All posts by Christine Tubbritt

Tidy Towns and Deise Greenway

 

High Road News.

A meeting of the High Road Community Alert Group will take place on Monday February 16th at 8pm in Ballyduff Community Centre. All are welcome to attend this meeting.

Tidy Towns Appointment.

Our local tidy towns group are delighted to announce that Michael O Keeffe has been selected as the new Tus worker. Michael will be working and maintaining areas in the general Kilmeaden area. If there are areas which you are concerned about or feel need work please contact one of the following and they will pass the word on Leanne Kearns 086-8194328 or Sarah Walsh 086-1750370.

GAA Lotto.

There was no winner of the latest GAA lotto draw and the numbers drawn were 5, 17, 18 and 25. The three lucky dip winners of €50 each were Sarah Leahy, James Walsh and Renee Power. The next draw will take place on February 22nd in O Donnachas and there will be a fantastic jackpot of €11,000 up for grabs so get your ticket early. Tickets will be on sale all day on Saturday February 21st at Centra so put your thinking caps on and guess those four lucky numbers.

Community Centre News.

A second order is about to be placed soon for engraved bricks which will be put on permanent display in the community centre. Each brick costs €50 which includes up to two lines of text containing a maximum of 16 letters/ characters per line. Purchasing one of these bricks will see you become part of the history of the community and you will also be making a contribution to the ongoing fund raising efforts. To purchase a brick please contact Caroline Quinn on 087-2154981 or carolinequinn@live.ie The deadline for orders is February 27th.

If any of you out there have any ideas/skills or time to contribute to establishing weekly or monthly events in the community centre then you are asked to contact Alistair on 086-6063139. The committee plan to meet in the coming weeks to discuss options and requirements for our community.

Coffee Morning.

I recently hosted a coffee morning in Ballyduff Community Centre in aid of our local youth drama group. The youth drama group is made up of young people in 5th and 6th classes and is run voluntarily by Helen Millea, Eleanor Foley and Joan Cheasty. They are very busy rehearsing for this years show which will take place in March. As you all know there are many costs incurred in putting on a show and so that is why I decided to do something small to help because we as parents are very grateful for the confidence and pride our children get from being part of this group.

I was really overwhelmed by the support given to the coffee morning and raffle. It was a really lovely morning with great crowds turning up and plenty of chat and laughter filled the rooms. Of course we were spoiled by some of our top bakers in the parish who brought along an array of tasty treats for us to sample. I want to say a huge thank you to all who came along and all who donated money and raffle prizes and to all who baked and gave cakes. A huge thank you to Liam and David in the hall who were such a big help and finally I am very lucky to have a wonderful bunch of friends who never seem to tire of me asking for help and so to those who helped me set up, serve the teas etc and clean up after as well as baking too I thank you from the bottom of my heart and offer my services for your next event. Another fantastic display of community spirit and for a short mornings work we raised €510 so well done and thank you.

We will have details soon for you about the show and where to get your tickets so watch this space.

Deise Greenway.

The Waterford and Suir Valley railway is working closely with Waterford Council to ensure preparatory work including bridge surveys and site clearance work is carried out uninterrupted on the section of the Deise Greenway beside the railway. To facilitate the work the railway will not open for the February mid term and defer the usual season start date of April 1st. The railway will now open to the public with a full schedule from Friday May 1st 2015.

Although the railway say it is unfortunate that there will be a delay opening and they realise many families will be disappointed to miss the usual mid term and Easter activities it is a small sacrifice to make as in the long term the Deise Greenway will be a huge asset and a wonderful amenity on our doorstep when this section is finished in 2016.

 

Coffee Morning, Spring Stations and a Sad Goodbye.

Bridge News.

The results of the latest bridge game from our local club are;

1st: Joan Hartery and Geraldine McMahon.
2nd: Patsy Roche and Kathleen Collins.
3rd: Sean Hennessy and Nano Fitzgerald.
4th: Margaret Power and Mary Prendergast.

Great Success.

We say a huge congratulations to local man John Kennedy of Carriganure who has once again been called up to serve on the 2015 Waterford Minor hurling team. John brought great dedication and committment to the team last year so it is no wonder that he has been recalled to take his place on the squad. We wish John every success and we join in his familys great pride at his achievements.

Coffee Morning.

A coffee morning will take place on Wednesday February 11th from 9.30am to 12 noon in Ballyduff Community Centre. This is to raise some funds for our local youth drama group who will stage their show in March. This group is run voluntarily by some local mammies and is an absolutely tremendous opportunity for young people to grow in confidence and self belief. Please come along and support while having a nice enjoyable cuppa and a chat and I can guarantee some very tasty treats. There will also be a raffle for some very nice prizes, tickets will be €2 or three for €5. I would really love to see you all but if by chance you cannot make it but would like to support please contact me Linda Spillane on 087-9838392.

World Day Of The Sick.

Wednesday February 11th is the Feast of our Lady of Lourdes and is also World Day of The Sick. It is a special day to remember and pray for all our sick and to also thank God for the precious gift

of health. There will be a special mass on Wednesday night at 7.30pm in Ballyduff church to remember our sick. A special blessing will be offered to all during the mass and remember everyone gets sick from time to time so you do not have to be seriously ill to receive this annointing.

Spring Stations.

The Spring station masses will begin in a few weeks time so if you would like to host a station mass for your area then please text on your details to Fr.Mick on 087-9626618.

Ballyduff Brick.

A second order is being placed for engraved bricks which will be put on permanent display in the new Community Centre. Each brick will cost €50.00 and can include two lines of text containing a maximum of 16 letters/characters per line. When you buy a brick you will become part of the history of the parish and also help with the ongoing fund raising efforts. The deadline for orders is Friday February 27th so if you would like to purchase a brick please contact Caroline Quinn on 087-2154981 or at carolinequinn@live.ie

Calling Singers and Musicians!

A group of people met recently to discuss the possibility of starting up an adult choir. Rehearsals will now begin and a call is being put out to all singers and musicians to come along to rehearsals on Monday nights in the church from 8pm to 9pm. All are welcome to join whether you sing like Pavorotti or perform your own little concerts in the shower, you are welcome!

Bean Iontach

We said goodbye this week to one of the most remarkable women I have ever met. Joan Hayes of Ivy House left us at the young age of 94. Joan was one of the great characters of our community, a woman I loved to chat with as she was so interesting and could literally hold a conversation about anything. She took a great interest in parish life always getting involved and supporting her community. She had of course a deep faith and the church was a very important part of her life. She loved music and the Irish language but of course her greatest pleasure was to paint. Beautifully landscapes and country scenes adorned her walls and I loved staring at them nearly loosing myself into the scene. Her love of the outdoors and Gods creations was clearly evident in the tender way she looked after her garden and her beloved ducks and hens.

She did of course know tragedy and sadness in her life loosing her husband Roger and then the sudden and tragic loss of her beloved daughter Elizabeth just 4 years ago. She showed tremendous strength of character as she bore her cross as best as she could and with the love and support of her family, great neighbours and friends she battled on like the true champion she was. We offer our deepest sympathy to her son James, his wife Anna and her trully beloved grandaughter Aine who lit up her life greatly. We shall never forget Joan and we sincerely pray that she is now reunited with her loved ones and will enjoy the peace of heaven. Is Feidir Si A Chuid Eile I Siochain.

 

Grandparents day, coffee and a catch-up

Bridge News.

The results of the latest bridge game are as follows:

1st: Nano Fitzgerald and Geraldine McMahon
2nd: Mary Kennedy and Ann Marie Brown.
3rd: Kate Hayes and Sean Hennessy.
4th: Mary Prendergast and John Fitzpatrick.

GAA Lotto.

Our local GAA club held their first lotto draw of 2015 last week and the numbers drawn were 8, 11, 15 and 21. There was no winner of the jackpot but the three lucky winners of €50 each were Kathleen Power, Pat Aulsberry and John Aulsberry/John Power. The next draw will take place in O Donnachas on Sunday February 8th and will have a fantastic jackpot of €10,850.

Tickets cost just €2 or three for €5 and are available from club members and will be on sale at Centra on Saturday February 7th. If you’re not in you can’t win.

Grandparents Day.

Our local national school marked National Grandparents day beautifully last Wednesday when they invited all the grandparents of the pupils to a special mass in which the children sung hymns and read poems and prayers. They were all then invited to come for a little tour of the school with some of the 6th class pupils acting as excellent tour guides. It was then on for a nice cuppa and a biscuit or two and of course the chat flowed freely. It was an absolutely lovely way to celebrate the day and everyone really enjoyed it. Grandparents play a huge part in childrens lives and it was a lovely way to honour them.

Coffee Morning.

I am organising a coffee morning on Wednesday February 11th in Ballyduff Community Centre from 9.30am to 12 noon. This is to raise some money for our local youth drama club who will stage their show in March. As we know there is a big cost in staging an event like this and so that is why I decided to try to help. The drama club is an excellent facility for the young people who gain such great self confidence and self esteem. You see children who may be shy or a little self confident come alive and shine on the stage. All they need is a chance and we as parents are very grateful to those who give their time and energy freely to run this club.

Please come along for a cuppa and a chat and some lovely treats and I will also be running a raffle for some lovely prizes. Tickets will be €2 or three for €5 so if you cant make the coffee morning but would like to support it in some way please let me know.

Church News.

The setting up of a new adult choir is underway at the moment and so I hope to have more news on this next week so watch this space.

As some of you may know I look after the readers rotas for masses. We like to involve the family of whoevers anniversary mass is taking place at the weekend masses but sometimes families do not want to read or the mass may not be booked for anyone and this is when I revert back to the readers rota. If you would be up to reading at mass and would like to place your name on the rota then please contact me Linda Spillane on 087-9838392.