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Ennis

Fundraising drive to bring Christmas home comforts

A LOCAL initiative hoping to bring some Christmas cheer to older people and families is appealing for donations to ensure it can support as many people as possible this festive season. The appeal is being organised by the online Clare Free to a Good Home community, with founder Ennis’ Tina Whelan saying “We just want to give people a lift and are grateful for any donations, the more we raise the better. “Something which might seem very small to one person, is something very big to somebody else.” This is the third year that the project has been undertaken by Clare Free to a Good Home, a social media group which allows people to donate unwanted items to others. Last year the fundraiser supported making the Christmas dreams come true for five Clare families, with even more families receiving donations of turkeys and hams among other items. This year there is a particular focus on helping older people this year, …

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Social dancing under threat from e-ticketing rules

A SOCIAL life-line for hundreds of people from Clare, and beyond, may have had its last dance, due to new rules on e-ticketing. Members of the Dancing for Pleasure group have had to sit it out over the long months of lockdown. As restrictions eased for the live events sector, they were keen to dust off their dancing shoes. Organisers were dismayed, however, to find out that the rule on advance ticketing applies, not just to nightclubs, but to their social dancing outings. Regular attendees, who range in age from 60 to 90, are unlikely to take to the e-ticketing system, organisers believe. “We love our dancing,” said Ennis-based committee member Andy Carmody. “Now, we have completely lost our exercise and our social life. A lot of people are not into the internet. I just don’t think that having to buy a ticket by email, at least an hour before the dance, will work for us. It’s not really something …

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Commemoration for 1917 Mountjoy hunger strikers

THE descendants of two Clare men who took part in a hunger strike in Mountjoy prison in September 1917 will lay a wreath at a unique commemoration in Ennis this weekend. Officers from the Irish Prison Service will take part in the ceremony marking one of the most significant events in the revolutionary period. In September 1917, 38 men including 16 from Clare, took part in the hunger strike in Mountjoy prison, changing the course of Irish history. This Sunday’s ceremony will commence at 12 noon at the monument to the Clare Mountjoy Hunger Strikers at the Monastery Park, Cappahard, Ennis. Mary Crawford chairperson of the Mid Clare Commemoration Committee described this weekend’s commemoration as “very significant” given the involvement of the Irish Prison Service. Governor James Kelly, Mountjoy Prison will give an address as part of the ceremony. Ms Crawford explains that the local group were contacted by the Irish Prison Service to support the holding of the event …

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Concerns raised over rough sleeping in Clare’s county town

A PROMINENT Ennis retailer has raised concerns over the impression created by rough sleeping in the heart of the town, writes Fiona McGarry. Oliver Moylan of The Ennis Cash Company said the presence of a small number of people sleeping in an area around the top of O’Connell Street is creating a negative image of the town, particularly in the busy run in to Christmas. Those providing emergency accommodation, meanwhile, have said they are fully prepared to engage with rough sleepers, and that there is sufficient provision in Ennis so that nobody should be without a bed at night. Mr Moylan, who contacted The Champion to raise his concerns, is proprietor of a business trading since the 1880s. “People sleeping rough on the main street is creating a terrible impression of Ennis, especially as businesses are trying to get back on their feet and really need footfall and shoppers back on the streets,” he said. “There are people spreading out …

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Clare film maker’s work on ‘father of cyborgs’ airs on RTE

THE groundbreaking work of a neuroscientist known as the father of the cyborgs is the subject of an Ennis film maker’s documentary to be screened this Thursday. RTE will screen David Burke’s film, which is called Father of the Cyborgs, this Thursday night. It’s about groundbreaking Limerick neuroscientist Dr Phil Kennedy, who made global headlines in the 1990s for implanting several wire electrodes in the brain of a paralyzed man and then teaching the locked-in patient to control a computer cursor with his mind.  He was compared to Alexander Graham Bell in The Washington Post and became known as ‘The Father of the Cyborgs’. He made headlines again in 2014 when he travelled to South America and had tiny electrodes implanted inside his own brain in order to continue his research. The documentary examines the ethics of self-experimentation and the unintended consequences of a future where technology and human brains combine. When it comes to tech – how far is …

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Ennis Trad Fest returns after Covid-enforced break

THE Ennis Trad Fest returns to the county capital this week following the cancellation of last year’s event due to Covid-19. The 27th year of the festival, running from Thursday November 11 to until Monday, November 15 will be a scaled back event from previous years because of the ongoing effects of the pandemic. However a host of events have been organised including a session trail throughout the town, album launches, trad discos and concerts. Highlights include three concerts in the Queens Hotel featuring renowned performers. On Friday night Tola Custy and Cyril O’Donoghue will perform live tracks off their critically acclaimed 1994 album “Setting free” followed by a trad disco with DJ Ollie Mullooly. Saturday night the popular and multi-award-winning quintet Goitse will perform with another trad disco afterwards. And on Sunday Angelina and Peter Carberry, Dan Brouder and John Blake, the Five Star Quartet and Colm Murphy will take to the stage. Organisers say they are “delighted” to …

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Clare trader ordered to issue refunds over missing PS5s

ENFORCEMENT action has been taken against an Ennis business man who promised Playstation 5s to customers which never arrived. Unwar Anwar trading at Innovate has been directed by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) to immediately issue refunds to consumers who have not yet been refunded and to cease engaging in misleading commercial practices, including providing misleading information to consumers Despite the findings of the investigation, when contacted by The Clare Champion Mr Anwar insisted that he didn’t mislead anybody. “The issue was dealt with months ago. I don’t believe I was misleading anyone. We were let down and so were many other retailers. Everyone has been issued a refund now,” he said, adding he had no further comment to make. The consumer watchdog took the action against Mr Anwar following a number of complaints by consumers who placed orders for Sony PlayStation 5s, but failed to receive them or a refund. Mr Anwar has been directed by the …

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Ennis success in nationwide litter league praised

THE Mayor of Ennis has urged people to pick up their litter following the success of the county capital in this year’s Irish Business Against Litter survey. The first post-lockdown survey by IBAL showed Ennis in third position in the ranking of 40 areas nationwide. The county capital was one of eight areas across the country to be deemed ‘cleaner than European norms’. The success of Ennis in this national survey comes just weeks ahead of the announcement of this year’s Tidy Towns competition results. Speaking at the monthly meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, Mayor of Ennis Councillor Ann Norton paid tribute to the outdoor staff of Clare County Council and the volunteers of Ennis Tidy Towns for their efforts in keeping the town looking its best. “We are extremely lucky that everybody in Ennis is extremely proud of their town and the work that is being done,” she said. She pointed to colourful displays of flowers saying “amazing …

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