Month: January 2008

has also learned that almost 180 new clients reported that they had been raped or sexually assaulted in the mid-west last year.

Rape Crisis Midwest, which offers support to rape and sexual abuse vic- tims in Clare, Limerick and Tipper- ary, believes this figure is “only the tip of the iceberg”’.

The Rape Crisis outreach centre in Ennis increased its counselling last year. It offered 258 counselling hours to victims of rape or sexual abuse last year, which is an increase on 223 hours in 2006. It provided 173 hours in 2005, after opening in May of that year.

14 new clients were seen at the out-

reach centre in Ennis last year. All of those clients were from Clare, while a number of other clients from Clare travelled to the centre in Limerick.

There is also a continuous waiting list of one or two people in Ennis.

The co-ordinator of Rape Crisis Midwest, Miriam Duffy, said there was a definite need for the outreach centre to be opened in Ennis.

“It was identified by a number of clients in Clare as it was much more difficult for them to have to travel to Limerick. It is a lot more convenient

for those who can access it,’ she Cr HOR

“We are constantly aware of the level of sexual abuse that is out there,’ said Ms Duffy.

The number of hours offered to cli- ents varies, depending on each ind1- vidual case.

‘There is a waiting list, but we al- ways prioritise somebody who is in crisis,’ she added.

Ms Duffy said that 90 per cent of victims know their attackers.

“This idea of being dragged down

a dark alleyway does happen but the risk of being sexually assaulted by someone you know is greater,” she added.

Some victims do not report the abuse for years and their bad memo- ries are triggered by media coverage of fresh cases.

Ms Duffy said victims should re- port abuse as early as possible. ““The earlier they can get on to us, the bet- ter for themselves, as it will be less negative for them as they get on with their lives,’ she said.

A NEW service aimed at maintain- ing and providing links with people who feel cut off from their local community was launched in Ennis last week.

The Clare Talking Social Club was launched in the Woodstock Hotel on Thursday last by the Mayor of Clare Patricia McCarthy; Pauline Mc- Naughton, chairperson of the Sunset Foundation; and Fr Tom Hogan, ad- ministrator of Ennis Parish.

The idea for the Clare Talking So-

cial Club was conceived by the Sun- set Foundation, a Clare-based group established just over two years ago.

The service is maintained by Pauline Naughton and Sunset Foun- dation co-coordinator Patrick Mur- phy. So far the service has contacted 64 people and it has been well re- ceived in the local community.

Patrick Murphy explained why the Sunset Foundation set up the serv- or

‘There are an awful lot of peo- ple out there who are on their own. They might be living in the middle

of a few hundred houses but they are still isolated. So we made a few calls to people and we got good feedback so we decided to make it a regular den beteae

Patrick added, “I usually do three days a week and Pauline Naughton would do two. So far we’ve made around 64 calls. People do appreci- ate it.

“We make contact with all differ- ent types of people. Elderly people living on their own or two brothers living on their own.

“It might be the case that no one

calls them or checks in with them, so that is what we do.”

The Sunset Foundation was found- ed in 2005 by Ennis man Patrick Murphy and Michael McInerney from Sixmilebridge as an awareness eroup for visually impaired people.

It now boasts over 50 members and is regularly involved in organising charity events and outings.

Last summer, the Sunset Founda- tion sent 30 blind and visually im- paired people to Lourdes.

The Clare Talking Social Club can be contacted at 065 6824875.

CHILDCARE facilities in Ennis are set for a significant upgrade as work gets underway on a new 5000sq foot community creche.

Mayor of Clare, Patricia McCarthy and Mayor of Ennis, Tommy Bren- nan yesterday turned the sod on the site on the Watery Road. When com- plete, the creche will serve all com- munities in Ennis, providing urgently needed childcare facilities.

An extensive programme in pre- school education will be delivered. The créche will also operate a full

Montessori run by fully qualified teaching staff, and provide for chil- dren with special needs with facili- ties to include state-of-the-art multi- sensory rooms and four classrooms.

The Clare Family Resource Centre will operate the creche with a staff of 33 full-time workers. There will also be a close working partnership with the FAS community employment scheme. A management committee will be made up of a voluntary board of directors.

The total cost of the project is esti- mated at under €2 million with the majority funded by the Office of the

Minster for Children. The remainder will be raised by the Clare Family Resource Centre (CFSC) through a series of fundraising initiatives.

The project was first mooted two years ago when it was established there was a need to expand the level of childcare services in Ennis. Mau- reen Keane of the CFSC said the cen- tre had received huge support from different organisations and groups.

‘There is a great need for a creche like this in Ennis. Since two years ago, when the idea was first put for- ward, we have received great support and it has made this project possible.

We received a lot of support from the HSE, Pobal and FAS,” she said.

The CFSC is currently based in Clonroad Business Park and provides creche services for 80 children.

Ms Keane added, “Our ethos is to provide an environment that is warm, safe and friendly, and supports and encourages children to be them- selves, grow and reach their potential at their own pace. And we will still be local and accessible to the town.”

Work at the site will commence in the next few weeks and should be completed in time for the creche to open in October.

JERRY Kitt will retire from partici- pating in the West Clare Mini Mara- thon this Sunday.

The determined Kilkee man has decided that the 10th anniversary of the marathon will be his swansong, although he has vowed to remain part of the organising committee.

This Sunday will be Jerry’s seventh mini marathon, which 1s no mean feat for a man who has suffered se- vere injuries in a car accident, a tu- mour and a stroke.

In 1982 he was injured in a car acci- dent in Darragh, followed by an op- eration for a brain tumour in 1985.

Just six months later he suffered a stroke.

Standing in his kitchen Jerry ex- plained how he learnt to live with the side affects of his illness and the af- termath of an operation that saw part of his skull removed.

He demonstrates how he some times looses his balance if walking alone but by merely having a lead, or someone or something to hold onto, he has the confidence and ability to keep walking securely. This is why his best friend and dog Radar was so helpful for so many years.

The loyal Alsatian escorted Jerry on his first four west Clare mini marathons. It was just before the

fifth marathon than the unfortunate canine broke his leg and Jerry had to look elsewhere for support.

Michael Gallagher from Doonbeg came to the rescue and walked with Jerry that year and the following year.

This year, for his swansong Jerry has encountered the assistance of friend and neighbour Tommy Mc- Grath. The inventive duo have taken Jerry’s wheelchair and attached pip- ing, using two plumbing fittings, to the back.

The detachable new “handle’ is high enough for Jerry to push the chair and will give him the confidence to walk the 10 km and finish the race. The

mini marathon expert expects to fin- ish in his usual time of three hours, accompanied by his son Michael and erandson David Kelly.

“IT am definitely going to pack it in this year,’ he told

THE schools of the Burren have continued to build on the regions blossoming reputation for scientific achievement with an excellent show- ing in last weeks BT Young Scien- tist Competition which took place in Dublin.

Students from Scoil Mhuire in En- nistymon, Mary Immaculate Sec- ondary School in Lisdoonvarna and Gort Community School all gained high marks from the judges in the RDS.

Indeed, Mary Immaculate were the second most successful school in the competition in terms of the amount of prizes that they brought home. With one first place, two second place, a third place and a number of

commendation under their belts, the students of Lisdoon did their school proud.

Sixth year, Laura Sims, took home the prize for first place in the Senior Social and Behavioural category with her examination of the importance of voter geography in elections.

Evelyn Linnane and Tess McGov- ern were awarded a second place for their project on tolerance and prejudice while Darren O’Gorman also came second in his category for his project on temporary limestone FEN Coh

Transition year student, David Crowe, was awarded third place in his category while there was also commendations for Ciara Griffin, Amie Barrett, Amy McGrath, Sine- ad McMahon, Catriona Callinan.

Meanwhile, the weekend proved very successful for transition year student Emma Hennessy who was awarded the SafeFood title and re- ceived a commendation for her KO) (em

In her project, Emma used ad- vanced scientific methods of testing to compare how many germs were present on cans of coke bought in a number of different locations.

The BT Young Scientist also proved to be a happy hunting ground for Gort Community School. In just their second year in the competition, the school put up another good show- ing this year with one project receiv- ing a commendation.

Leaving Cert James Mahon, fourth year Cian Brassil and third year Joe Murphy also received a green ribbon

for their project which attempted to investigate the possibility of using Zebra Mussels as an organic ferti- liser.

After the success of the “The Elec- tromagnetic Glove’ invented by Finn Krewer, Robin Flake, Michael Sell and James Mahon last year, Gort Community School continued to gain a place in the media at this year event.

Indeed, James Mahon, soimpressed the people from RTE that they asked him to present the section on the Ex- hibition for the DEN News2day pro- eramme.

More than 1400 projects from all over the country entered the BT Young Scientist Competition this year, with only 500 making it to the erand final in Dublin.

AFTER 10 long years, Father Ted is coming home. On February 28, 1998, comedy legend Dermot Morgan died suddenly, just days after completing the final episode in the third series of Fr Ted.

To mark the ten year anniversary of his passing, Fr Ted is returning to it’s spiritual home in north Clare next month for the second annual Ted Fest. The festival will this year be split between Inis Mor and Kil- fenora and will run from February 25 to March 3.

Kilfenora was one of the many places in north Clare used while shooting Fr Ted. Memorable scenes such as the Milk Float scene in Speed

3 and the Chinese Pub (Vaughan’s Bar) were all shot in the village.

“It happened by chance really. We had always been saying up here that we should bring Fr Ted back to Clare, to where it belongs. I’m a big Father Ted Fan, I know all the episodes in- side out, so the joined the Friends of Ted organisation. So people in the organisation kept asking where dif- ferent episodes were shot, and I was able to tell them,” said festival or- ganiser, Janet Cavanagh.

“So anyway my husband was in London at a rugby match and hap- pened to start talking to this guy called Fergal, who it turns out was the head of the Friends of Ted, the eroup who organise the festival in Inis Mor.

“SO we got in contact and decided to make one big event, involving both Inis Mor and Kilfenora, to mark the 10 year anniversary of Dermot Mor- gan’s death.”

The Kilfenora leg of this year’s fes- tival will kick off with Chinese Re- ception on Monday, February 25 in Vaughan’s Bar. Other events will in- clude the EcumeniCeili, a trad-disco, the Milk Float and banger parade, the Brick-fada, the first ever blondes only snakes and ladders competition, an evening with Father Ted writers Arthur Mathews and Graham Line- han and the all Ireland Elvis look- alike competition.

“IT wouldn’t want to give away too many secret about exactly how the events are going to take place,’ con-

tinued Janet. “It’s will be all about getting involved and we would ex- pect people to make the effort and get dressing up.”

Unfortunately, both legs of Ted Fest 2008 are already sold out. There will a large number of events which will be free and open to anyone who wants to come along.

Watch the Burren Section of the Clare People for weekly updates on Ted Fest and the 40 Days and 40 Night Milk Float challenge with Down Syndrome Ireland.

HUNDREDS of walkers are expect- ed in north Clare this May for the first ever walking marathon ever to take place in the county.

The Ballyvaughan-Fanore Walk- ing Club will host the Clare Burren Marathon Challenge on Sunday May 24, and organisers are expecting a treat for enthusiast who can experi- ence first hand some of Ireland most SURINDER OMA

The marathon will coincide with the Burren in Bloom Festival in Bal- ly vaughan and will finish in the in the Burren Coast Hotel in Ballyvaughan. It starts at 8am in the morning and

will go cross country through a va- riety of different landscapes before arriving in Fanore.

They return via Black Head and the Green Road and back into Bal- lyvaughan.

“It’s more of a challenge than a running marathon. Half of it will be done on road and half of it will be cross country. It’s the exact same distance as a marathon,” said Mary O’’ Brien of the Ballyvaughan-Fanore Walking Club.

“We will also have a half marathon route and a mini-marathon route available for people on the day.

‘In a marathon like the Dublin City Marathon you would have walker,

runners and elite runners and the route is always flat. This event is dif- ferent, you are talking about walking up hills and over many different ter- rains. It’s not an event for wearing runners, you would need a good pair of boots.”

The Ballyvaughan-Fanore Walking Club was set up in 2006 and has al- ready some 80 members drawn from all over the country.

The club was all the brian child of Kevin McCormack from Fanore who is a well seasoned walker himself. Now we have members from all over the place and organise walks each Sunday all year round,” continued Mary.

“For each walk we leave around 11 in the morning and we wouldn’t be back until half three or four. You bring some lunch with you and make a day out of it.

“We have walked in spots all around Clare and we will be going to Letterfrack and Kilkenny later in the year. The islands are a big thing for the Club. Each year so far we have gone for a walk to the Aran Islands in August. Last year we had 67 peo- ple in the Aran Islands. We walked on each of the islands throughout the weekend.”

For more information check out www.bally vaughanfanorewalking- club.com.

A QUESTION mark has been put on plans by All-Ireland winning Clare hurler, Niall Gilligan to press ahead with a €7 million housing develop- ment in Kilkee.

This follows local resident, Ray O’ Halloran lodging an appeal to An Bord Pleanala against a decision by Clare County Council to grant the Sixmilebridge man the go-ahead for the development.

Along with the Kilkee application, Mr Gilligan also has two separate planning applications for his home village of Sixmilebridge where he is seeking to construct 14 apartments, two shops and a pub.

The council has put those applica- tions on hold after seeking further in- formation on the two applications.

The Kilkee proposal faced a small number of objections and the council gave the go-ahead after Mr Gilligan lodged revised plans.

The site is zoned ‘residential’ and adjoins a third class road.

In his appeal, Mr O’Halloran of Dunlicky Road, Kilkee said he was shocked by the council decision as it showed no regard for the existing residents who are in situ for more than 25 years.

“The roadway is barely adequate for our needs at the moment and is certainly not sufficient for this pro- posed new development.

“T cannot believe that the additional information requested regarding the traffic was not addressed and that the traffic impact assessment was not carried out by a competent traffic management company.

The planning authority gave Mr Gilligan the go-ahead after ruling that the plan “would not seriously in- jure the amenities and would not be contrary to the proper planning and development”.

As part of the 38 conditions, the council ordered the omission of two homes. It is also seeking that Mr Gil- ligan pay €175,000 in levies towards public infrastructure and that the homes be the principal places of res1- dence of purchasers of the houses.

WITH a predicted 10 per cent de- crease in transatlantic traffic this April, chairman of the Shannon Airport Authority, Pat Shanahan be- lieves that the best way forward for the international airport 1s full inde- pendence as soon as possible.

The SAA chair told the Dail Trans- port Committee that Shannon Air- port’s maximum potential could only be achieved as an independent com- mercial State enterprise.

“We believe transatlantic traffic will decrease by 10 per cent this year, with fully open skies in April. However, we believe traffic will grow from that

level and have been proactive in try- ing to retain transatlantic carriers. A number of significant factors will help us to achieve our aims. We have intro- duced a winter incentive 50 per cent discount scheme on landing charges which has been well received by our year-round carriers,” he said.

This winter, there are four direct transatlantic services, as well as a fifth through Dublin Airport.

“Shannon Airport’s marketing role is to attract airlines,’ he added. ““We expect the Open Skies tourism mar- keting fund will help the marketing activities of those agencies to make it attractive for US customers to travel to the west of Ireland.”

Mr Shanahan said the full imple- mentation of the US customs and border protection (CBP) facility in Shannon, which provides immigra- tion and customs clearance, will also be an advantage.

During the period 2000 to 2004, traffic growth at the airport stagnated while costs escalated, but since the ap- pointment of the board of the authority in September 2004 and with the active Support and investment of the Dublin Airport Authority, traffic has grown by 50 per cent, a major restructuring programme has been implemented, annual cost savings of over €10 mil- lion have been secured and the airport is now trading profitably.

Mr Shanahan said, “We believe that if the airport is transferred debt-free and with finance to meet the initial capital infrastructure deficit, it will be able to operate profitably and cov- er its Ongoing capital requirements from cash flow. This means the air- port will be financially viable as an independent entity.”

He added that the key elements of the Shannon Airport plan submitted to the Departments of Transport and Finance last December have been independently validated and clearly demonstrate that the airport will be viable and profitable as a standalone business in the next 10 years and be- yond.

DECLAN Collier, CEO of the Dub- lin Airport Authority, came under strong criticism at the Dail Transport Committee as he defended his deci- sion not to inform the Shannon board of Aer Lingus’s plans to pull the Hea- throw route.

The DAA CEO said that when the Department of Transport contacted him in mid-June about Aer Lingus’s plan, the information was imparted in “strict confidence”’.

“At the time, Aer Lingus was the subject of a hostile takeover bid from Ryanair and it was critical that this

information was dealt with on a con- fidential basis,’ he said.

Clare Deputy Timmy Dooley (FF) asked, “What kind of action would Mr Collier take if he became aware that somebody was giving considera- tion to terminating a service 1f the sit- uation related to an airline other than Aer Lingus to Dublin Airport?”

“If I was given the information in the same circumstances as I received the information on Aer Lingus, I would have treated it in exactly the same way, said a defiant Mr Collier.

Deputy Dooley, however, did not accept the response.

“I do not think it 1s fair to view it

on the basis that the DAA is part of a large State organisation and that a hostile bid was in place. There are lines of demarcation. The Dublin Airport Authority 1s responsible for developing business at the airports. This was a commercial airline in a privatised environment and surely the lines of demarcation would not have put Mr Collier in that position?”’ he said.

Senator Shane Ross accused the DAA of regarding Shannon as its future competition and the news that Aer Lingus was withdrawing the Heathrow flight “was music to the authority’s ears because it would land

Shannon further in the manure”.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Shannon Airport Authority, Pat Shanahan, said Aer Lingus had been offered the same deal as Ryanair as far back as 2004.

Deputy Pat Breen (FG) asked if any incentive was offered after the Rya- nair deal?

According to Mr Shanahan, the air- line was made aware that, on the ba- sis of our restructuring programme in particular, costs at the airport would decrease.

‘Aer Lingus was aware of that but never engaged with us on a detailed level about it,” he said.