Direct from Durrow

Durrow Development Forum wishes to express their thanks to everybody who supported their cake sale for The Cuisle Cancer Care Centre in Portlaoise. To everyone who made cakes and bought them, it was very much appreciated. Your contribution made a whopping €658.40 and DDF have contributed to this to bring the total raised for the Cuisle Centre to €800. The raffle winners are as follows: First Prize – Mt. Juliet Voucher: Roisin Kenny, Coole, Ballyragget; Second Prize – Bottle of Champagne and Box of Chocolates: Stephen Murphy, Derry Rd, Durrow; Third Prize – Bottle of Wine: Patrick Woods, Barnhill, Durrow; Fourth Prize – Box of Chocolates: Eddie Clancy, Fermoyle; Fifth Prize – Box of Chocolates: Tony Clancy, Barnhill. Well done everybody!

USED CLOTHES COLLECTION IN AID OF DURROW COMMUNITY CENTRE: The committee are holding a used clothes collection which will be collected from the Community Hall at the end of April. Bags of used clothes can be left into the Hall each morning, 9.00am to 1.00pm from now until the end of April. No duvets, pillows or cushions to be included as they will not be    accepted. This is an opportunity to do a clean-out of used clothes and by doing so, you will be supporting the Community Centre and The National Council for the blind – and this would be very much appreciated!

The Annual Dawn Chorus will take place this year on Sunday 30th April in Dunmore Wood. Meet in the car park at 4.45am and the walk starts at 5am sharp. Pat Durkin from Birdwatch Ireland will lead the walk. Wear warm clothes as the nights are still cool. Please bring your own refreshments. For more information contact Noeleen on (087) 9636460.

The Mobile Unit of the Irish Blood Transfusion Service will be in attendance at the Castle Arms Hotel on Thursday April 27th from 4.30pm until 8.00pm. As this is the first visit for the New Year we appeal to have a good attendance at this clinic. Please give one hour on the 27th to help save lives.

The ICA group held their last Annual General Meeting in Cullohill Community Centre following the Pilates Class. Noreen Byrne attended and announced the details of the Federation trip to Donegal at end of June. Booking through any Guild member for deposit of €100. This trip has been a very enjoyable trip every year and very good value. The Pilates classes ran by the guild had twenty three people attending and have two more classes to go. These are free classes and all are welcome. Our teacher Julia McGuire is going to do voluntary work in Uganda from June to November. We held a fundraiser to help with her work at an all-girls school. We wish Julia a safe journey and we look forward to Pilates Classes on her return. Charities supported during the year were Cuisle Walk, Federation Charities and the Homecare team. We also supplied plants for the Community Centre window boxes. The guild had a most successful year and the next meeting will be held on Tuesday May 2nd.

Eucharist Ministers Rota – May 2017: Saturdays – Rose Woods and Sean Phelan; Sundays – Ann Palmer and Edmund Kenny.

Church Cleaning Rota – May 2017: Daisy Dollard, Mary Dollard and Babe Duggan.

Mass Readers: Saturdays – April 29th and May 6th – Martin Lawlor and Aislinn Townsend; May 13th and 20th – Noreen Joyce and Molly Dollard. Sundays – April 30th and May 7th – Deidre Moore and Chloe Moms; May 14th and 20th – Bea Alley and Brandon.

The Ossory Pilgrimage to Lourdes will take place this year from May 22nd to May 27th inclusive. Price per person sharing is €775 which includes bus transport to and from the Airport. Bookings through the Glenmore Parish office: (051) 880414. Office hours Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 9.30am to 1.30pm. Very Rev. Michael A. O’Connor P.P. will be the director of the pilgrimage.

SYMPATHY is extended to Madeline Conroy and family, Scotts Lane and to Angela Mockler and family, Seandoire, Durrow on their recent bereavement.

Sympathy is extended to the family of Fr. Tom Delahunty whose death has taken place in California. A native of Cullahill, Fr. Tom spent 28 years as a US Army Chaplain.

Is your child doing enough study? Supervised study for Secondary School Students is held every Saturday from 9am until 1pm in The Presentation Centre, Durrow. For €24 your child will be getting 16 hours of supervised study time with study skills given. For more information please contact (087) 9510587.

CONGRATULATIONS to Alan and Stephanie Dwyer, Lisdowney and Erkindale Drive, Durrow, on the birth of a son.

Congratulations to Catherine Alley, The Square, Durrow and Terence O’Sullivan, Cork on their marriage this weekend.

Laois IFA are holding an Information Seminar on Thursday 27th of April from 6pm until 9pm in the Manor Hotel, Abbeyleix. Among the wide range of topics covered will be Fire Prevention, Grants for Home Improvements and Insulation, Farm Initiatives, Grants, Community Groups, New Partnership Funding, Legal Matters and Social Entitlements. Free Health Screening will also be available. All are welcome to come along and admission is free. It’s an opportunity for people get answers to their questions in an    informal chat at a local level.

Weekly Coffee: The Arthritis Ireland Kilkenny Branch hold their local coffee chat every Saturday morning from 11am until 12 noon in the fantastic Ossory Park Community Centre. Do you live with Fibromyalgia or Arthritis? Don’t suffer alone! Come for a chat, get out of the house, make new friends and know you’re not alone – looking forward to meeting you, we’ll have the kettle on! To find out more information you can call or text (087) 1491767.

International Fibromyalgia Day: This May 12th, the Arthritis Ireland Kilkenny Branch will hold an    information stand in the McDonagh Junction Shopping Centre. Do you know someone or are you living with Fibromyalgia? Come get more information and meet others living with the condition. Do you live with Fibromyalgia? Come to our weekly group: call or text (087) 1491767.

Consultant Rheumatologist, Oliver Fitzgerald talks in Kilkenny: On 22nd May the Arthritis Ireland Kilkenny Branch will host a FREE event with Consultant Rheumatologist, Professor Oliver Fitzgerald and Linda Murray Nutritionist. This will be held in the Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel from 5.30pm. Call or text (087) 1491767 to secure your seat.

ST VINCENT de PAUL: Anyone looking for help can contact us on (087) 3476012.

Monday 3rd April 2017 – There was no jackpot winner of €13,100. The numbers drawn were 04, 05, 15 and 25. The small draw winners were: €30: Ester O’Regan, Derrywood, Durrow; €25: Nadine Martin, Durrow and €20: Sarah Gaughan, Erkindale, Durrow, Co. Laois.

Monday 10th April 2017 – There was no jackpot winner of €13,250. The numbers drawn were 04, 08, 11 and 19. The small draw winners were: €30: Mary Lennon, Mary Street, Durrow, Co. Laois; €25: Angela Drennan, Erkindale, Durrow, Laois; €20: Hillary Gee, Dunmore, Durrow, County Laois.

Tuesday 18th April 2017 – There was no jackpot winner of €13,400. The numbers drawn were 01, 09, 17 and 26. The small draw winners were: €30: Kevin Galvin Snr, Ballyboodin, Ballacolla; €25: Josephine Kavanagh, Derrywood, Durrow; €20: Kevin Kelly, Newline, Durrow, County Laois.

The Results of the of Durrow Bridge Club’s last meeting on March 29th is as follows: First – Teresa Muldowney and Jimmy Ryan; Second – Tied – Nora Fitzpatrick and Teresa Phelan; Ann Fitzpatrick and Dolly Harding. Durrow Bridge Club continue their Bridge Club meetings every Wednesday night at 7.45pm in the Presentation Centre, Durrow. All are most welcome.

ADULT ART CLASSES: Adult Art Classes for all levels with qualified Art Teacher will be held on Thursday evenings at 7pm for two hours in Durrow Library. €12 per session or €50 for block of five  sessions. All materials provided (you can also bring your own). Enquiries to Marie (086) 3136028.

Laois Public Participation Network are holding a Crime Prevention Advice Seminar and a Meet your PPN Representative Session on Tuesday 25th April from 7.30pm until 9.30pm in The Killeshin Hotel, Portlaoise. For further information please contact Pamela Tynan, Laois PPN on (057) 8665661 or visit Laois PPNs new website at www.laoisppn.ie or find Laois PPN on Facebook.

FUELLING AMBITION ROADSHOW – CALLING ALL FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS! – PLACES ARE  FILLING UP QUICKLY FOR THIS FREE EVENT! Organised by Enterprise Ireland and Network Ireland, in conjunction with the Local Enterprise Office Laois and the Entrepreneurs Academy, the event will take place in The Portlaoise Heritage Hotel on Tuesday 25th April at 6pm. The Event is Free of Charge to existing and potential entrepreneurs and businesswomen and will showcase inspiring stories of female success. Event Facilitator for the evening is Mary O’ Rourke, Former Minister, renowned speaker and  published author. Helen Gee, founder of G’s Gourmet Jams and Maryrose Simpson, founder of Ladybug, two ambitious Laois entrepreneurs will share their business journeys and ‘steps to success’ at the event.

Durrow library would like to thank everyone for their donations of Lego. The Lego club will start after Easter break and will run on Wednesday after school with an additional session on Saturday should there be a lot of children interested. If anyone has any more Lego they would like to donate, please drop it in to the library at their convenience.

The Irish Comhrá Group meeting in Durrow Library had a good turn out for their first session. Some scheduling issues still have to be ironed out so the time and date of their next meeting will be advertised as soon as possible. If anyone would like to join the group please just contact Lori at the library.

Recent updates to the library system mean that some changes have happened. Details of these can be found online or in the library. Joining the library is still free but your library card will now work in any    library in the Republic of Ireland and books/dvds/CDs/magazines can be ordered at and delivered to  Durrow library from any of these libraries also.

LIVE WEATHER DATA: Visit www.laoisweather.com for the latest weather data from Durrow.

Unfortunately we are unable to run the bring and buy sale during the week at this years Scarecrow Festival due to the increased  entertainment and lack of room. It was a very difficult decision to make and we apologise to all our regular participants.

For any young adult or college student – are you interested in working with young people? Now is your chance to see if this is a career path that will suit you. If you would like to volunteer for the annual Scarecrow Summer Camp, please contact us through our Facebook Scarecrow Page as soon as possible so we can arrange Garda Vetting and bring you on board for the 2017 Scarecrow Festival!

The School is now enrolling new pupils for the 2017-2018 term. Please contact the School at (057) 8737281 for further details.

Progressive 25 Card Games are held in the hall every Sunday night at 8.30pm sharp followed by tea and sandwiches. Please support!

This year, 2017 is the 100th anniversary of the O’Brien’s starting their Headstone business in Durrow. If anyone has any old pictures of the Quarry on the Derry Road, Sean would be delighted to hear from you. You can email them to seanobrien1957@eircom.net or phone Sean on (086) 2656657 if you have them in paper form. Any additional details such as the names and date of the picture would be greatly appreciated.

Ladies spectacles in Dunmore wood car park a few weeks ago. Contact (086) 8263368.

The Ladies who compete every year in the Mini-Marathon on the June Bank Holiday Monday are reminded to register now as demand for places on the starting line is very high and will fill up very quickly. This year the funds raised will go to Motor Neurone Research. Sponsorship cards and t-shirts are available from Susan Lawlor.

Get fit, lose weight and feel better. With memberships from €32 per month, Personal training for less than €7 per session, at a time that suits you. Pilates, Yoga and Circuit training classes ongoing, you really have no more excuses! Feel free to come in and look around. For more information visit our website www.corehealthandfitness.ie or contact us on (087) 9302152 or (057) 8740637 or info@corehealthandfitness.ie by email.

A book with 200 pages of Photographs spanning almost 100 years of Durrow and Cullohill memories including ICA, Hurling, Camogie, Soccer, School to mention but a few. Books for sale €25 each or two for €40. Please text or call Tom on (087) 2936531 or Kathleen on (086) 8263368 for further information.

Come on down to the Castle Arms Hotel on Monday evenings from 8.15pm until 10.15pm for Set Dancing Classes. Beginners and advanced levels are all most welcome. For more information please contact Declan Doocey on (087) 2768680.

Now re-opened. Organic meat, apple juice, eggs and other produce. Farmshop and tearoom open Fridays and Saturdays 10am – 5pm; Sunday 11am – 5pm. Enquiries to Dominic (087)9694070.

The next newsletter will be on sale the weekend of May 6th and 7th. All adverts must be booked with Angela Drennan (087) 1928522 or Mary Walsh (086) 3055157. Advertisements cost €2 per issue of Durrow Parish Newsletter and must be paid for in advance.