This article is from page 35 of the 2007-05-08 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 35 JPG
THERE wasn’t a bad word to be heard around the corridors and class- rooms of Mary Immaculate Sec- ondary School in Lisdoonvarna last week as a year-long project designed to promote consideration in the com- munity came to an end.
The programme, which was called The Promotion of Courtesy Care and Consideration, was organised by the Home School Community Commit- tee and saw students from every class in the school work and think about how their locality could be changed into an even more friendly place.
A major aspect of the programme saw students from the school forge close ties with the people who attend the day care centre for the elderly at the Stella Maris.
This culminated in a special night with Fanore poet and author John O’Donoghue, which was organised by the school in support of the Stella Maris.
“He gave a wonderful talk and raised €1,000, which we were ab- solutely over the moon about,” said Maureen Droney of the Home School Community Committee.
“The money will go to the Stella Maris who are looking to buy a big- ger bus which will allow them to bring more people to the day centre. There is a great demand for the Stella Maris and indeed they are looking to open up for a third day each week.
“We had a lot of people who attend the day centre who came out for the night but there were a few people who would follow John, who trav- elled long distances to be there.”
John was joined on the night by his nephew and tenor with the Lismo- rahaun Singers, Peter O’Donoghue, and Leaving Certificate student Bri- da O’Donoghue, who played violin.
“During the year, the students vis- ited the elderly people and this gave them great life. You would even feel it on the streets that there was a real community spirit,’ continued Mau- reen.
“Next year, we will be focusing ona different theme. We will have a little break now and decide what to look at next year. We still hope to have a Courtesy, Care and Consideration week next year but the main focus will be somewhere else.”
Throughout the school year, the entire school community of Mary Immaculate took part in some way with a variety of events involving the
Courtesy, Care and Consideration Programme.
Teachers spoke about politeness and ethics in relation to their own subjects, each class drew up a char- ter of good behaviour, a poetry com- petition took place and a different poem was read aloud on the school intercom each morning to serve as a thought for the day.