This article is from page 34 of the 2007-04-24 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 34 JPG
THE first series of afternoon tea dances in west Clare has been a huge success so far with a fourth dance planned for the month of May.
The dances, organised by the Kil- rush Family Resource Centre and funded by the HSE, give people an opportunity to travel to other parish- es for fun and entertainment.
Viv Rooney, community worker with the resource centre, said that all ages are welcome at the events.
“We have had up to 50 people at- tending the dances and they are open to everyone. Anybody who wants
to dance a set or enjoys a waltz can come along. We hold them on the third Sunday of the month and they move from parish to parish so we can get around to every community, ” she said.
She added that the idea to stage the dances came from a conference cel- ebrating active senior citizenship in mauers
“A lot of people said what they would enjoy doing at weekends. Sunday can be a long and lonely day and one of the things suggested was a dance in the afternoon. We applied to the HSE for funding and that will cover six dances. We are hoping that
it will eventually sustain itself,”
Ms Rooney said that the dances are more than a single event because they promote community activity and involvement.
“People at a loose end are getting out and meeting each other. Mostly women attend and you’ll hear them asking now ‘Are you going? Can I give you a lift?’ They can meet old friends and neighbours or people they went to school with.”
Dances have already been held in Kilrush, Moyasta and Kilkee and the next event will be on May 20 in Downes’ Pub, Bealaha. There will be a bus provided for the first time
on that day.
“We are hoping for good weather. There is a small cover charge and we provide tea and scones. Anyone who comes along really enjoys it. It 1s im- portant to keep this facility running and supported,’ she said.
The tea dances are part of just one local service provided by the Kilrush Family Resource Centre. There are various projects, classes and group meetings on in the centre every week.
For more information on the sun- day afternoon tea dances you can contact the centre on 065 9052173 or email to vivrooney @kilrushfrc.ie.