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FRIENDS of a Polish man who died in tragic circumstances in Ennis earlier this year turned out in large numbers on Friday night to celebrate his memory.

Over 80 people attended a memorial soccer match in Ballycasey between an international selection of players and local club Rineanna Rovers.

The charity match was held in memory of the late Robert Godzisz.

Mr Godzisz, a factory worker who lived in Ennis since 2005, died following a suspected suicide in Ennis in June, four days before his 33rd birthday.

The father of one was a popular figure and respected figure in the community and was known for his love of soccer. He was actively involved in anti-racism campaigns and through his association with the Clare Intercultural Network, helped found the Ennis International soccer team.

Robert worked at the Organic Lens factory in Ennis.

A total of 52 players: Irish, Polish, Slovakian, French and Filipino – all united by soccer and their friendship with Robert – were involved in the game on Friday, which was organised by the Robert’s former club Rineanna Rovers.

Marcin Piotrowski, a friend and former work colleague of Robert, said the purpose of the game was to raise money to cover soccer fees for Robert’s 11-year-old son in Poland.

“From now on every year we are going to play a memorial game,” Marcin explained.

Marcin said he hoped the game would also help highlight the issue of suicide and generate discussion on how it can be addressed.

“In the last few months, two Polish people took their own lives. Our community is shocked about it because everyone knows them well. There are around 2,000 Polish people here in Clare and we all know each other well. People are quite close. For everyone, it was quite a shock. That’s the reason why people are trying to help as much as possible,” he said.

“He was a very important member of our community, always in- volved in soccer, in preparation of the games and building international teams, fighting against racism,” said Marcin of his friend.

THE Cliffs of Moher have been selected as the favourite place in Ireland to bring foreign visitors.

According to the results of the fifth National Heritage sur vey, more than 30 per cent of people say that they would take tourists to see the world famous tour ist at t raction.

Indeed, the Cliffs of Moher would seem to have developed a cer t ai n addictive qualit y for visitors with 22 per cent of those sur veyed saying they visited the Cliffs more than 10 ti mes this year.

The Cliffs of Moher have also been identified as Ireland’s most scar y heritage site with 79 per cent of people admit ting that it is t he heritage site they are most afraid of.

This news comes as t he Cliffs of Moher reveals that it is on course to at tract more than one million tourists to Clare this year – the largest number of visitors since records began.

“It’s great that t he nation are continuing to t ake enor mous pride in our herit age sites and landmarks and enjoying showing these off to overseas visitors. Our heritage sites are vital to the tourism industr y in Ireland but also in defining where we have come from and t he r ich legacy we hold i n Ireland,” said David Lane of Ecclesiastical Ireland.

“The research highlights the need for heritage proper t y owners to continue to protect the sites to ensure t hese remain prominent in t he lives of Irish people.”

Newgrange in County Meat h was voted as Ireland’s favourite heritage site, while al most all of those sur veyed, 99 per cent, rate Ireland’s heritage as ver y impor tant to the tourism indust ry.

A tot al of 46 per cent of people believe t here should be st ricter laws gover ning the protection of heritage sites, while 98 per cent of people thi nk t he Gover nment needs to conti nue to provide tax incentives to heritage proper ty owners regarding the maintenance and upkeep of t hei r heritage proper ty.

THE PEOPLE of Liscannor, Doolin and all of North Clare are in mourning today following the tragic death of local man TJ McDonagh.

TJ, who was 38-years old, passed away on Wednesday evening after a tragic accident while working on his family farm in Moher.

This is the third time that tragedy has touched the McDonagh family with TJ’s brother Declan losing his life in a motorcycle accident in Lisdoonvarna in 2002, while his uncle also died in a motorcycle tragedy in the 1960s.

TJ’s funeral took place at St Brigid’s Church Liscannor on Saturday, on the same day that his brothers 12 year anniversary mass was due to take place.

Mr McDonagh, who was an agricultural contractor by trade, was responsible for much of the restoration work which took place in the area following this winter’s devastating storms.

Indeed, TJ cleared the devastated Doolin Pier on three separate occasions in January and February, restoring access for the ferry operators and Doolin Unit of the Irish Coastguard.

TJ was also a great lover of the Aran Island and was planning to visit Inis Oirr for the curragh races this weekend. A number of boats servicing Doolin pier flew at half mast over the weekend in his honour.

“He was a great person and a great friend of everyone on the boats,” said Donnie Garrihy of the Doolin to Aran Ferries.

“He was a great worker, a great businessman and a real man.

“He came to our assistance on three separate times over the winter when the storms hit Doolin. He will be missed.”

TJ passed away while he was fitting a wheel at his family farm on Wednesday evening.

TJ’s father Tommy heard a loud bang just after 7.30pm and ran and discover his son, who had sustained a serious head injury understood to have been caused by the wheel exploding.

An ambulance from Ennistymon along with a second ambulance and rapid response advanced paramedic unit from Ennis were sent to the scene. Gardaí and a local doctor also responded to the emergency call.

He was airlifted to Galway University Hospital where he died shortly afterwards.

He is survived by his mother Mary, father Tommy as well as his brother Brian and sisters Fiona, Stella and Marian.

THE merger of Credit Union branches in Clarecastle, Ennis and Lissycasey will see no change in the day-today operation of their local branch, according to Credit Union chairpersons. St Francis Credit Union, Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union and Fergus Credit Union are to amalgamate in a process called a ‘Transfer of Engagements’.

In their addresses to members, the chairpersons of Lissycasey and Clarecastle branches say they are “confident” that the transfer of en- gagements will be an “extremely positive development” for members.

“The enlarged credit union will have offices in Ennis, Lissycasey, Kildysart, Kilmihil, Clarecastle, Tulla and Newmarket on Fergus. Members will see no change in the dayto-day operations of the credit union. Members savings and loan accounts will be unaffected by the transfer,” they state.

Madeleine McCarthy, Chairperson of Fergus Credit Union, Lissycasey, said the board took the decision to amalgamate with branches in Ennis and Clarecastle in the “belief that the interests of all our members will be best served by a combined entity providing enhanced services”.

Kevin Collins, Chairperson of Ss Peter and Paul Credit Unions, Clarecastle, states the board of directors “has been engaged in a process of seeking a credit union to partner to enhance services currently provided by your credit union”.

“I am happy to report to the membership that your credit union has approached St Francis Credit Union Limited, Ennis, to form such an alliance,” Mr Collins explains.

On completion of the Transfer of Engagements, members of Fergus Credit Union and Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union will automatically become members of St Francis Credit Union and will be entitled to avail of the range of services and benefits provided by St Francis Credit Union.

Details of the amalgamation are outlined in a document circulated to members.

In a statement under Section 130 (2) of the Credit Union Act 1997 (as amended), St Francis Credit Union Limited states, no payments to members of the three branches concerned is proposed in connection with the Transfer of Engagements.

The document states that “Staff at St Francis Credit Union Limited, Fergus Credit Union limited and Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union Limited have been fully informed of all aspects of the Transfer of Engagement and are very much involved in the merger process.”

Further details of the merger will be outlined to members at information meetings next month. Meetings will take place at Temple Gate Hotel on September 1 for members of St Francis Credit Union; St Mary’s Hall, Lissycasey, on September 1 for Fergus Credit Union and The Inn at Dromoland on September 1 for members of Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union. All meetings start at 8pm.

AS MANY as 11 children under 14 years old were killed or seriously injured on Clare roads during the six years between 2006 and 2012.

New research from the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has revealed that one child was killed and 10 children were seriously injured on the county roads during this period.

The report was published by the RSA along with Electric Ireland as children and teenagers from all over the country prepare to go back to school.

For the fifth year running the two organisations will distribute 85, 500 high visibility vests to every child starting school this year.

The vests will be included in the RSA’s ‘Back to School’ road safety packs which will be sent to primary schools nationwide over the coming months.

The RSA is urging parents, guardians and teachers to make road safety a priority as 13 children under the age of 14 have died in the first eight months of this year on Irish roads.

In 2013, six children lost their lives, meaning the number of child casualties so far this year has already exceeded the total number of child deaths in 2013.

Six of the children who died on our roads this year were pedestrians, six were car passengers and one was a quad bike user.

A report on child casualties between 1997-2012 found that one in three of the child fatalities in this period were not wearing seatbelts or a child restraint.

This report showed that 44 per cent of children who were killed in the 15year period were pedestrians and 42 per cent of children who were killed or seriously injured were passengers in a car.

According to the RSA the peak time for children to be killed on roads is late afternoon/early evening, between 4pm and 5.59pm and during the summer months of April to August.

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Paschal Donohoe encouraged parents and teachers to renew their commitment to educating young road users about road safety.

“The increase in child casualties on our roads this year is incredibly worrying, after many years of seeing year-on-year decreases.

“Attitudes to road safety are formed at a young age and we would urge parents and teachers to continue to prioritise teaching our youngest and most vulnerable road-users how to stay safe on the roads.” Monica GALLAGHER(née nee McTague) , Cappahard Cott age, Tulla Road, Ennis. Peacefully at her home. Monica. Laid to rest in Drumcliffe Cemetery. Donations if desired to the National Breast Cancer Research Institute Galway or the Samaritans. May she rest in peace. James J PEARSE , Cappakee, O’Briensbridge. Peacefully at Millbrae Nursing Home Newport. Funeral Mass in Bridgetown today(Tuesday) at 12 noon withburialafterwardsin the church grounds. May he rest in peace.

THE cash strapped Rape Crisis Centre in Clare is forced to close its doors from Monday for one month.

The service that provides counselling and services to victims of rape and sexual abuse throughout the county has been forced to take this action due to lack of funds.

The Rape Crisis Mid West, of which Clare is part, made the decision to close the Nenagh centre during the month of July and Clare in September when it was apparent it could not make up the annual shortfall of € 120,000.

Verena Tarpey of the Rape Crisis Mid West explained, “We are part funded by the Government to carry out our services – the service in the entire mid-west, taking in the three centres including Limerick, Clare and Tipperary cost approximately € 450,000 – we face an annual shortfall of approximately € 120,000 which we must bridge by fundraising.

“We receive no government funding to service the overheads connected with the Ennis centre and must fundraise locally to raise this deficit. We did not foresee us being in a position to bridge this significant shortfall this year and made the decision to temporarily close Ennis in September, Nenagh in June and provide a skeletal service in Limerick for the summer,” she said.

As well as dealing with a financial shortfall the service is also working with a waiting list of 30 people who are in need of long-term counselling.

Those on the list must wait approximately three to four months for medium- to long-term support and counselling, and that timeline has now been extended again as a result of the temporary forced closure of Clare’s only centre.

Ms Tarpey said it was important to highlight the fact that despite the financial challenges facing the organisation, emergency cases and crisis calls would be dealt with immediately.

“It is important to distinguish this from crisis support that we provide where no person will be turned away. For example, if a person rings our centre looking for support in the immediate aftermath of a rape, either he or she will be seen immediately, often within an hour or a couple of hours. Likewise, if a person rings us in relation to past abuse and are in crisis at present, we will offer them support within hours or days. All those on the waiting list are monitored and contacted and are offered up to six weeks of support counselling while they are on the waiting list,” she said.

Meanwhile the Sexual Assault Treatment Unit (SATU) in the midwest, will continue to run uninterrupted.

This is an out of hours service for 12 hours from 6pm.

The unit is a forensic facility where someone who has been raped or sexually assaulted can be forensically examined.

In the mid-west, the SATU unit is activated by the Garda only when a report is made and is not a walk-in unit. Rape Crisis Midwest provide a trained volunteer to attend the forensic examination when called.

“We have a roster of volunteers every night of the year. The role of the SATU volunteer from a rape crisis perspective is to provide crisis support to victim/survivor on initial attendance to the SATU,” said Ms Tarpey.

“We are also there to support victim before, during and after the forensic examination to provide support, advocacy and information and the reporting, examination and SATU process to liaise with the forensic examiner, nurse and any attending garda on the person’s behalf.”

A MAN has appeared in court charged in connection with a robbery in Ennis town centre last month.

James Connors (20), who is originally from the Shannon area, appeared before Ennis District Court yesterday.

Mr Connors, who is stated of being of no fixed abode, is accused of committing a robbery at Riverwalk, Woodquay, Ennis, on July 22. He is alleged to have robbed a HTC 1 mobile phone worth € 600 from a man.

He initially was brought before Ennis District Court earlier this month and the case came back before Judge Grainne O’Neill yesterday.

Garda Inspector John O’Sullivan told Judge O’Neill that an issue concerning an address for Mr Connors had to be resolved for bail to be finalised.

Judge O’Neill rose for a few minutes to allow gardaí check out the address supplied by Mr Connors.

When the case resumed, Insp O’Sullivan said the address – given in court as Caherdavin Meadows, Old Cratloe Road, Limerick – was acceptable to gardaí.

Mr Connors was granted bail sub- ject to a number of conditions.

He was ordered to reside at the stated address; sign on at Henry Street Garda Station in Limerick and observe a curfew between the hours of 12 midnight and 8am.

Mr Connors was ordered not to have any contact with the alleged victim or witnesses in the case.

He was further ordered to stay out of Ennis except for court appearances and pre-arranged consultations with his solicitor.

Defence solicitor Tara Godfrey requested the conditions be amended to allow her client collect a social welfare payment in Ennis.

She said Mr Connors is currently in the process of transferring collection of his dole money from Ennis to Limerick.

Insp O’Sullivan said this was acceptable to the gardaí. Judge O’Neill granted bail and remanded Mr Connors on bail to appear again at Ennis District Court on September.

Addressing the accused, she told Mr Connors that any breach of bail would be treated by the court as a serious matter.

Judge O’Neill warned Mr Connors that if he were to breach the terms of his bail, he could be brought back to court and potentially be taken into custody.

CREDIT Union branches in Clarecastle, Ennis and Lissycasey are to amalgamate under a new arrangement that involves over 31,000 customers.

St Francis Credit Union (Ennis), Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union (Clarecastle) and Fergus Credit Union (Lissycasey) are to join together in process called a ‘Transfer of Engagements’.

The three credit unions have a combined membership of 31,180. The combined assets of the three branches total € 151,484,415 million.

The move is being undertaken “in the spirit of co-operation to enhance efficiency and to work together to manage regulatory requirements”, according to Raymond O’Mahony of St Francis Credit Union.

The chairpersons of all three credit unions say the amalgamtion will have no impact on the day-to-day operations and that offices will be retained in all three areas.

Details of the amalgamation are contained in a document circulated last week to credit union members.

Chairman of St Francis Credit Union, Raymond O’Mahony says the three branches have been engaged in a process of negotiations over the past 18 months.

“All three credit unions have examined the benefits of coming together in the spirit of co-operation to enhance efficiency and to work together to manage regulatory requirements with the main objective of enhancing service provision to valued members at the credit unions,” he said.

“Following a considerable amount of work by the three credit unions, we are joining in what is known as a ‘Transfer of Engagements’. This will, we trust, result in a strong, vibrant credit union with an increased membership.”

Mr O’Mahony says he is “confident that the decision to work together with Fergus Credit Union and Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union will result in a strong credit union that will continue to provide efficient and relevant services to the combined membership. We appreciate the loyalty and support that our members have shown to their Credit Union down the years.”

The Transfer of Engagements document states that it is expected that legal requirements relating to the Transfer of Engagements will be completed in the coming month.

An extract from a meeting of the board on August 18 states that the board of directors of St Francis Credit Union resolved to undertake the transfer of engagements of Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union Limited and Fergus Credit Union Limited in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Credit Union Act 1997 (as amended).

The assets and membership of the three branches is as follows:

St Francis Credit Union, Ennis € 100,858,082 (assets), 20,552 (members); Fergus Credit Union, Lissycasey – € 33,018,876 (assets), 4,760 (members); Ss Peter and Paul Credit Union, Clarecastle – € 17,607,457 (assets), 5,868 (members).

THE drinking water ban was finally lifted in Kildysart after four weeks and the people of Corofin and Ruan can once again use the water from their taps following a one-week ban.

Approximately 1,500 people were affected by the water restrictions imposed on July 29, by Clare County Council, acting as agents on behalf of Irish Water.

A further 1,800 were affected when a similar ban was imposed in Corofin town and its environs, Ruan village and the area served by the Killeen Group Water Scheme on August 14.

While the Killeen scheme is still not considered safe, customers are now being provided their water from the Dysart-Toonagh Group Water Scheme and Ennis Public Water Supply Scheme.

On Friday, following consultation with the HSE, the council confirmed the removal of drinking water restrictions that were affecting 3,300 customers in Kildysart, Coolmeen, Corofin and Ruan.

Kildysart Public Water Supply scheme had been advised as a precautionary measure that water on the scheme was not suitable for drinking due to the discolouration of the water caused by increased Manganese levels.

“However, extensive testing of the water provided by the Kildysart Public Water Supply scheme has shown that the water being supplied continues to meet the drinking water standards. All water restrictions have been lifted as a result,” a council spokes- person said.

Likewise water from the Kileen Group Water Scheme was not suitable for drinking due to the presence of an algal bloom in Inchiquin Lake.

“While water quality on the scheme has not improved sufficiently to warrant a lifting of restrictions, Clare County Council has confirmed that customers in the affected area are now being provided with an alternative supply via the Dysart-Toonagh Group Water Scheme and Ennis Public Water Supply Scheme. All water restrictions have been lifted as a result,” a spokesperson said.

“Inchiquin Lake meanwhile, remains closed to the public as is not suitable for recreational purposes. Signage has been erected notifying the public of the ongoing closure at the lake.”

THE people of Doolin have heralded the beginning of a new era following the opening of a new sea rescue centre in the village last week.

The € 1.8 million facility, which became operation last week but will not be officially opened for a number of months, has been the subject of intense local campaigning over the last 20 year.

Operator of Doolin Cave, John Browne, yesterday welcomed the new centre – describing the conditions in the old facility as “crazy”.

“It is such a necessary facility, the old situation that the coast guard was forced into was crazy – trying to get a boat down Fishers Street in an emergency,” he said.

“They [the coast guard volunteers] are such an important part of this community. It is important that they have the proper facilities to do their work.”

The new centre was also welcomed by Eugene Garrihy of Doolin2Aran Ferries.

“The facility is of huge importance to the work carried out by those brave men and women. In our ferries, it is a massive comfort to us to know that we have a back-up in the event that anything goes wrong,” he said.

“The coast guard have been waiting for this facility for some time now and any help that this could be for them and their work is very welcome. It brings to mind the great work that people like Mattie Shannon and Thomas Doherty have been doing for years, but also the men that came before them.”