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WATCH: Clare family’s spectacular light show for charity

A CLARE family is helping to light up Christmas for children with a dazzling festive display, writes Jessica Quinn. A spectacular world of colourful lights, themed props and musical sequences is delighting the young and young-at-heart alike in Meelick in the lead-up to this Christmas, as the Hunt family once again present their wondrous works in support of Childline. Describing himself as a ‘maker’ with a passion for technology, Dave Hunt was first inspired to construct and create his own light show last year when watching videos on YouTube. He set about bringing his vision to life and left no stone unturned to present a very successful debut production which attracted attention from across counties Clare, Limerick and beyond. Now, he’s back with a sensational new display which he is proud to say is bigger and better for 2021. It’s raising vital funds for the Childline listening service, to help make sure every child and young person in Clare and …

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WATCH: Clare school makes final of carol contest and needs your vote!

THE Barefield National School Choir has been named as a finalist in a national Christmas carol competition. The primary school is among 11 finalists in the Audiology Medical Services Online Christmas Carol Competition, and needs votes from the public to win. There is a prize of €2,000 cash for the winning school. A spokesperson for the competition explained, “Having a hearing loss can be challenging at any time of the year, but none more so than during the Christmas season. “The aim of this competition is to raise awareness among young people on the importance of hearing, and how important the sounds of Christmas are to us all, such as Christmas Carols.” To cast your vote for Barefield NS check https://bit.ly/31Ba7Fe and voting closes Sunday, December 19.

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Free entry for Clare residents to Cliffs of Moher up to Christmas

THE Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience is spreading a little Christmas cheer this month by providing free entry to all Clare residents up to and including December 23. Ireland’s most visited natural attraction is supporting the ‘Buy Local’ campaign by inviting members of the public to visit the Shannon Heritage Gift Shop and Cafes, which offers dozens of local craft, artisan products and hampers. “We are inviting the people of Clare to do their Christmas shopping here at the Cliffs of Moher, as well as enjoy the extensive menus on offer at our Cafes and take in a refreshing walk, all in a safe and festive atmosphere,” explained Geraldine Enright, Director of the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience. Amongst the local and artisan suppliers are Ekotree Knitwear (Doolin), Irish Slate Craft (Lahinch), Wild Atlantic Candles (Kilrush), Atlantic Low Tide (Kilkee), Wilde Irish Chocolates (Tuamgraney), Spanish Point Sea Veg, Redesign Shack (Ennis), Bunratty Mead and many more. Ms. Enright said, “Visitors …

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Haven hits on winning formula

Thriving Ennis charity shop provides the perfect example of sustainable social enterprise supporting a vital service COVID-19 brought many challenges to the voluntary retail sector, however an Ennis “charity superstore” is not just surviving, it is thriving. Since opening eight years ago in Munster House in the Gort Road Business Park the Clare Haven Horizons Charity Shop has rapidly expanded. It is now made up of seven units including fashion, furniture and homeware sales, a specific donation drop-off point and an upcoming pop-up Christmas shop. According to manager Mairead Mannion the store’s location and business model allowed it to respond to the pandemic in a way that facilitated its growing success. The shop’s expansion hasn’t just been confined to the physical store however, with Clare Haven Horizons Charity Shop making the move online during the pandemic, attracting a brand new set of customers. Its profile also continues to grow not just locally, but nationally. The shop was recently awarded three …

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Win flight from Shannon to meet Santa in Lapland

A SPECIAL seasonal flight to the Arctic Circle will lift off this December from Shannon Airport. To celebrate, the airport is launching a special competition for a fairy-tale trip for a lucky family on Thursday, December 2 to Santa’s home in Lapland over 4,000 km away. “We are delighted that passengers from Shannon will have the opportunity to enjoy a magical visit to Lapland,” said Mary Considine, CEO Shannon Group. “It will be a really special trip. I expect the excitement and atmosphere on departure day will be palpable and, no doubt, a thousand stories told on return and a thousand memories made.” Lapland has the last remaining expanse of wilderness in northern Europe, including the coastline, forests, mountains and unspoilt rivers. In winter this becomes a wonderland of snow where visitors get to enjoy the fun of snowmobile adventures, toboggans and sleigh rides. The lucky family will fly from Shannon to the Santa Claus Village in the North Pole. …

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Clare big cheeses land national prizes

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 …

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Minister’s praise for unique Clare food festival

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. …

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Toastmasters is again the talk of the town in Shannon

ZOOM kept the Shannon Toastmasters club running for 18 months, but its last few meetings have been in person once again, writes Owen Ryan. Of course the meetings now are quite different to the spring of 2020. “It’s a big change, we’re doing the same things, but we have to be conscious of social distancing so our chairs are more spread out and there’s mask wearing,” says President Maura Meaney. “You have to think of all that, but we have the same format of meetings.” The club meets on the first and third Wednesday of each month and Maura says the members adapted very quickly to the pandemic. “We went online straight away once the first lockdown came in. It was a big change for everybody, and it kept the club going and alive, but people were more than happy to go back to in person meetings. “There’s a better buzz about it, a better connection between people. Even just …

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