News

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 …

GLOBAL status for a number of Clare heritage sites has the potential to bolster tourism in the wake of the pandemic, according to Clare’s Independent TD. Deputy Michael McNamara is urging the council to get behind efforts to secure UNESCO world heritage status for a number of Clare sites including Inis Cealtra. In a strongly-worded statement, the Scariff native contrasted the efforts to light global tourism sites in green for St Patrick’s Day with what he sees as a lack of action on securing longer international heritage status. Deputy McNamara described Ireland’s efforts to green global historic sites such as the Sydney Opera House, the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Pyramids of Giza for St Patrick’s Day as in marked contrast to “lacklustre efforts to win recognition for historic sites in our own country”. Nationally, a review is taking place of a tentative list for consideration by UNESCO, which has the power to award a permanent international designation to selected heritage sites. The closing date for councils to make their …

A MILTOWN Malbay resident who swapped his native Kildare for the banner county has described how the move opened up a whole new life for him. Pat Ryan, originally from Kildare town, has lived in Clare for four years with his wife, Geraldine. Now in his early sixties, Pat says life on the west coast has given him a new lease of life and has led to the creation of new business enterprises and an unexpected venture into the world of songwriting. “I’ve been coming to Clare since I was about 17. I loved it, and through the years, despite travelling a fair bit, I was always drawn back to Clare. We have had a journey over the years by virtue of life’s ups and downs. Since we married, we have moved 11 times. “We moved to Ennistymon in October 2017 then in February 2020, we moved to Miltown Malbay to a house with a bit more room.” Pat says …

A SENIOR cleric has said that the nation’s mental and emotional wellbeing must receive the same level of investment and effort as the campaign to eradicate Covid-19. Parish Priest of Tulla, Fr Brendan Quinlivan, said that once the pandemic is under control, the government and public health officials must turn their attention to tackling the psychological fall-out being experienced by all generations. Fr Quinlivan, who is also the Killaloe diocesan communications officer, said that one of the biggest challenges will be dealing with unresolved grief for those who have been bereaved during the pandemic. “There are huge concerns about what the legacy of Covid-19 will be in terms of mental health and wellbeing,” he said. “We are increasingly hopeful about the roll-out of vaccines and the return to normal life, but we need to make sure that as much time, effort and investment is poured into addressing the impact of the lockdowns on so many people. Our children and young …

GARDAI are appealing to the public for information in relation to an aggravated burglary that occurred at a house in Drumullen, Kilmurry, Sixmilebridge, last Sunday. At approximately 4.30pm, three men armed with what is believed to be a knife and an iron bar, entered the house and tied up three of the occupants. One occupant of the house was assaulted during the incident. A number of personal items were taken from the property. Gardaí are appealing to anyone who may have information in relation to this incident to come forward. They are also appealing to anyone who was in the area of Drumullen, Kilmurry, between 4.00pm and 5.15pm on 14th March 2021, to contact them. Any road users who were in the area at this time and who may have camera (including dash cam) footage is asked to make it available to investigating Gardaí. Any person who may have observed any unusual activity in the area is also asked to …

SAFETY will be to the forefront of visitors’ minds this summer, potentially creating opportunities to grow tourism in East Clare, under the Hidden Heartlands brand. That was the view of Fáilte Ireland’s Tony Dawson, who addressed the AGM of Tourism East Clare (TEC) and outlined his organisation’s priorities in promoting tourism in the area. “The media campaign currently is a work in progress and it all depends on what instructions will come from government on re-opening,” he explained. “The ‘Keep Discovering’ campaign is what it’s called. Last year, it was ‘Make a Break for It’. Roughly from June right through into December, the campaign will run on television and radio and, of course, on social media. There’ll also be some newspaper advertising, to a degree. The campaign will focus on staycations and aim to continue the success that we saw in that area, after the re-opening last year. We’ll also be involved in promoting ‘Stay and Spend’ and there’ll also …

NEWS viewing and discovery points are to be developed around Lough Derg, thanks to a partnership between agencies in three counties. Clare Local Development Company (CLDC), Galway Rural Development (GRD) and North Tipperary Development Company (NTDC) have come together to approve further project funding toward the development of the lakeside amenities. The funding has been provided through the LEADER grant programme, and this is the second such project with these partners on Lough Derg in recent years. “The tourism sector has been one of those worst hit by the pandemic due to the collapse of inbound travel and the restrictions on internal movement,” said Doirin Graham, CEO of Clare Local Development. “It’s all the more important we support it to bounce back quickly”. CEO of GRD Steve Dolan added “The Lough Derg region has a wide range of natural assets and, as I know first-hand, terrific people. Staycations will be taken by the majority of the population in the coming …

RESTRICTIONS on access to school bus transport in North Clare are causing hardship and inconvenience for many parents and students in the Corofin area, a recent meeting of local councillors was told. Councillor Joe Killeen, a former primary school principal and ex-president of the INTO, called on the West Clare Municipal District committee to contact the government on the matter and to ask them to redefine the catchment area for the secondary schools in Ennistymon. “Such a move”, he said, “would make pupils from Corofin eligible for school transport on a phased basis.” The Fianna Fáil member noted that, currently, the Department of Education provides subsidised school transport for post-primary pupils who live more than 4.8 kilometres away from the appropriate school. Because schools in Ennis are closer to those living in Corofin, students currently only have ‘concessionary’ status on school busses to Ennistymon. “We have had a huge increase in the primary school population,” Councillor Killeen noted. “Now, as …