Tommy Hassett in the Defibrillator Phone Box that he constructed.
Haulie & Catherine Liston.
Haulie was responsible for the electrics which he did free of charge.
Athea Tidy Towns Defibrillator
Telephone Box Launch
A large crowd descended on Athea on Sunday last for the launch of our defibrillator telephone box. As a first for Athea, the event was broadcast live on Facebook which allowed people from all over the world to tune in. Henry Moran opened the ceremonies and welcomed everyone to the special ceremony and gave a brief and entertaining run down on the history of the project and how the project became a reality.
The idea originally came from Michelle Curry who approached the committee with an idea for a project. We then got in touch with a committee in Killarney called ‘The Heart of Killarney’ who had recently carried out a similar project. This group then put us in touch with a company in Dublin who were manufacturing telephone boxes from timber.
We then put the word out in local press and on facebook to get some feedback on the project and then received a message from Tommy Hassett from Dirreen willing to chance making a telephone box from concrete. This was music to our ears as a concrete structure would stand the test of time and it also gave us an opportunity to support a local enterprise.
We then contacted the Athea Community First Responders and were delighted when they came on board and agreed to house one of their defibrillators in this unit.
This project would not have been possible without the invaluable support and co-operation of the local community in Athea who are always behind us one hundred present.
Words of thanks were expressed to Griffin Meats for allowing us to place the box at this location, to Billy White for allowing us the use of the gable of his house for cables, to Haulie and Ian Liston for supplying labour and equipment free of charge and to Athea Community Council Ltd for allowing us to connect to the Christmas street lighting supply ensuring that the defibrillator is kept at a correct temperature in a heated cabinet and that the box will be illuminated during dark hours.
We also put out a call for sponsorship plaques to be purchased and again, we were overwhelmed with the response. 28 sponsors came forward including individuals, families and local clubs which are all listed on the side of the telephone box. We have received many requests for sponsors following the launch but we can now confirm that all plaques have been purchased. We are forever grateful to our sponsors.
Our group were also fortunate to secure support from the Department of Rural and Community Development under the Clár Programme.
Denise Riordan also came up trumps on securing a new defibrillator for the telephone box sponsored by the Bank of Ireland, Listowel.
To launch the telephone box, we called upon our four local councillors who have always been a tremendous support to our organisation from day one namely; Councillor Seamus Browne, Councillor Francis Foley, Councillor Liam Galvin and Councillor John Sheahan. Each councillor contributed €1000 in funding towards this project from their GMA Allocation.
Henry also informed all present that following the fantastic support received towards this project, Athea Tidy Towns are now in a position to install high definition CCTV cameras which will ensure that this life saving equipment is protected for many years to come.
Following a blessing from Fr. Brendan Duggan, Sean Liston gave a brief run down on the importance of knowing how to use the defibrillator in the case of an emergency and welcomed anyone that would like to join the Athea First Responders to contact any member of the committee. Local GP Dr. Kieran Murphy also spoke at the launch and declared Athea a ‘Heart Safe Village’ and commended all responsible for delivering on the project.
Tribute was then paid to the many hand workers members of Athea Tidy Towns and everyone present was invited to attend our AGM in December.
Finally, we were treated to a viewing of the Limerick U21 cups organised by Jacqueline O’Connor and Henry Moran closed the ceremony by inviting everyone to refreshments at the Top of the Town bar.
Athea Golf Society
Athea Golf Society will hold its AGM at the Top of the Town on Saturday November 11th at 9pm. This will be followed by a get together with music and refreshments. There will also be a raffle for a hamper on the night. It is hoped that all members will attend this function to plan for next season and celebrate the year gone by. If any member has suggestions as to which golf courses should be booked for next year please bring them before the meeting.
Church Gate Collection
There will be a Church gate collection this weekend Saturday/Sunday November 11th/12th in aid of Gorta Self Help. Your support would be appreciated.
St. Vincent de Paul
Church Gate Collection
The St. Vincent de Paul annual collection will take place on Saturday/Sunday December 2nd & 3rd. Your support as always will be greatly appreciated.
Comhaltas Ceoltóiri Éireann
Traditional singing classes will commence on Thursday November 9th from 6.30 to 7.15pm if enough people are interested. Please contact Gráinne Ahern, 087 752 7127 for further details.
Ladies Monthly Night Out
The last monthly night out for this year will take place on Friday, December 15th at Brown Joe’s. This will be a Christmas Party Theme night with wine and nibbles and the usual quiz, games etc. If anyone would like to join us for a great night of fun you would be most welcome and word has it that Santa might even make an appearance on the night. All the proceeds will go to the Butterfly Club.
Athea Parish Journal
Last call to all contributors, clubs, associations etc. to please send in their material, photo’s etc as soon as possible. Photos and articles can be emailed to [email protected] or photos can be handed in to the office for scanning.
Athea Ladies Football Club
Congrats to Meadhbh Nash and Niall Crowley who got married on Saturday.
Thanks to everyone one who bought tickets for our football Fair Day fundraiser.
A massive thanks to our sponsors and to everyone who sold tickets and helped out on the day, it is hugely appreciated.
1st prize went to Jim O’Connor, Parkana – load of timber sponsored by the Top of the Town.
2nd prize went to Bernie HIggins Glasha – 7 “inch Lenovo Tablet sponsored by Batt’s Bar.
3rd prize went to Molly & Brid Hunt, Clash – 15 bales of briquettes sponsored by Brown Joe’s Bar
4th prize went to William Murphy, Ballaugh, Abbeyfeale
4 bags of coal sponsored by Collins’ Bar
5th prize went to David Harnett C/O Mags Bar in Newcastle West – €50 voucher for Collins’ Nursery sponsored by Jim & Hannah-Mai Collins.
Following a White Ball
Domhnall de Barra
A hobby is described in the dictionary as “an activity undertaken for pleasure”. To my mind everyone should have some kind of a hobby. We need a break from the cares and worries of everyday life to recharge our batteries and be ready to face the world again. Hobbies come in all shapes and sizes and our time of life may dictate what type of hobby we may pursue. Younger generations may take up running, cycling or other physically demanding sports while the older people find less demanding pastimes such as bingo, cards, amateur acting, painting etc. do the trick for them. There are some sports that may be taken up by all ages. Golf is one of these and a favourite of my own along with walking and playing music.
The object of golf is to hit a small white ball with a club and try to get it into a hole on a green in the least amount of shots. The game is over 18 holes of different lengths. They range from par 3s to par 4s and par 5s. “Par” is the average amount of shots it will take a scratch golfer to get the ball in the hole. A scratch golfer is one who has no handicap allowance. The beauty of amateur golf is the fact that players will receive extra strokes according to their ability (handicap allowance) and if this is done in the proper manner everyone playing the game has an equal chance of winning. If you are lucky and have a really good score your handicap will be cut and if you are going through a bad patch you will receive some shots back so, no matter what age you are the game can be played on a level playing pitch. Games are usually played in groups of three or four and it is a great social outlet. You may not have met somebody before but by the time you have completed a round in about four hours you will know quite a bit about each other. It is great exercise without being too demanding. Walking the course alone can cover 7 or 8 miles. Add to that the fact that most of the muscles in the body are used swinging the various clubs and bending to place and pick up balls. The game can be played at a leisurely pace but some golfers are very competitive and take each shot too seriously. The best craic is when there is a friendly rivalry with a few bob on the outcome of a match.
The game is also a good character builder. It will teach you things about yourself that you do not know especially how you deal with success and failure. There are no two days alike. Today the ball goes straight down the middle and you think you have the game cracked but tomorrow the ball seems to have a mind of its own and veers to left and right exploring every available bit of rough and bunker. Some get very frustrated with this but, the more you play, the more you realise that this is all part of life and it is best to put it behind you because the next day is different and may be the day that you will get that elusive hole-in-one. It is also a game of honesty. It is up to each player to follow the rules and penalise him/herself if necessary. I am not saying that cheating does not go on; there are those who will try to improve the lie of the ball in the rough with a touch of the foot or some such or they may give a wrong score for a particular hole, but in general one has to be honest.
The weather is also a factor. There is no nicer place on a fine day than the golf course but even when it is raining it can be enjoyable if the proper rain gear is used. One drawback is the cost. It is an expensive hobby if you take into consideration the cost of gear and membership of a club. A full set of clubs may cost over €1,000 but starter sets can be got second hand for less than €200. Then you have a trolley to carry the bag and if you are getting on in years you will need an electrically powered one which will cost from €300 to €700. Membership of a golf club is not now as expensive as it used to be but still averages at about €700 a year. Some clubs are much cheaper and have special offers from time to time. Balls cost money and they do get lost so that is an added expense and if you want to play in club competitions there is an added entry fee. Some players are not members of golf clubs but join golfing societies who book a number of different courses during the year for competitions.
The average fee for a days golfing is about €30. Club or society, it is well worth it if you can afford it and the money you spent wouldn’t last long in the pub!. If any of you would like to take up the game why not join Athea Golf Society. We travel to different courses once a month from March to October and the craic is mighty. The AGM is on at the Top of the Town on Saturday night, November 11th. at 9pm. Everybody is welcome and if you get half as much pleasure out of the game as I do you won’t be disappointed.
(PS. I have a couple of spare sets of clubs that I can lend to anyone who fancies taking up the game.)