Summer song for Chernobyl

A series of summer concerts to be held in the Mid-West will culminate in a major charitable event at Ennistymon Courthouse this summer.

By John Rainsford

Proceeds from these musical extravaganzas will go towards supporting the charitable activities of The Burren Chernobyl Project.
Indeed, a group of volunteers from the project plan to travel to Belarus to work in Tarasiki Adult Institution and also in the Cherven Children’s Orphanage this August.
Tessa O’Connor, a Clare-based volunteer for the Burren Chernobyl Project and a Lahinch-based musician, described why the public concerts are being organised.
“I have grown-up with kids from orphanages in Belarus who have stayed in our family home down the years.  I first started travelling out there in 2004 and have been doing it every summer since. Volunteering involves caring for, and interacting with, bedridden and able-bodied children and adults, aged between five and 30 years.
“The work involves anything from rocking a crying child to sleep to arranging hula hoop competitions between groups of 50 children. The kids love the mandolin music too and we also offer massage and art sessions with as many as we can.
“There are some 250 children in the orphanage but volunteers are very quickly on a first-name basis with most of them. It is great returning every year to meet them again and to hear their stories.”
Tessa grew up just outside Ennistymon and still lives there today. Over the years, however, she has taken to wandering and living in various parts of the world. Nevertheless, she has always ended up returning to Clare. The graduate of Furglan National School, Ennistymon Convent Secondary School and Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD), receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art Print Making from the latter, recently began playing the mandolin and singing locally.
“It was hard not to want to play music growing-up in Clare. There is an incredible standard of traditional music behind every door and the greats sit alongside the beginners swapping tunes and sharing pots of tea. It is a beautifully balanced culture to be a part of,” she explained.
Her project focuses on creating homes and hope for the affected families. It involves the provision of heating, running water and insulation for hundreds of people in old folk’s homes, orphanages, adult asylums and private homes. Funding has been raised for lifesaving medication and supplies of nutritional food, as well as bringing wheelchairs, basic necessities and support to mothers caring for their special needs children at home.
“If someone is in need then everything is done to help them,” said Tessa. “This is possible because of the great levels of support and fundraising activities that continue in the local community and around the country. I hope that, in these difficult economic times, we can persevere with the project because it really does go a long way to helping those affected and is well worth it.
“My experiences in South America recently and the conditions that I regularly see in Belarus have taught me to be grateful for what we have, here, at home. That is my basic plan for the future, namely to re-discover and be grateful for what we have had on our doorstep all along.”
The upcoming gigs, therefore, have also been designed to raise awareness of The Burren Chernobyl Project. The proceeds will be put to use this August when a group of volunteers travel to Belarus to work in Cherven Children’s Orphanage and also in Tarasiki Adult Institution.
The aim of the organisers is to raise some €6,000. With this funding they will be able to buy sufficient re-usable nappies for use in Cherven Children’s Orphanage that also caters for the mentally and physically handicapped.
Tessa stated, “This is an incredibly basic human right that these children deserve. All funds will be used directly over there and go directly to those who need it. A small amount of money will go towards buying art materials for the art and craft sessions we plan in Tarasiki Adult Asylum. All volunteers will cover their own travel expenses, themselves.
“One band, called Los Gatos Negros, performs every week in Flanagan’s Bar, Lahinch. This concert will offer them the opportunity to perform acoustically, which will be quite a different sound than usual. They have blown me away every time that I have seen them so far and I am really looking forward to experiencing their acoustic set.”
Paddy Mulcahy, the Lahinch-based musician who organised the exchange trip to South America, studied Spanish and Anthropology in Maynooth College 10 years ago. He previously spent a year in Buenos Aires working on those same language skills that served the group’s communications so well recently.
“Last year we went to California, London and South America (visiting Argentina, Bolivia and Peru),” he said. “I do not think that we left any audience disappointed so I think that the road is open for more gigs in other countries. We have plans to go back to South America again shortly. Indeed, I will be back in Buenos Aires for two weeks in August, where I will do a gig with Tommy Nelson (on his home soil) along with some of our friends there. Tommy’s ancestors come from Ireland and he is an accomplished musician who is very much behind the strength of Irish traditional music in Argentina currently.
“The project is a long-term thing so I envisage many more trips over and back. We have played to crowds of Bolivians who knew little about Irish music but we were able to put on an accessible show so I am confident about continuing that success.
“When I originally planned the trip it was to be on my own but Tessa O’Connor then decided to come along and join a larger group called Los Paddy’s de Las Pampas (The Paddy’s of the Pampas).
“I was very grateful that she did as Tessa adds an awful lot to our performance. She is a lovely singer who can play traditional Irish jigs and reels as well as being a fantastic person to be with on the road,” added Paddy.

Los Paddy’s de Las Pampas will be performing in Ennistymon Courthouse on July 12; Mr Bradleys, in Cork, on July 18, Baker Place in Limerick on July 20 and The Exchange Bar in Dublin on July 22.
Baker Place, Ennistymon Courthouse and The Exchange Bar will all be charity events for The Burren Chernobyl Project. Find out more about the project by going to burrenchernobyl.ie or by emailing tessa.beth.oconnor@gmail.com. To find out more about Los Paddy’s de Las Pampas please see: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tmK8Myh22k