Tag Archives: clare champion

AN Ennis school has become the first in the country to get on board with an innovative fitness and learning tool, writes Jessica Quinn. St Clare’s has just taken delivery of four ActivAll Boards for use throughout the school with all 83 learners. The learning boards are all based outside in the school grounds and work off electricity helping learners with daily physical and mental activities to get their heart rate going as well as developinng hand-eye coordination and motor skills. Principal John Murphy said the school community and young people have waited a long time for the boards to be installed but now they are here the staff and learners are using them constantly throughout the day. “Covid and Brexit delayed the arrival of the boards which come from the UK,” said Mr Murphy, noting St Clare’s is the first school in Ireland to engage with this new technology. “All staff received training last week and the boards went …

Late loved ones to be remembered with event that will benefit the soon to open Haven Hub Clare THE River Fergus will be lit with hundreds of lights next week as a symbol of hope for those who have lost loved ones. On Friday, October 8, at dusk, Ennis will ‘Light the Night’ with lanterns floating down the river through the town. Each light will represent the memory of someone who has passed away. Organiser Tina Whelan hopes this action will bring some comfort to those who are grieving a loss, while also helping to support a new after hours peer support and suicide prevention centre opening shortly in Ennis. Funds raised from the event will go towards the Haven Hub Clare which will open its doors this October in the Clonroad Business Park. The centre will be a sister hub of The Haven Hub Limerick, which was founded by Leona O’ Callaghan. Tina explained that the new Clare service …

THE Mayor of Ennis has urged the local authority to get on their bikes and invest in tandem cycles for the county capital which she believes would promote “inclusion around our beautiful town”, writes Jessica Quinn. Speaking at a recent meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, Councillor Ann Norton suggested the Council look into the possibility of purchasing ‘Fun2Go’ side by side tandem bikes. Seeking support for the proposal she pointed out September was World Alzheimer’s month. “Research has shown that exercise is good for people with dementia. Moving ensures that the mental deterioration slows down. You improve your thinking skills, restlessness, passivity and your blood circulation with exercise.  “Multi-person bikes offer people the opportunity to move together. With the Van Raam Fun2Go side-by-side tandem you can sit comfortably next to each other while enjoying a great bike ride. “Because you sit next to each other, the supervisor can keep a close eye on the co-driver and assess whether he/she is still …

ONE of Ireland’s foremost practitioners in the field of psychology will be among the guest speakers during Mental Health Week in Ennis this month. Dr Tony Bates, who founded Jigsaw, the National Centre for Youth Mental Health, will be the keynote speaker at one of a number of events in the county town next month. Ennis Mental Health Association has organised a varied programme of events around the town, where it aims to promote and educate on positive mental health and wellness. This year’s Mental Health Week takes place from October 7 to 13. “In bringing you this year’s programme, EMHA is truly delighted to work with such renowned experts in their respective fields,” said a spokesperson for the group. Dr Bates’ appearance is at the final event of the week, on Wednesday, October 13 in the Temple Gate Hotel at 7pm. Dr Bates was head of psychology for 30 years in St James’ hospital, Dublin and established and directed …

LOCAL vets have come out in support of plans for the development of a pet crematorium in Ennis which has been proposed in response to “a lack of this service” within the county and surroundings. The nearest such facility is in Kerry, with the developers of the proposal stating that the associated delay following the loss of a pet “can be very distressing” for owners. An application for planning permission has been lodged with Clare County Council for alterations to be carried out to an existing vacant unit at the Ennis Enterprise Centre in the Gort Road Industrial Estate to allow for the development of a pet crematorium for domestic pets. According to a document lodged with the planning authority on behalf of applicants Aimee and Danny Keller, there is currently no such service in the county, with only five in the Republic of Ireland. “The proposed service will be ideally suited in the mid west where there is significant …

ENNIS National School students are showing that they aren’t ‘knit-wits’ when it comes to getting ahead for Christmas. The school’s ‘Crafty Crew’ knitting club of third to sixth class students are creating knitted squares for their now annual Christmas tree project. For the past three years instead of pine needles have been using knitting needles to made a community Christmas tree. As part of the project hundreds of knitted squares made by the students, their families and friends, are sewn together to create the unique festive decoration. They are now appealing to anybody who would like to get involved by making their very own patch for the tree to donate it to the project. Ciara Harding from Ennis National School explains, “The children at Ennis National School are currently working on knitting squares for their annual Christmas Tree Project. Over the past three years we have combined our work at school with squares from parents ,grandparents and friends of Ennis National School …

CLARE college students are being warned by gardaí that drug use can “end your career before it starts”. Gardaí in Clare have issued advice to students starting college this month including urging them to “rise above the influence” of drugs. Clare Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Triona Brooks said, “Starting off in college is the beginning of something good in your life so don’t let drug use end your career before it starts. “If you use drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, ketamine and MDMA, you are committing a criminal offence and also risking addiction, loss of career opportunities, under-achievement, and international travel restrictions. “Taking un-prescribed ‘study’ drugs or sleeping pills can lead to anxiety, addiction and psychosis. Multiple or poly-drug use is extremely dangerous and increases your risk of overdose or death.” She continued, “While An Garda Síochána strive to keep people safe, we also believe that you can also help keep yourself safe. “Contact the emergency services if you become …

THE late Canon William O’Kennedy has been remembered in a film launched this week to commemorate the centenary of the Bere Island Internment Camp. The film recounts how Canon O’Kennedy was abducted from Ennis and transported to Bere Island where he was kept in solitary confinement for a number of weeks, before his whereabouts was discovered. Canon O’Kennedy was president of St Flannan’s College in 1919 and was one of the pillars of the Sinn Féin movement in Clare. He was arrested in 1921 and held in Bere Island before being released after the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in London. The film was launched on Monday by the Bere Island Projects Group to commemorate the centenary of the camp, which was in operation from April to December 1921. In 1920, a prison camp was opened on Bere Island on the site of the Fort Berehaven military camp, for convicted Republican prisoners. By April 1921, all convicted prisoners had been …