation since its foundation in the 1980s and on Tuesday, surrounded by family and friends, his accomplishments were acknowledged by the animal welfare organisation.ISPCA chairperson Barbara Bent travelled to Ennis for the ceremony in the Temple Gate Hotel, where the fantastic work Mr O’Driscoll has done locally for the organisation was outlined. Frankie Coote of the Clare SPCA described him as a “gentleman and wonderful man”. “He has been with us since 1980 and in that time he never sent a bill into us for the work he did. He has been a member of the Clare SPCA since its foundation and although he has retired from his practice in the Market, he still continues to help us.“PJ is fantastic with people, he respects people and he respects animals. He …

  AT midday on Saturday (June 1) mass will be celebrated at the 1,500-year-old Church of the Nine Saints close to the Bridges of Ross in Kilbaha. The tranquil early Christian site overlooks the ocean. The ceremony will be the first held there since August 26, 1973, when Fr Seamus O’Dea said mass in the company of visiting students from Maynooth. That mass is believed to have been the first celebrated in the church for 1,000 years. The Church of the Nine Saints is located on the land of Patrick and Mary Magner, Ross. The church was built by St Senan around 500 AD and next to the church lies the burial ground of the saints. St Senan’s story originated at a time when paganism gradually gave way to Christianity. He was born in Magh Lacha, about four miles north-east of Kilrush. As a child, he was sent to join his clansmen in battle in Corcomroe, a territory located in …

AN Ennis man has been presented with an award in London by the Duke of Kent in recognition of his long service to the RNLI. Dick Robinson, now living in Corrovorrin but originally from Valentia Island, received a gold badge from the lifesaving charity at their annual presentation of awards at the Barbican Theatre, London, last week.The modest man said, “I’m very happy and I never thought I’d see the day but I didn’t look for it although I really appreciate it.” Mr Robinson has been involved with fundraising for the lifeboats since he was a child in Valentia, noting, “My family were up to their ears in water all our lives.”Some of his earliest memories are of collecting for the lifeboats with his father, who was superintendent on the island’s radio station, while his mother came from a Welsh seafaring family.For 15 years, he was both a volunteer crew member and a fundraiser for Valentia RNLI and for a …

CONCERNS have been raised that the construction of salt barns by the NRA could result in additional surface water being diverted to a stretch of river described as “flood prone”. At a recent meeting of Ennis East Electoral Area, Councillor Johnny Flynn called on Clare County Council, in conjunction with the Office of Public Works (OPW), to increase the water freeflow under both the Aughavaddy and Gaurus bridges.According to Councillor Flynn, this is “urgently needed” for a number of reasons. He stated the action would “reduce the risk of flooding of a main access road to the town, adjoining properties and septic tanks in the area”.He added that it would also result in removing “the danger to traffic with ponding at this busy road, which has occured in the past and is identified by locals as a safety concern”. He commented that there is concern locally that “significant additional surface water from the salt barns being constructed will be diverted …

PLANS have been unveiled for the development of a new canoe trail on Lough Derg by three LEADER companies. Clare Local Development Compan (CLDC) joined up with North Tipperary LEADER Partnership and Galway Rural Development to outline draft plans, which met with widespread enthusiasm at public meetings in Scariff, Portumna, Ballina and Dromineer recently.Canoe trails are a feature of tourism and recreation in Canada, Scotland and the Nordic countries and now Lough Derg has become a candidate for a similar development in the coming years.The proposal includes the provision for the integration of mapping and visitor information, access points, accommodation, transport and equipment hire facilities that allow all standards of canoeist to navigate the waters and stay in the area. Visitors can choose from short or long trips, shore-to-shore or looped routes.It is being put forward as part of the Lough Derg Marketing Strategy Group’s efforts to implement Fáilte Ireland’s Destination Action Plan for the Lough Derg Lakelands policy. The …

THE re-opening of Broadford Post Office next Tuesday has been hailed as a victory for community power in South-East Clare.Deputy Timmy Dooley described the Broadford Action Group as a “shining example” to other communities throughout the country of what could be achieved by “community power” when they are faced with the threatened loss of local services.“The retention of Broadford Post Office brought the whole community together to fight for their rights in a well-organised fashion, which resulted in great success.“I was pleased to work with the local committee to retain Broadford Post Office and was particularly pleased to see the level of commitment and interest displayed by the community in retaining this service. “I would credit the success of this campaign to the efforts of Broadford Action Group committee chairman PJ Mason and his committee, who represented the local community very well,” he said.The post office was closed unexpectedly on November 9 last, which prompted a long-running campaign that included …

TO raise awareness of the world record attempt ‘Welcoming Claires to County Clare’ on June 23, the Clare Volunteer Centre and An Clár as Gaeilge Teo ran an art competition through local national schools. Almost 500 pupils entered the competition, which was adjudicated by Dolores O’Halloran (Clare Volunteer Centre), Karen Dunn (graphic designer) and Domhnall Ó Loinsigh (An Clár as Gaeilge).

SHANNON’S Rachael English has been on RTÉ Radio for more than 20 years and she has just published her first novel, Going Back.It tells the story of Elizabeth Kelly and her young friends, who spend the summer of 1988 in Boston and then revisits them in an Ireland once again in deep recession.Speaking about the plot to The Clare Champion this week, the Morning Ireland presenter said, “There’s a brief bit at the start in the present day but mainly the first half of the book is set in the summer of 1988. Then the second half of the book is set in the present day, between the end of 2010 and early 2012.“The first half of the book is about one particular summer and the second half, more than 20 years later, catches up with the people whose stories were told in the first part of the book. Some of the consequences or decisions they made back in ’88 …