Month: March 2008

A GROUP of transition-year stu- dents from the CBS in Ennistymon will represent Clare in the National Mini-Company of the Year competi- tion after winning the county title in SHWE NIM (oe) @

The group, who put together a DVD of scenic scenes from north Clare entitled Iomhanna an Chlair, saw off some competition to take the Clare County Council Enterprise Board Student Enterprise 2008.

“The project is a DVD of still photographs from the north Clare region. The images are set to tradi- tional music and divided into differ- ent sections for the different areas or the county,” said Stephen Conway from Ennistymon.

Each member of the group took a number of photographs representing some of the nicest scenes from their own area.

‘Most of us are from different areas from around north Clare. We had two from Corofin, two from Lahinch one from Ennistymon and one from Lis- doonvarna. So we had a fairly wide knowledge of the area. And then we got the tourist attractions as well like the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren. Each of us took the pictures from our own area,” said Cathal Malone from Bybee

The best pictures were then select- ed and compiled into a DVD.

“We do photography in school so we have a good idea of how to get into it. It was tough enough but we had digital cameras so the quality

was very good. Putting it onto DVD was probably the hardest bit of it,” said Joe Queally of Ennistymon.

To add that extra touch, two of the students composed a number of trad tunes to act as a backdrop for the im- ages. “We are all from around differ- ent parts of the county so we knew a lot of the nice places which would make good pictures. Keith had a spe- GEV B Te CooKe BOOM BE-LONIBCO)IT-T BONE CemNORYYo decided that we wanted to take the photographs and use the musicals tal- ents that we had as well,’ said Declan O’ Loughlin from Lisdoonvarna.

“Declan did one track and I did five others. The first time we tried record- ing them, the quality was fairly bad SO we gave it a second go and that was much better. The music was all original and we played the whole lot

ourselves,’ said Keith O’Loughlin from Corofin.

The group will now do on to repre- sent Clare in the National Finals in Tullamore on May 8, but in the mean time they hope to keep sales kicking over.

“We got it into places like the Falls Hotel where a lot of tourists go. We sold it a good bit around Ennisty- mon and we are hoping to get it into the Cliffs for the start of the tourist season,’ said William Nealon from Sorcery

MVNO ehEe)e ficially launched by Fr Sean Sexton from Kilnamona last week, 1s a col- lection of the favourite prayers of some of Ireland’s biggest celebrities. The transition-year girls wrote to more than 100 people and received responses from more than 30, who

also described why they liked their particular prayer.

“A school in Athenry put together a similar project for the millennium and after reading that we were in- spired to use that as our fundraising idea,’ said religion teacher Joanne O’Brien.

“It’s not just a prayer book. Peo- ple were asked to contribute their favourite prayer, reflection or piece of scripture and say why they like to and why it is important to them.

“We wrote away to about 100 celeb- rities and about 30 of them responded to us. We have Christy Moore, Miri- am O Callaghan, Joe Duffy, George

Hook, Anthony Foley, a few Clare hurlers, the four TDs in Clare, Dana and even Daniel O’Donnell.

“A lot of effort and work went into it and all of this was done by the transition years.”

All the money raised from the book will go to help fund the work carried out by Pat and Neilus O’Doherty who spent the last year working with children of Pemba in Tanzania.

The O’Dohertys are both retired teachers from the locality who have become involved in many charitable projects Overseas.

Their work in Pemba was chroni- cled monthly last year in the Burren

People.

“We had all wanted to do some fund raising for Pat and Neilus. I had worked with Neilus over in the CBS for the last two years and I knew him since I was a little child through his involvement in athletics. So once I heard that they were going out to Tanzania, I knew that we had to do something,’ continued Joanne.

“The book is going to be on sale in the Lahinch Bookshop, the Friary in Ennis, here in the school and at local A aTED Ke ele O seme lUbANe rhyme

The book retails at €10 each with two available for €15. For more, contact the school on 065 7071224.

ANGLERS are being asked to help scientists to trace any remaining fish of two species which have not been seen for some time. Scientists are be- ginning to fear that Lough Derg has lost two species – gilaroo trout and pollan – both of which have inhabited the lake since the last Ice Age. Shannon Regional Fisheries Board Marine biologist, Dr Fran Igoe has said that there is a real possibil- ity that gilaroo trout exist in Lough

Derg, or that they did until recently.

Appeals to anglers over the past two years to report any catches of the fish have produced nothing.

Despite co-operation in trying to find the two species from the angling clubs in Lough Derg, there have been just two pollan netted as part of a fish biodiversity study of the lake.

The scientific co-ordinator of the study, Dr Igoe, is trying to solve why the stocks of once plentiful pollan in Lough Derg have declined.

The fish species is found only in Ire-

land’s five large lakes, and stocks in Lough Derg, Lough Ree and Lough Erne have seriously declined.

The situation has become so bad that a Local Area Species Action Plan has been drawn up by the Clare Biodiversity Forum.

Dr Igoe explained that the neces- sary steps include investigations into the possible impact of hydro-power, pollution and non-native organisms on fish numbers.

Eleven angling clubs which use the lakes and the Lough Derg Sub-Aqua

Club have been supporting the re- search.

“This is very significant as there is no other animal except perhaps the Irish hare, that comes close to this kind of uniqueness when it comes to our wildlife heritage in Ireland,” said Dr Igoe.

Any anglers who come across what they suspect might be a gilaroo trout are being asked to take and freeze a muscle tissue sample so that Dr Igoe can test it to see if the species still OIA

The book, by Jim Corbett, tells the story of the ferocious battle by Re- publican volunteers to hold the bar- racks at Clancy Strand during five days of the Civil War in July 1922.

The officer commanding Clancy

Strand barracks against this bom- bardment was Captain Cornelius McNamara of ‘A’ Company, 2nd Battalion, Mid Limerick Brigade, but known to his men as Connie Mackey.

Between July 15 and 20, 1922 the Republican held barracks was re- peatedly bombarded by sniper, ma- chine gun and mortar fire by Free State troops located at Arthur’s Quay, and lead by Commandant General Michael Brennan, a native

of Meelick.

He led a fierce onslaught against the men led by Connie Mackey. When that failed to dislodge them, the Free State unit turned an 18 pounder Ar- tillery Gun on the barracks. This was the only time a siege gun was used in Limerick since the siege of 1691. Mackey was told to surrender the barracks or be responsible for the loss of life. His response was he would not surrender “while he still had ammunition”.

Even when the four foot front walls had been breached by the nineteen Shells fired…he remained resolute. But they were eventually surrounded after Free State troops also began an assault from behind the barracks.

Only when he realised that further resistance would lead to the loss of the lives of his men did Connie Mackey surrender. But when he did, an ever gracious Commandant Gen- eral Brennan complimented him on the magnificent defence he put up.

IT was all green action at Ogonnel- loe National School last week, when rosy-cheeked pupils and staff braved the elements to plant apple trees.

Last Thursday, members of the Irish Seed Savers Association (ISSA) came to the school to plant three apple trees under a grant scheme, which is a joint venture between the Department of Agriculture, under the Genetic Conservation Fund, and the ISSA.

“Under the scheme, funding has been set aside for planting native ap- ple trees in schools,’ School Secre- tary, Joanne Allen said. “The staff,

pupils and parents really enjoyed this event,’ she added.

Eleanor Walsh, Chairperson of the school’s parents association said the event “continues in the green schools theme and it allows the children be more aware of their own contribution to the environment, which 1s not in- significant. Every time they recycle, pick up rubbish or even bring their lunch wrapper home they are making a difference and making the world a better, cleaner place for everyone.”

The theme of the planting day links into the natural environment and Irish heritage and is linked to key strands of the primary SESE (Social, Environmental and Scientific Edu-

cation) and SPHE (Social, Personal and Health Education) curriculum.

While youngsters taking part in the planting got a birds eye view of where their delicious apples come from, the event will continue to promote the school’s healthy eating policy as the trees – and the children – grow.

The ISSA is a voluntary organisa- tion dedicated to the location and preservation of traditional varieties of fruit and vegetables. In the early 1990’s ISSA began a search for the last surviving traditional Irish varie- ties of apple.

They have now found more than 140 different types of Irish apple trees which are all thriving in their

orchards and where they were origi- nally found – in people’s gardens. Native apples are more intense in flavour than those now grown com- mercially.

Special membership offers are available to support the work of the ISSA and members get discounts on any seeds and trees they buy.

For details, contact Aine Ni Fh- latharta 061 921866, the education officer at the Capparoe site, Scariff, for more information on ISSA.

EXHIBITIONS and demonstrations of age-old skills will bring prehis- toric Ireland to life at the Clare Mu- Nol Uuse brat e eee

Heritage Education week will run at the Clare Museum from April 8- 11. The main purpose of the four-day event 1s to generate greater interest and encourage appreciation of Ire- land’s heritage in a practical and pu- Um Rule ICUAaae-NA

The event coincides with the dis- play at the museum of a rare 2500 year old Iron wooden bowl.

The bowl was discovered during excavations along the N18 bypass and the N85 western relief road.

Heritage education week kicks off

on Tuesday, April 8 when specialists Simon and Maria O’Dwyer will give a presentation and demonstration of prehistoric musical instruments of Ireland. Simon has been employed as a heritage specialist by the INTO and the Heritage Council for the past seven years. He has conducted stud- ies into prehistoric and medieval mu- sical instruments in Ireland.

One of the highlights of this event will be Simon’s playing of replica’s of Bronze Age and Iron Age horns.

Three such original Bronze Age horns are displayed in the museum and the event represents for the stu- dents present a unique opportunity to hear and experience these sounds not usually heard in these parts for over 2,000 years.

On Thursday, April 10, students from Clare will get the opportunity to witness a demonstration of the traditional Traveller craft of copper Seon ioperee

The demonstration will be per- formed by members of St. Joseph’s Traveller Training Centre in Ennis.

The copper craft group at the Train- ing centre have been showcasing their skills at festivals and events around Ireland for the past two years.

In March 2007, the centre earned national recognition, when three members showcased the art of cop- per craft at the fourth annual Cork lifelong learning festival.

Last year, the centre also donated seven copper items including buck- ets, pots and scuttles to the Cork

public museum for a permanent dis- eA

It was the first time a permanent display of Traveller culture had been showcased in a national museum.

Metalcraft instructor Brian Cros- sen explained the group were de- lighted to be part of Heritage Educa- tion Week.

“We were out in Barefield Nation- al School during the week doing a similar demonstration. It was a good idea by the school because it’s great for the kids to see the demonstration up close.

“We are going to be doing the same thing for Heritage Week, in the mu- seum, so yeah, I think it’s a good idea because it brings to life for the jae Kae

A NEW report highlights the contri- bution of primary schools to the fight against litter in Ennis.

Ennis Town Council launched the Ennis Environmental Challenge in July 2007 with the aim of building on Ennis’s success in the National Tidy Towns competition.

One of the principal aims of the scheme was to generate commu- nity wide responsibility and owner- ship for the appearance and tidiness of Ennis. Along with community eroups and residents associations, schools in Ennis also took up the challenge.

Their efforts were rewarded at the Best Kept Schools competition where first prize was awarded to En- nis National School, second prize to Scoul Chriost Ri and third place to St Anne’s school. Both the Holy Family Senior School and the junior school were highly commended for their ef- forts.

The council’s report praised the fantastic work done by the schools and stated “as well as undertaking amenity projects in school grounds, children are now involved on an on- going basis on litter patrols within school grounds and various projects were undertaken during the year”’.

The report states, “The Best Kept

Schools competition continued to foster greater environmental aware- ness and education amongst primary school children which was evident es- pecially among those whose schools had acquired green flag status.”

The report also reveals that Ennis Town Council spent €784,000 on street cleaning in 2007 and that the council’s environmental programme had expenditure of €468,000.

According to the report, the en- vironment section of the council received a total of 570 complaints, enquiries related to litter and envi- ronment in 2007. 87 abandoned ve- hicle notices were served on vehicles on public spaces within Ennis and 35

of these were removed.

At the March meeting of Ennis Town Council, Fianna Fail council- lor Joe Reidy said a problem existed with cars for sale on public roads.

Town Clerk Eddie Power said, “If people persist to do that, then it is a prosecutable offence. We will con- sider our options and putting up signs to remind people is one of them.”

Fine Gael councillor Mary Coote Ryan said more needed to be done to remove litter from laneways in En- eh

Fianna Fail councillor Tom Glynn paid tribute to former Tidy Towns chairman Donal Griffin and congrat- ulated new chairman Noel Crowley.

IT’S a well-known saying but now one Ennis man has found a way for married couples to physically tie the knot.

Sean O’Shaughnessy designed the Ennis wedding knot and is hoping that his idea will become part of wedding tradition.

The design is made up of a centre knot known as a true lover’s knot or cross knot or the shamrock knot.

This is encircled by a ring of twelve knots known as knots of faithful love and eternal friendship.

The last knot is made up of two

half-knots which, when the cords are pulled, unite to complete the circle.

Sean, a crafts enthusiast, had the idea after he went to the wedding of ARU(ONCe

“I got to thinking about the ceremo- ny and I suppose the whole thing of tying the knot and I though it would be nice for couples to have a way of physically tying the knot. It could be part of the wedding ceremony. It could be used to mark wedding anni- versaries. It’s quite a romantic thing and people see the knot in different FA

There has already been interest in Sean’s design from couples in Clare,

Mayo and Galway.

The knot is assembled and hand designed by Sean at his home in To- bartascain, Ennis. The knot itself is placed within a wooden frame. Some couples are looking for customised designs, with one Galway couple asking for the knot to be designed in the colours of their local GAA club.

‘There has been a good response. Everybody I have talked to about it so far has been impressed with it. We’ve got about 12 sold already and I’ve had people from Mayo and Gal- way asking about it. At the moment, there are only a few types and de- signs, but we are going to have cus-

tomised designs. Some people are looking for diamonds, or to have a silver case. I’ve had one couple who heard about it, and want it done in their club’s colours.”

Sean hopes that his design will, over time, develop a similar reputa- tion to the world-famous Claddagh Ring. “It would be great if it became as well known as the Claddagh ring in the future. It would be a great thing for Ennis. It’s been popular so far, so hopefully that will continue.”

SHANNON International Airport has come under fire from Amnesty International, which has outlined how the Clare airport played its role in the extraordinary rendition of a Yemeni man.

The human rights organisation de- tailed how a plane, which transport- ed Khaled al-Maqtari from Baghdad where he was “arrested” to Kabul to a CIA “black site” prison, was refu- elled in Shannon just hours before.

Mr al-Magtari was held without charge in secret CIA prisons for over two and a half years.

Amnesty International Irish Section Executive Director Colm O’Gorman said, “There can no longer be any doubt that Shannon is being used by those involved in kidnapping and torture, dressed up as part of a war OE uKOe

“After nine days of interrogation in Abu Ghraib (Baghdad), Khaled al-Maqtari was taken by plane to a secret CIA detention facility in Af-

ghanistan, where he was held for a further three months. Flight records obtained by Amnesty International corroborated that a jet operated by a CIA front company left Baghdad International Airport nine days af- ter his arrest, heading for Khwaja Rawash airport in Kabul.

“This same jet, registered at the time as N379P, had left Shannon Airport on 20 January 2004 en route to Baghdad where it collected Mr al- Maatari,’ Mr O’Gorman said.

“In essence, Shannon was used as

a refuelling stop by the individuals who ‘disappeared’ Mr al-Maatari to Kabul. It is clear that Ireland serves as a Staging area for these kinds of operations, which constitute some of the worst kinds of human rights abuses,” he said.

Amnesty International called in the Irish Government to put in place a system to monitor flights through Shannon and a regime of inspections to ensure that Ireland was not being used to facilitate kidnapping and tor- ture.

A spokesperson for the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern said the Government was totally opposed to the practice of extraordinary ren- eb TaCeyen

The Government said it was satis- fied with specific assurances from the US authorities, including from US President George W Bush and Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, that no prisoners had been trans- ferred through Irish airports, nor would they be without Irish Govern- ment permission.

THE pupils attending a Shannon primary school have engaged in a project aimed at promoting active living in the local community.

The fifth and sixth class students at St Conaire’s school challenged them- selves to a project, in an effort to put something back into the community.

Helped by their teachers, the stu- dents participated in a project which highlights active living. Through the project, they raised €1,500 to provide a defibrillator for their local GAA club, Wolfe Tones na Sionna.

Teacher Audrey Cleary explained that the children were very keen to engage in the project.

“This project was initiated by the children, to show appreciation to their local club, in recognition of the commitment and dedication by the club members in engaging, mentor- ing and training the children,’ she PALO

The main fundraising initiative was a ‘sportathon’ which was or- ganised last week, during which the children participated in a variety of sporting activities over a number of hours. The children all got sponsor-

ship from their families, for the spor- ee eLOy OF

In addition to the sportathon the children of fifth and sixth classes recorded a selection of their own Christmas carols onto a CD and sold this locally.

“This entire challenge was a very worthwhile project. It generated a sense of achievement and fulfillment among the children while at the same time the sportathon promoted an awareness of a healthy lifestyle,” said Ms Cleary.

“The children’s efforts were whole- heartedly embraced and encouraged

by the families in the school commu- nity. The challenge was substantially supported and ensured the children achieved their target of raising €1,500. The Celtic Tiger may be a thing of the past, but the Celtic Wolf adorned in green and white is alive, active and spirited in Shannon,” she laughed.