Members of Athea Duck & Swan Club and Athea Gun Club releasing ducks into the river last weekend aided by enthusiastic young helpers.

Athea Community Council “Lucky Numbers” Draw

The jackpot in our weekly draw has now reached a massive €26,000.

This is the first time it has been so high and the Council would like to thank all of you who buy and sell tickets. The money generated from the sales  funds Community Council projects and the CE Scheme that keeps our village tidy and looks after the graveyards, church, hall etc. Over the years a new footbridge, stone walls, footpaths and the Giant’s Garden have been made possible by the draw. Our next project is the upgrading of the Community Council Office. Planning permission has been granted so we look forward to phase one to be started in the not too distant future. Once again a sincere  thank you and “keep buying the tickets”

Jerry Brouder feeding the ducks early Saturday morning

The Way I See It

By Domhnall de Barra

The Munster Hurling Final was a fantastic battle between Cork and Limerick. As they say there wasn’t a puck of a ball between the two teams who left everything on the pitch in their efforts to win. Though there was some great hurling I have to question the refereeing, not of a bias on any side but for the amount of illegal and dangerous tackles that went unpunished. Time after time I saw players from both teams being pulled, pushed and dragged and even hit with hurleys. I know people like see the game “flowing” but there has to be a limit. I know from my own playing days that you will bend the rules a bit if you are not pulled by the man with the whistle so if a referee doesn’t lay down markers very early in a game , it may get a bit rough and scrappy. I don’t think, however, this had any bearing on the result with a draw being a fair outcome in my mind. In days gone by we would have had a replay and wouldn’t it be great to have another tussle between these two great teams to look forward to. Extra time is not too bad but it is asking a lot of players who have just taken part in a gruelling encounter to put in another shift straight away. It is a shame that the match was decided by penalties. This is not because Cork won, fair play to them, they deserved it, but the fact that penalties are a bit of a lottery and are not a true reflection of the capabilities of a team. The majority of players will never have taken a penalty because they are so scarce  in hurling and there is usually one player who will take on that role for his team. I hope that this practice will not continue and we  can have the replays back. I know that changes were made to the schedule to accommodate club competitions but surely a match as important as this deserves to be replayed. We won’t get it now but there is a chance that Cork and Limerick could meet in the All-Ireland final. Wouldn’t that be an occasion.

There was a lot of discussion on the airwaves during the week about the deportation of people who had failed to gat asylum here. One person in particular had been working and paying taxes for a while and his kids were in school. As we all know there is a shortage of truck and bus drivers in the country at the moment so why was this man picked up and deported. I know you have to regulate who comes into the country but the system seems to be very slow and cumbersome. There is too much time between when an application for asylum is made and a result is decided. It should not take months, and sometimes years, to decide whether an application is justified or not.  I think exceptions should be made if asylum seekers are already in full time employment and contributing to the state. Think about how many Irish people are in America undocumented and could be rounded up and put on a plane at any time, especially with Trump flexing his muscles at the moment.  There  are those who would like to see our borders closed and nobody left in but that is not realistic. Irish people have emigrated to the four corners of the world and, in general have been welcomed and have contributed to their adopted countries. We are going to need people in certain professions because we don’t have enough Irish people to do the jobs. Most of our ancestors came from foreign countries and settled here. Sometimes they came to invade us and stayed. My own name, for instance,  comes from Normandy so it depends on when you stop the clock as to what being Irish really means.  All I am looking for is a more humane approach to asylum seekers and a method of quickly sorting out the people who are not genuine and getting rid of them in a hurry. We don’t want to down the American route with Trump acting like a dictator and just picking up people willy-nilly and shipping them off. There is also the financial burden. How much money has been spent over the years on housing people who had no right to be here in the first place, especially at a time when housing is so scarce and every available space is badly needed.  We need action now, not the proverbial long finger. The way the present government is performing, i won’t hold my breath.!

Pat McSweeney presenting his uncle Jim Dalton Memorial Cup to Jerry Brouder winner of the fishing  competition  held last Sunday  afternoon  in our lovely river Galey.
Pictured L to R. Pat Nolan., John Healy., Pat McSweeney, Jerry Brouder., Cathal Nolan., Sean Wall & John Heffernan.

Church Notices

Priests: Fr. Tom Mangan 087-2348226, Fr. Willie Russell 087 2272825, Fr. Dan Lane 087 2621911.

Mass Intentions: Saturday June 14^th 7.30pm, Michael Haslam, Dan & Mai Enright,

Tim & Margaret Enright and their son Paddy (Templeathea).

All masses are streamed live on https://www.churchservices.tv/athea

Golden Jubilee: Next Saturday evening June 14^th, Fr Brendan Duggan will celebrate the 7.30pm mass here in Athea, to mark the occasion of his 50^th Golden Jubilee Anniversary in The Spiritan Fathers Order.  It is a thanksgiving mass for the people of Athea, for his time spent here with us from 2016-2022. All are welcome. 

Baptisms take place on the fourth weekend of the month. Parents who wish to baptise their child in the next few months should contact Siobhan on 087-3331459.

Parish Administration: Tues-Fri 11am-1pm. call Siobhan on 087-3331459, outside of these hours text or email [email protected]     Facebook:  Athea Parish Church Community

Sean Twomey and Michael Kelly who are going as helpers to Lourdes with the Limerick pilgrimage receiving a donation in behalf of the Lourdes pilgrimage fund from Teresa O Halloran and Kathleen Mullane.

Athea Community Council Lucky Numbers Draw 09/06/’25

No’s Drawn: 3,  14,  18,  26  No Winner

Lucky Dips

Mary Brosnan,                   c/o Collins’ Shop

Jerry Brouder,                    Gale View

Helen O’Connor,                Athea

Jimmy Woulfe c/o Collins’ Shop

Sellers Prize:  Collins’ Shop & Ellen Quille

Next Draw:  16/06/’25   Venue:  White’s

Jackpot €26,000 

by Kathleen Mullane

WHAT A PITY

I’m sure everyone was glued to the Limerick–Cork hurling game last Saturday evening. From the outset, the fast pace and skill of all the players on the pitch was electric, to say the least—all vying for the cup and Munster glory, especially Limerick, who were aiming for seven in a row.

I was just thinking about the time these players have to put into their preparation for such games—it’s unreal. They have to juggle jobs, maintain a family balance, watch their diet, keep a strong mindset, stay free from injury, and so much more. Unlike in years past, when they simply went out and played the game, today’s teams have dieticians, physiotherapists, doctors, psychologists, trainers, and more. It’s a whole different ball game, to say the least.

Anyway, it gives us all hours of enjoyment, which is great. Despite not winning on Saturday, Limerick is still in with a chance for the All-Ireland—so all I can say is we live in hope.

This coming Saturday evening, Fr. Brendan Duggan will return to Athea to celebrate our evening Mass in thanksgiving for the years he spent with us here. He will also be celebrating his Golden Jubilee—50 years since his ordination—making it a very special occasion.

Incidentally, it was Fr. Brendan who organized the concerts in the church here, which were fundraisers to help send our youth as helpers to Lourdes. Thanks to his efforts, last year and this year, we continue to be able to support those who are taking on this role. We wish Fr. Brendan all the best for the future in Rockwell, where he is currently based.

The books that were usually in the Memorial Hall kitchen for avid readers have now been placed in the front porch of the hall for easy access. Anyone who wishes to take some is very welcome—there are books available for men, women, and children.

Tickets are now on sale for the Athea GAA Club Development Draw, with great prizes as always. Tickets are just €50, and all funds raised will go toward further developing the pitch and its surroundings.

It’s fantastic to see the track being used from very early in the morning—before people head to work—until late at night. The safety it provides is wonderful, with all agreeing, especially the elderly, who often fear the roads.

I have tickets for sale if anyone wishes to support the club.

We continue to remember all those who are taking their exams this week. Hopefully, they are nearing the end—it will be over before you know it!

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK

Believe in yourself—you are braver than you think, more

talented than you know, and capable of more than you can

imagine.

by Peg Prendeville

Sympathies to my cousins Helen, Michael and Thomas White, Broadford on the death of their mother Mary Anne (nee O’Sullivan) this week. May she rest in peace.

We had a great day in Ballyhahill School Grounds on last Sunday for the Fun/fest day. I was very impressed with the amount of work done in preparation and even more impressed by the clearing up afterwards. It was spotless next morning. The Parents’ Association wishes to say the following:

“A massive thank you to everyone who helped out on Sunday to make our fun fest and ball drop such a success. Thanks to all the school teachers in Ballyhahill National School and in Ballyhahill preschool for their help on the day and support in the run up to the event. Thanks to the Ballyhahill Development and all the locals who helped organise the ball drop, closed the roads, did traffic management and helped clean everything up after. Thanks to Knockdown Vintage Club for their generous donation and use of roads signage for the day. Thanks to the Ballyhahill hall committee for the use of their equipment for our refreshments. Thanks to all the parents association for all the work that went on in the run up to it and knocking it out of the park on the day. Thanks to the Loughill & Ballyhahill wrenboys for their fantastic music that was really enjoyed by everyone. Thanks to all the brilliant sponsors of our raffle who gave amazing prizes. Thanks to all the parents and students for coming to support us and to all the people who travelled near and far to be there, from friends to relatives and everyone in between. Without all your support the day wouldn’t have been as big a success. Thanks to everyone who showed up on the day to show their support from photographers to music and all volunteers and vendors – we couldn’t possibly name everyone but we really appreciate all the hard work and dedication. Ballyhahill Fun/fest and Ball Drop 2025 was an amazing day out and we look forward to seeing you all for an even bigger and better day for 2026!!”

The Ball Drop winners were: 1st Eamonn Farrelly. 2nd Noreen McCoy. 3rd Lorraine o Connell. The Games Winners were: Guess the sweets x3 Jars: Sharon McElligot 243 sweets, Katriona King 321 sweets. Rosemary Cronin 194 sweets. Bean bag Toss: Finn O Keeffe. Skills Master: John Lyons, Liswi Nube, Ronan Healy. Darts: Christy Flynn. Ring Toss: Vasilisa.

The Raffle Winners were :

An Siopa Milsean Hamper – Grainne Dunworth. This is you €100 voucher – Kim Mulvihill

GLIN GRUB €20 – Michelle Fitzpatrick. GLIN GRUB €15 – Rita O Connor. GLIN GRUB €10 – Eoin O Brien. GLIN GRUB €10 – Kim Mulvihill. Limerick Garden Festival x 2 entries & masterclass- Kim Mulvihill. Flying boat Museum family pass – Karla Kenny. One Tonne Wood – Maggie O Brien. Breakfast Pastry Box Reidys Foynes – Lily Hutchinson. Kilflynn Fairy Festival family pass – Eoghan Walsh. €50 Supervalu voucher – Kay and Mike Walsh. €50 Kearney’s Bakery voucher – Annette Chawke. Bottle of Whiskey – Sandra Healy. Bottle of Brandy – Teresa C Stack

Newcastle West Golf Club 4 ball green fee voucher – Noelle Reidy. An Siopa Milsean Large bag of sweets – Grainne Dunworth.

It is just two years since the shop in Knockdown was burned to the ground so it is great to see it up and thriving again. The little tea/coffee bar is an added bonus. I enjoyed a bit of time out there with three of my grand-daughters at the weekend.

Lucy, Clodagh and Lily with Nana Peg

Thanks to Esther for taking the photo.