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Tag Archives: Ennistymon

Lahinch Mourns Death of Community Leader

  PEOPLE in Lahinch are mourning the loss of a community leader following the passing of Tomsie O’Sullivan. The long serving community activist died at his residence in Doonboy, Station Road, Lahinch, on St Patrick’s Day. After reposing in Lahinch Church on Friday, his Funeral Mass took place on Saturday morning before burial afterwards in the Old Cemetery, Ennistymon. While Tomsie was involved with numerous community organisations for decades, he is synonymous with the RNLI, who presented him with a Long Service Award for reaching 58 years with the organisation last September. The RNLI was very much a family affair as Tomsie’s children used to help him with church gate collections and flag days.   In an interview with the Clare Champion last year, Tomsie estimated the Lahinch branch used to raise between €6,000 to €8,000 annually over a 28-year period. Born in Main Street, Tomsie’s father, Thomas, who was a carpenter fell off a roof in the early fifties …

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Who wants the Púca? Applications open in Clare for statue

COMMUNITIES across North Clare have until March 24 to stake their claim for a chance to host the now famous statue of the mythical Púca.  Last month, a majority of residents of Ennistymon rejected the planned sculpture, following a long-running controversy over the nature of the design as well as the public consultation process. After the Council confirmed the change of plan, applications are now being accepted from other areas interested in giving a home to the two-metre high bronze artwork.  The local authority this Thursday publicised a list of criteria that communities will need to meet in order to be considered as the new home of the Púca. For the moment, applications will only be considered from the North Clare Electoral Area and details of the exact location as well as written consent from the landowner must be provided. In addition, applicants must show “demonstrable community buy-in” through meetings and surveys. They must also prove they can create a …

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Aimee Foley: ‘No sentence will ever be long enough’

Dan Danaher speaks with Aimee Foley who waived her right to anonymity following her father’s conviction and sentencing for raping and sexually abusing her AN ENNISTYMON woman, who was sexually abused, raped and traumatised by her father for years, is seeking changes in the sentencing regime for people convicted of domestic violence, rape and serious sexual assault. On December 13, Michael O’Donoghue (44) from Ennistymon was sentenced to five years for brutally raping and abusing his only daughter. Setting a headline sentence of 12 years, Mr Justice David Keane reduced it to seven years, taking mitigating factors into account and then suspended the final two years. O’Donoghue, with an address of Colmanstown, Ballinasloe, Co Galway, pleaded guilty to 31 counts of sexually assaulting Aimee Foley, one count of raping her and one count of producing child pornography. In her comprehensive victim impact statement, she described her father as “a monster, a paedophile, an animal”. The Director of Public Prosecutions has …

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Ennistymon honours Ashling

DUSK was gathering as the town of Ennistymon came to a standstill last Friday to honour the memory of Ashling Murphy. In solidarity with the town of Tullamore and communities all over Ireland, hundreds stood silently in The Square. The sense of sadness and shock at the murder of the 23 year-old teacher was palpable. The only sounds were the traditional airs that rang out to honour the talented young fiddle player, and muffled sobs when emotion became too much for some to bear.  Tiny children, helped by the guiding hand of their parents, lined up to leave their candles and flowers. The pool of light around the memorial slowly grew brighter and stronger. Many children were the same age as the members of Ashling’s own first class at Durrow National School. Too young to take in such a terrible tragedy, they stared up at the solemn candle-lit faces of the adults around them. Stealing shy glances at each other, …

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Injured man airlifted to hospital after presenting at Garda station with burns

A man has been airlifted to hospital after he sustained burns in an accident and went to a local Garda station to seek help, reports Pat Flynn. Gardaí were surprised to see the man present himself at Ennistymon station this afternoon, but quickly jumped into action and treated the injured man until ambulance paramedics arrived. It’s understood the man suffered burns in an accident in a domestic setting and made his way to Ennistymon Garda station to seek assistance. Gardaí administered first aid to the injured man and alerted the National Ambulance Service. Paramedics made their way to the Garda station where they assessed and treated the casualty. A decision was made to have the patient airlifted to hospital in Galway rather than transport him by road ambulance which would have taken up 90 minutes. The National Ambulance Service (NAS) requested the Cork-based charity-funded Irish Community Air Ambulance, Helimed-92, to carry out the mission. In the meantime, the injured man …

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Three clinics to help Clare smokers quit the habit

CLARE smokers are being encouraged to avail of one of the three local free HSE cessation clinics to quit this addiction in the New Year, writes Dan Danaher. Three of the 18 clinics that operate throughout the Mid-West can be accessed in Ennis, Kilrush and Ennistymon. This HSE service is free and staffed by qualified stop smoking advisers who provide one-to-one support to people who are quitting smoking or thinking about quitting. Just over a year on from the launch of the Quit Mid West service, the HSE standard treatment programme to help people stop smoking is now available in communities right across the Mid West. The service is available by phone, by video link and in person and is staffed by a team of qualified professionals who are all based here in the region. The treatment support programme includes an initial assessment of nicotine-dependency, weekly support during the first four weeks of quitting, advice on using Nicotine Replacement Therapy …

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Púca creator is ‘hopeful’ ahead of council decision

THE creator of the controversial Púca of Ennistymon has called on Clare County Council to stand behind its Arts Office who commissioned the proposed sculpture. Ahead of a review of a public consultation process, Aidan Harte, told The Champion he remains hopeful the council will back his proposals. “I think the council were slightly wrong-footed by the controversy, but there was a transparent public tender process and I think the council now need to defend the robustness of that,” he said. The preferred design was publicised last May, but within a matter of days, the public art project was ‘paused’ due to considerable local opposition. The 2-metre sculpture, proposed for Lower Church Hill, generated intense controversy at local and national level. Despite some strong opposition, the proposed half-man, half-horse secured the backing of a number of celebrities, historians, artists and folklorists, podcasters and documentary makers. The local authority has now confirmed that a consultation survey is now being examined with …

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Ennistymon has ‘waited long enough’ for action

THE chair of Save Ennistymon’s Heritage insists the community has “waited long enough” for action to be taken on the infamous Blake’s Corner and is calling on Clare County Council to address the situation “urgently”. Denis Vaughan was speaking after two tourists escaped injury in recent weeks at the corner when their car mounted a wall. When contacted by The Clare Champion about the local concerns, Seán Lenihan, Senior Engineer, stated that Clare County Council is “absolutely committed to resolving the potential conflict that exists at Blakes Corner in Ennistymon”. The council are awaiting an An Bord Pleanala decision on plans to purchase land and buildings around the site to begin construction of a ‘relief road’ between the N85 and N67 Mr Vaughan recalled that the tourists’ car mounted the wall at the end of November. “Besides causing traffic chaos at the busiest corner in Ireland and creating avoidable congestion, it is clearly dangerous. “This situation is likely to continue …

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