Candle Mass
During the month of November we offer a special mass every Wednesday night for all the Holy Souls and it is hard to be believe we are now talking about the final one of these masses. This final mass is a special candle mass which is offered especially for all those who died in the past 12 months. We have automatically included all those who died in our parish during that time but we would also love to include the names of any of your family or friends who died in other areas. If you would like to add someones name you can do so by contacting myself Linda Spillane on 087-9838392.

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Star Struck Theatre School

The boys and girls from Star Struck Theatre School are busy putting the final touches to their production of Aladdin. This group is made up of boys and girls from our local area and they are all very excited to transport you to the land of Aladdin. The group will take to the stage on Thursday December 5th and Friday December 6th at 7pm. Tickets can be purchased at the door. Adult tickets cost €10 and it is €8 for children. There is also a special family ticket rate of €30 which admits 2 adults and 2 children.

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GAA News

The Ballyduff Lower GAA club will hold their AGM on Friday November 29th at 8pm in Ballyduff Community Centre and all are welcome to attend. All fully paid up members will be entitled to vote and new members are very welcometo come along and help shape the future of the club. All nominations for executive committee should be emailed to the secretary by November 25th on secretary.ballydufflower.waterford@gaa.ie

Our footballers were in hard luck as they travelled to Limerick to take on Croom. The game ended on a scoreline of Ballyduff 0-6 to Croom 0-8. A big well done to the lads who gave/ us such great enterainment all year. Huge congratulations to all the supporters who travelled not only to Limerick but to all the games throughout the year.

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Christmas Raffle

Our local community centre redevelopment committee will host a fabulous Christmas raffle with many exciting prizes up for grabs. Volunteers will be travelling around the community door to door selling tickets and we as that you be as generous as possible.

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Birthday Boy
We send warm birthday wishes to a popular young man who recently celebrated a milestone birthday. Tommy McGrath, Ballygarron celebrated his 80th birthday with his family and friends and I know that all his neighbours and many many friends will be wishing him many more happy birthdays.

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Award Nominations

Oor local community alert group were recently nominated for a Waterford PPN Community and Voluntary Awards. Unfortunately we were not winners on the night but were shortlisted down to the final three. It was wonderful and heartwarming to see so many voluntary groups being recognised for the work they are doing around the city and county.

Little Lady for Adamstown

Huge congratulations to Brian and Sarah Roche, Adamstown who welcomed their beautiful baby girl into the world last week. Baby Riona Roche is a first baby for the lovely couple and they are delighted to have their precious little bundle home. Sarah is of course the daughter of Dick and Siobhan Walsh who are very proud grandparents and I met a very happy Uncle Tom the other day who told me he is looking forward to taking baby Riona for walks when the weather is better. I’m sure Brian and Sarah will never be short of babysitters but they may have trouble getting Riona back. We wish this happy little family every happiness and welcome baby Riona to our community.

 

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November Masses.

During the month of November we offer mass every Wednesday night at 7.30pm for all our Holy Souls. The final mass on Wednesday November 27th will be offered especially for all those who died in the past 12 months. All those who died within our parish will automatically be included in the mass but if you have a friend or family member who died elsewhere over the past 12 months and would like to have their name included then you are welcome to do so. To add their name you can contact myself Linda Spillane on 087-9838392 or write the persons name on the list which is in the front porch of the church.

At this special candle mass an individual candle is lit for each of the deceased and that candle is presented back to the family of the deceased as a reminder of the promise of the risen Lord. It is important therefore that a family member is present at the mass to accept the candle.

 

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A Gent and Scholar

We were all very saddened to hear of the death of Dr. Jan, Pouldrew House, Kilmeaden. Dr. Jan was a very interesting man to meet and had a wonderful array of interests. In my Post Office days he was a regular visitor and I always enjoyed listening to the many stories he had. As an accupuncturist he excelled and his many patients had nothing but praise and admiration for him. We offer our deepest sympathies to all his family and friends.

 

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GAA News.

The Juvenile section of the club would like to congratulate their coach Sarah and her husband Brian on the arrival of their baby daughter Riona. Sarah is a brilliant coach and like all the coaches gives up her own free time selflessly to help the kids development. The club wishes the Roche Family all the best and look forward to welcoming Sarah back to the field soon.

AGM: The Ballyduff Lower GAA club will host their AGM on Friday November 9th at 8pm in Ballyduff Community Centre. All paid up members are welcome to vote and all prospective members are most welcome to come along and help shape the future of the club. All nominations for executive committee members should be emailed to the secretary address below by Monday November 25th secretary.ballydufflower.waterford@gaa.ie

A big well done to all who have been displaying their club colours and the winners of the recent competition are Shane O Brien, Shane Dalton and Brigid Power who decorated their houses so well.

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Award Nomination.

Our local community alert group continue to do wonderful work in our community and I am delighted to tell you that the group have been shortlisted for an award at the Waterford PPN Community and Voluntary Awards. We are shortlisted in the Community and Civic Pride category and the group are absolutely delighted to be recognised in this manner. Some representatives of the group will attend the awards ceremony on Thursday November 21st in The Park Hotel.

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Notes Update

If you would like me to advertise something for you through these notes then I would be delighted to do so. You can contact me on 087-9838392 or drop me an email on spillanelinda2017@gmail.com or indeed my name is Linda Spillane and its very easy to find me cause I don’t leave Kilmeaden very often.

Lotto Results

That fantastic jackpot is still up for grabs in the local GAA lotto. There was no lucky winner choosing the numbers 4, 19, 21 and 23. The three lucky dip winners of €50 each were Kate O Donnell, Dermot Dooley and Genevieve O Donnell. The next draw will take place on November 17th and that fantastic jackpot of €12,500 will be there for you to win. The only thing you have to do is choose those four numbers carefully. Tickets cost just €2 each or three for €5 and are available from all committee members and will be on sale at Centra on Saturday November 16th. Pay some bills,have a little holiday, enjoy some Christmas shopping, the list is endless with this jackpot and all things are acceptable once you don’t forget that it was me who told you about it!!( I love flowers! Just saying)

 

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Bridge News

The Ballyduff/Portlaw Bridge Club played their most recent game on Monday November 4th and the results were as folows;

1st: Nano Fitzgerald and Sean Hennessy

2nd: Celia Nugent and Mary O Brien

3rd: Mary Prendergast and Anne Marie Brown.

4th: Geraldine McMahon and Joan Hartery.

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November Masses
While our deceased family members and friends are never far from our thoughts, we also remember them in a special way during the month of November. Every Wednesday night at 7.30pm a special mass is offered for all the Holy Souls. The last mass on Wednesday November 27th at 7.30pm will be offered especially for all those who died in the past 12 months. A candle will be lit in memory of each person and this candle will then be given to the family going home to light from time to time in memory of their loved one. Those who were buried here in our graveyard will automatically be added to the list but if you lost a loved one since last November from outside the parish then you are very welcome to add their name to the list. You can add their name by writing it on the list in the front porch of the church or you can contact myself Linda Spillane on 087 9838392.

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What A Game!

It was just wonderful to see so much red and white decorating Fraher Field last weekend as the Ballyduff supporters travelled to see their Junior Footballers take on Shamrocks in the County Final. It really was heartwarming to see young and old joining together to cheer the lads on and I know the support is greatly appreciated by both the team and the club.

The preparation and hard work payed off as Ballyduff emerged as County champions on a scoreline of Ballyduff 1-11 to Shamrocks 0-10. It was a brilliant game to watch with some stand out individual performances and also great team play. It was a great win for the lads and we hope they enjoyed their celebrations as its back to the grindstone now as they get ready to face Croom in the Munster Championship. The team will travel to Bruff or Kilmallock on Saturday November 16th at 1.30pm to take on Croom and the club would like to say a big thank you to all the supporters and local businesses for their continued support. Roll on the 16th and its not too late to get your colours flying.

 

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Win For The Girls

We all watched in anticipation as Irelands ladies hockey team bid for their chance to qualify for the Olympic Games 2020 in Tokyo. Standing in their way were Canada whom they knew would give up a good fight. This edge of your seat stuff saw these two teams treat us to a great game. After this game ended in a tie the crowd were to be treated to a nail biting penalty shoot out. While we awaited this shoot out with bated breath one house in Kilmeaden was probably not so calm. Maria Mackey ,Ross watched with great pride as her niece Roisin Upton stepped up and scored what would be the winning goal. What a proud day for Maria and all the family and we will all be following their journey to the Olympics with great interest.

The Quiet Man.

We were all saddened this week to hear of the death of Jim Power, Oldcourt. Jim was a quiet, honest, hardworking man who went about his daily business in an unassuming nature. Jim was a native of Portlaw born into the farming life and always had a great love of the land and farming. Jim was also a great supporter of the GAA world and was not only a fne player on the field and then in later years a brilliant supporter of both local and county teams.

Jims’ other great love in life was dancing and was a very fine dancer, in fact the great Tom Cheasty once remarked that Jim could turn on a sixpence on the dance floor. It was at one such dance that Jim met the love of his life Kathleen Butler and another successful Portlaw-Kilmeaden marriage began. They made their home at Oldcourt and raised their two sons Eoghan and PJ there and in later days six grandchildren. Jim was a real family man and loved to see the grandchildren calling and hearing about their activities.

While Jim and Kathleen always enjoyed going to dances, they also enjoyed meeting socially with friends for a chat or to listen to some good music. I know that Jims good friends in O Donachas will miss his company and I’m sure they will raise a large bottle in his honour.

We all hope that Jim now enjoys the peace and comfort of the heavenly kingdom and that his family can draw comfort from the wonderful memories they hold of Jim.

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Keep A Check

As the clocks go back and our days are darker and colder, I ask you all to keep an eye out for all your neighbours and friends especially the elderly and those who live alone. The power of a friendly smile or chat can bring great joy to a persons day. Keep a check also that they have enough firewood or fuel and enough groceries in. The offer of a spin to the shops or mass or even just a little drive out is a kind and generous act and believe me you will get just as much pleasure from doing as receiving.

 

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November Dead List

Although we always remember our loved ones gone before us with great fondness we think of them in a special way during the month of November. Here in our parish we offer a special mass for our dead each Wednesday night during November. The masses on Wednesday 6th,13th, 20th and 27th will be at 7.30pm. The final mass on Wednesday November 27th will be offered especially for all those who died in the past 12 months. If you would like to add the name of a relative or friend to the list of those who died during the year please contact Linda Spillane on 087-9838392 or add their name to the list in the front porch of the church.

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Wedding Bells.

We send warmest congratulations to Mark O Connell who recently married his sweetheart Rose Anna. The couple were married in the beautiful county of Donegal and Marks parents Gerry and Margaret tell me that the day was fantastic and that all plans just fell into place. We hope that the happy couple enjoy a wonderful life together full of love and happiness.