Regional

THIRTY seven year old Keith McNamara from Cluain Airne is running in the upcoming local elections as an independent. “I’ve been thinking about it for a number of years. The town is being neglected in some ways,” he said. “There are lots of maintenance issues, its public spaces have been neglected, and I want to represent the voice of the people of Shannon. I feel like it has been underrepresented a little bit for the past couple of years. “I was never a member of a party. I like politics, I’ve been interested in it since I was in my teens. “I’ve also been involved in numerous community groups since I was a teenager. I like being involved with things that contribute to a better life for everyone, planning for the future and contributing to the town and its environs.” On his current community involvement, he said, “Currently I’m involved with Wolfe Tones, I’m a member of Limerick Lawn Tennis …

The sweet sound of ‘Goodbye from the White Horse Inn’ rang out around the old CBS Secondary School in Ennistymon one last time last Wednesday night, as the Ennistymon Musical Society bid farewell to their long time home. As the society prepares for one of their most ambitious productions ever next week, they are also saying goodbye to their spiritual home of more than 30 years. Last Wednesday night’s rehearsal for the upcoming production of Happy Days was the last that the society will have in the old secondary school. But before they move on to their new home at the Ennistymon Community School, they took a few moments to remember their long and proud history. “This is a big year for us, it is the 51st anniversary of the first musical. We did miss a few years because of Covid, but we had our first musical in 1973,” said Emma-Jane Brown of the society. “We had a bit of …

SMALL acts of kindness can make a big difference to a person living with dementia, according to Limerick dementia advisor, Sean Donal O’Shea. Mr O’Shea urges any family member who is caring for a person with dementia to contact their local dementia advisor. He also believes a person should also contact their local general practitioner who will know the family and their circumstances. “There is a dementia advisor in every county now. Six or seven years ago, there were only eight dementia advisors in the country. Now we have 31. This shows the Government is listening,” he said. “I have been lobbying with the Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland since 2007. There was nothing in budget after budget. In the most recent budget, ringfenced dementia funding has been provided, which is very valuable. “It is the small things that are the big things for a person with dementia. Covid-19 was an eye-opener for everyone when we were all locked in to …

A FITNESS app created by Ennis students which aims to prevent injury among young female sports athletes, has scooped second prize in a prestigious competition. Third year students Amy Hennessy and Juliette Purcell from Coláiste Muire turned judges’ heads at the BD STEM Stars competition with their app which focuses on preventing anterior cruciate ligament injuries in young women. Their research also found that young women are given the same fitness coaching as their male peers despite having different body forms. The competition is run by Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD), one of the world’s leading medical device companies. First place was jointly claimed by two Kinsale Community College teams, which earned their school a cheque of €10,000 for STEM related facilities.  The BD STEM Stars 2024 Award, which is supported by the Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board (LCETB), is the biggest such awards programme in Munster.  The competition was launched five years ago by BD to promote and encourage …

A new community group has just been established in North Clare whose aim is to preserve and protect the delicate ecosystem in Liscannor Bay. The group, which is called BannerGleo: Liscannor Bay Association, formed in the wake of a series of high profile threats to the bay, including incidents of pollution in the water off Lahinch and Liscannor as well as the Inagh River. The association aims to take a community-led approach to improving the management of the bay by organising projects such as voluntary beach clean-ups, but also by seeking funding from state agencies to help monitor and protect the water. The association was recently awarded a grant by Community Foundation Ireland and the National Parks and Wildlife Service to create the first ever biodiversity action plan for the entirety Liscannor Bay. BannerGleo aims to bring together experts, the local community and local land-owners to complete a comprehensive assessment of coastal biodiversity in the bay, and establish and important …

AN art exhibition entitled Horizons, featuring work by members of Shannon Men’s Shed is going on display in the Library on this Thursday. It is part of Creative Places Shannon, an initiative of Clare Arts Office, which saw a six week art course run with participants from the Men’s Shed. Working under the guidance of artist David O’Rourke, the group has produced magnificent vibrant landscape paintings. David has exhibited nationally and internationally and has also been involved in almost all aspects of art locally, from setting up artists’ collectives to working with community groups and as an educator in local schools. Derek Clune is a member of the Men’s Shed and is one of those that has been taking the art classes over the last number of weeks. He says that all those participating have got a lot out of it. “It’s great for the men. There are people who would never have thought of art and wouldn’t have painted …

The stage is set for a group of talented youngsters from Knockanean National School in Ennis who have qualified to perform at the National Concert Hall in Dublin early next month. The school has been chosen as one of just six national schools from all over Ireland to take part in the final of the Walton’s RTÉ Lyric Music for Schools Competition, which takes place in Dublin on April 8. Guided by teachers Amy McEnnis, Conor O’Loughlin, Tina Gavin and Louise Conheady, the young musicians and singers crafted a five minute long musical video together, which combines a number of existing songs and tunes to explore the theme of ‘Music Moves’. The school has a rich tradition in music and the arts and the successful group was made up of 63 students from the school’s music club and choir. According to second year teacher, Amy McEnnis, the children did much of the creative work for the composition themselves, with the …

RESIDENTS of one of Ennis’ most historic housing estates have been left “hugely disappointed” with resurfacing works carried out by the council last year in what has been described as a “cheap job”. Calls have been made for an inspection of the works at Hermitage to be carried out and for remediation works to be scheduled “urgently” as the estate prepares to celebrate its 75th anniversary this year. The concerns of residents were highlighted at a meeting of the Ennis Municipal District by Councillor Mary Howard (FG) who said, “The residents are not happy with the resurfacing works completed in parts of the area last year. They believe it to be uneven, thin and flimsy and they have noticed ponding and pooling of water throughout the area.” Concrete roads in Hermitage were covered with a Ralumac surface last year after local concerns were raised over the deterioration of the road surface. Paddy Tiernan, A/Senior Executive Engineer, outlined to the meeting …