CHRISTMAS Eve 2012 is a night that Elaine and William Lynch will never forget. The Ruan couple were getting ready to celebrate the season. Their two little boys were waiting for Santa. What should have been the happiest night of the year took a tragic turn when the couple discovered that eight-month old Tadhg had stopped breathing. Despite the best efforts of Elaine and her sister-in-law Patricia, both nurses, and the help of paramedics, Tadhg was lost to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). A decade later, the family of five thinks fondly of Tadhg every day. In April, when Tadhg would have been celebrating his tenth birthday, the Lynchs are organising a fundraising run. The ’10 for Tadhg’ fundraiser takes place on April 10 at 10am and will see people run and walk 10km from the GAA pitch in Ruan and back. The event will raise funds for Féileacáin and The Children’s Hospital at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) and will …

ORGANISERS of a North Clare parade, in which one entry depicted a dead man being taken to a post office, have apologised and described the situation as “tone deaf”. Kilfenora St Patrick’s Day parade was one of a number nationwide to contain floats representing a widely-publicised incident in which Carlow man Peadar Doyle was found to be dead during an alleged attempt to collect his pension. Foul play was ruled out in the 66-year-old’s death last January and Gardaí are continuing their investigations. After a major backlash following the parades, Orla Vaughan, apologised publicly and sent a letter to Mr Doyle’s family. “To Noeleen, Peadar’s sister and to Liam and Christopher, Peadar’s brothers, I really, really apologise,” Ms Vaughan said on Clare FM. “I can understand retrospectively, and that’s never a good thing, the hurt it caused them.” The Kilfenora woman said the committee sent a card last Monday to Mr Doyle’s family and that they would welcome an opportunity …

UKRAINE will be to the forefront of a musical fundraiser in Tulla on Saturday (March 26), when a wealth of East Clare talent with gather in solidarity.  Moved by the plight of those who have been forced to flee their homes, a group of local musicians and singers will perform in the the square in Tulla, throughout the day, to raise funds for the refugees from the Ukraine.  Among those performing will be Aisling and Leah Hunt, Andrew Mac Namara and Michael Landers, John Canny and Mark Donnellan, Mary Mac Namara and Risteard Crimmins, Cushla,  Àine and Cara Murphy. They will be joined by a group of local singers under the baton of Joan Culloo Mac Namara. The fundraiser will run from 10am to 5 pm. All money raised will be sent to the Irish Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal.

LIVE drama makes a welcome return to East Clare later this month and, as part of that, John B Keane’s legendary leading lady Big Maggie will be making an appearance. Tulla Drama Group is staging the classic tale of sex, land and money at Tulla Courthouse this week from Wednesday, March 23 until Friday March 25 and Big Maggie will also feature in the feast of drama that will be on offer as part of the 73rd Clare Drama Festival. After a hiatus due to the pandemic, the event is back from Friday, March 25 to Saturday, April 2 in Scariff.  The festival opens on Friday, March 25 at Scariff Community College Hall. Big Maggie will be back on stage there on Wednesday, March 30.  Other highlights of this year’s festival will include a performance of Sive by the Clan Machua Drama Group on March 25. Meanwhile, on Saturday, March 26, Skibbereen Theatre Society will perform Brighton by Jim Nolan. …

RATIONING of home heating oil and agri-diesel, as well as spiralling costs, are causing considerable anxiety according to Councillor Alan O’Callaghan. The Kilmurry man, who runs a busy fuel supply company, said that while home heating oil is limited to 500 litres, on Friday of last week, the price for that was more than €800. With price volatility prompted by the global economic fallout from the war Ukraine, there are no guarantees that prices will stabilise any time soon. For those using agri-diesel, rationing, costs and fuel quality are looming problems.  “These are times that we’ve never witnessed before,” the Fianna Fáil member said. “Prices might have been fluctuating a few cents over a couple of days, now they’re moving ten cents a day. It’s a very volatile market right now. For the supplier, the buyer and the distributor, it’s the luck of the draw. I delivered kerosene to a house on a Monday and, if that man had got …

A DEBATE on hate speech legislation has prompted a furious reaction from the Clare-based chairperson of The Irish Freedom Party.  Speaking in the Dáil, where the Justice Minister sought support for a measure to extend EU crimes to include hate crime and hate speech, Deputy Cathal Crowe was sharply critical of the party. “It practises hate messaging and it is how it operates,” he said. “Its members message on topics of gender, transgender and immigration. They are the issues on which they campaign. It can be argued it is a political party with a right to represent and speak, but it does not have any elected mandate in this country. “If its members believe they have a right to speech, they will have less of a right to make their statements when we sign up to this because any form of rallying people or inciting hatred in that regard will be illegal.” In a statement following the debate, Michael Leahy …

DERELICTION in the centre of Kilrush is to be tackled, following representations by Councillor Ian Lynch.  The Independent Council member raised the issue at the West Clare Municipal District meeting earlier this month when he highlighted the state of Moore Street in the heart of the town. He asked that the area be considered for inclusion on a suitable scheme to address dereliction and also that overhead electricity lines be put underground, if possible.  In a written response, Mairead Corbett, Administrative Officer in the Housing section stated: “The Vacant Homes Office is currently undertaking a study of Moore Street, Kilrush with a view to identifying vacant properties with potential for redevelopment.  Assessment is ongoing on a number of properties to determine their potential and decide on future action”. A second response was supplied in relation to the electricity cables. Alan Kennelly, Senior Executive Engineer (SEE) under took to contact the ESB in relation to their requirements relating to the possible …

A BRAND identity for the Inis Cealtra Visitor Experience was unveiled this week as the landmark projects continues to advance. At the end of next month, a further funding application will be made to progress the project beyond the design stage.  The work of consultants, Design Works, was showcased at a presentation on Monday last (March 14). The brand identity focuses on the symbolism of the archways of the island’s ecclesiastical buildings and highlights the theme of transformation linked with stepping through these portals.  At the briefing, chaired by Tourism Officer Joan Tarmey, Project Manager Tom MacKey, from Tobin Consulting Engineers briefly outlined some of the work to-date. Mr MacKey coordinates a team that includes Design Works, McCullough Mulvin Architects and Tandem Partners. “We’re currently focusing on on detailed design for the re-purposing of The Old Rectory building,” he said. “In general, we’re hoping to be in a position to have a contractor on site mid-summer to start working with …