Congratulations to Fr. Patrick Bowen PP Athea on the occasion of his Golden
Jubilee Celebration at the Con Colbert Hall on Saturday night last

Pat Higgins & Canon Kelly at Fr. Bowen’s Jubilee celebration

THANK YOU

The committee of the Athea Vintage Run would like to thank sincerely all those who helped in any way with the organisation and running of the event which was a great success.

Open Afternoon Tea Party

There will be an Afternoon Tea Party on Thursday 30th June at the Top of the Town Bar, Athea from 3 to 6pm. Music by Ger Conaghan. Hot and cold food and spot prizes. Everyone welcome.

However, we will need names and numbers for the catering before Sunday 26th June. Names can be given to Brouder’s Shop or Peggy Casey (068-42134) before 26th June. If transport is required please let us know at time of booking.

The Tea Party is sponsored by Athea Parish Festival Committee. Wishing the Festival every success from the Tea Party Organisers.

Athea Voluntary Housing  Association Limited

House to Let

at St. Bartholomew’s Villas, Athea, Co. Limerick

Would suit single, senior person

Applicants must be registered  with Limerick County Council for Housing

Please apply in writing to

Margaret Scanlon, Glenagragra, Athea, Co. Limerick

Closing date for applications   Friday, July 8th

Keeping the Place Tidy

At the moment the CE workers and the Tidy Towns committee are flat out trying to keep grass cut, flowers watered and weeds at bay. There will be an inspection by the Tidy Towns judges in the near future and we want to have the place looking its best when they arrive. This is the high season for growth and it is a full time job keeping the grass mowed in all the areas around the village and the graveyards. Weather plays a big part in how much work can actually be done. We were lucky to get the couple of weeks in early June but  we know that in this country we are never far away from rain. We can all help to keep the village tidy by ensuring that the areas around our own premises are kept free of litter. Once upon a time the County Council swept the street and picked up the litter on a daily basis but that day is gone and we now depend on the CE scheme to do that work. They also used to cut the local parks but if we were to wait for that to happen people might get lost in the long grass!  The Tidy Towns committee have done an amount of work over the past few weeks so it would be a pity if the ball was dropped over the next couple of weeks and points were lost because the place was not clean enough. So, please do what you can to help and we will all benefit from having a nice tidy place to live in.

Part of the work of the Community Council is to maintain the graveyards. We are lucky to have the services of a man from the Rural Social Scheme but one man on his own couldn’t possibly keep up with the work. The CE workers give a hand and I think we all agree that our graveyards are in great shape. It costs quite a bit of money to buy machinery, maintain them, fuel and materials. This is funded by the annual collection in October. People are extremely generous in this collection and the money has been used exclusively for projects associated with the graveyards. Paths have been laid, walls built, repaired and painted, the Blessed well statues have been replaced and the whole area given a face lift, the area in front of Holy Cross  had to be stripped of the overgrown shrubbery that was masking the cross and a lawn laid in its place and the grass is kept cut all the time. At the end of the year money is kept in a contingency fund because, at the moment we are lucky to have the services from the Rural Social Scheme and CE but that may not always be the case.  We would then have to employ people to do the work and the yearly collection would not go near covering that expense.  I am covering this topic today  because it has been brought to my attention that questions are being asked by certain people (some who should know better) about the money collected for the graveyards and what is happening to it.  I must admit to being personally hurt by some of the comments that infer that there is some missapprotiation of the funds in the Community Council. Every adult in the parish is a member of Athea Community Council Ltd and they in turn elect the board members who run the council business. Each year there is an A.G.M where people have the option of nominating somebody to the board if they wish. They are also entitled to attend the A.G.M. where a full account of all financial transactions is given and explained by the auditor Mr. Michael Dooley. We have been trying for years to get people onto the council to no avail. A handful of us are doing our best to keep the council going and I, for one, am very proud of our achievements for the people of Athea over the years. I am also happy in the knowledge that the vast majority of  the people are happy with the way  we have gone about our business and we will continue to do so as long as the people of the parish want us to.

 Domhnall de Barra