Jack fights for his country
Congratulations and best wishes to Jack Connolly, The Green, a member of Clonmel Boxing Club, on being selected on the Irish International Schoolboys Boxing Squad. Following a telephone conversation from the National Boxing Stadium, Dublin, during the week, Jack who is two times All-Ireland Champion, will fight in his first International contest for Ireland against England, in Lawlors Hotel, Dungarvan, on Sunday 28th June.

Jack who is on a strict diet and training regime for the past number of weeks is in great shape and is really looking forward to this challenge in what has been an amazing journey for the past two years in the life of this talented and promising young boxer.

Again great credit is due to Jacks coach and mentor, Martin Fennessy of Clonmel Boxing Club — one of the best boxing clubs in the country. Last but not least, Jack, best of luck from all your family and friends.

Home on holiday from San Francisco

Declan Mulligan photographed with family members while home on holidays from San Francisco. Back L to R: Marian Gilpin, Declan Mulligan, Jodie Gilpin, Scott Winkel. Front L to R: Jodi Winkel and Tanya Mulligan.

‘Two Continents, One Gospel’ – ongoing Augustinian Mission Appeal
Four years ago, following a pastoral visit to Ecuador, Fr. Gerry Horan made an appeal on behalf of his Irish Augustinian colleagues working there. Your generous response in August '07 was as outstanding as in July '05. Your contributions helped hugely towards the continuation of daily, nutritious meals for children who might otherwise remain malnourished. The ‘Friends of The Abbey’ are hoping their up-coming Golf Classic & raffle will secure the continuation of these school meals for a few more years.

Fr. Gerry's travels have also taken him to Kenya and to Nigeria, where the Irish Augustinians are making heroic efforts to better the situation of the local people. A share of the proceeds from the planned Golf Classic will fund the payment of teachers in Augustinian mission schools in both countries.

To quote Fr. Gerry, “My abiding memory from visiting each mission, be it in Kenya, Ecuador or Nigeria, is the poor standard of living and the big difference even a modest financial contribution can make. Every cent collected over the past four years ago has gone directly to our Augustinian mission projects, the same will apply on this occasion.”

The ‘Friends of The Abbey’ are busy organising a Golf Classic at Sliavnamon Golf Course on Saturday 27th June '09 where the format is a three-ball scramble and team entry fee is €60. Should you wish, you can sponsor a Green for €50, or sponsor a Tee €50. Raffle tickets are on sale at €1 each at the Abbey house or from any committee member. For further information and entry forms, please contact: Brendan Kenny, Niamh Moroney, Nell Broderick, Bernard Walsh, Agnes T Evans, Kitty Delany, Mary Healy or Rita Walsh.

Happy 70th birthday to Gleeson twins

Twins, Eileen and Joan Gleeson from Knockelly, Fethard, photographed on the occasion of their 70th birthday, celebrated on the 12th June.


The Gleeson twins from Knockelly celebrated their 70th birthday with friends at Fethard & Killusty District Day Care Centre last week. Photographed on the occasion are L to R: Mary Harrington, Pauline Morrissey, Margaret Croke, Peg O'Reilly, Annie Ryan, Des Martin, Eileen Gleeson, Margaret Thompson, Joan Gleeson, Kitty O'Donnell, Jimmy Roche, Kathy Aylward, Jackie Aylward, Geraldine McCarthy (supervisor), Kitty O'Sullivan and Maggie Sayers.

Fethard and Killusty Community Games

Fethard athletes L to R: Paul Moloney, Darragh Bradshaw, Adam Fitzgerald and Alex O'Donovan.

Well done to all competitors from Fethard and Killusty area who travelled to Templemore on Sunday last to compete in County Athletics Finals. Congratulations to Ben Coen, son of Shay and Anne Killusty, who won a silver medal in the under-8 boys 60m event. Other children who participated were Annika and Joseph O’Connor, Darragh Lynch, Jack Spillane, Paul Moloney, Laura Kiely, Darragh Bradshaw, Alex O’Donovan, Jack Dolan, Liam and Kate Quigley. Athletics is always a highly competitive event and I’m sure everybody enjoyed the experience of competing on the tartan track despite the rain and are already looking forward to next year.


Fethard athletes L to R: Darragh Lynch and Jack Dolan


Hannah Phelan, grandaughter of Willie Phelan, Crampscastle, who represented Clerihan area at the Community Games Athletics Finals.


Ben Coen winner of a silver medal in the under-8 boys 60m race at Co Tipperary Community Games Athletics Finals in Templemore.


Kate Quigley, Fethard, competing in the girls under-14 long jump

ICA Guild summer outing
Fethard ICA Guild’s summer outing this year will take place on Thursday 2nd July.
The first stop will be at the Delta Sensory Gardens, Strawhall, Carlow. Set up in 2002, there are numerous gardens on the 2.5 acres site, designed by many famous garden designers, including Mary Reynolds, gold medal winner at Chelsea, Elma Fenton, another Chelsea winner, and international designer, Gordon Ledbetter.

The next stop will be Rathmore Garden Centre, Tullow, followed by dinner at Hotel Kilkenny where we finish the day.
Any member planning to travel who hasn't yet given their name, are asked to phone Anne Gleeson at 6131455 or Anne Horan at 6131411 as soon as possible. As always non-members are very welcome to join us. Bus will be leaving the Square at 10.15am sharp.

Anastasia heading for 106th birthday

Liz Sheehan, St. Patrick's Place, Fethard, photographed with her two brothers and aunt, Anastasia Kealy, who will celebrate her 106th birthday on 5th July 2009. Back L to R: Jimmy Kealy, Liz Sheehan and Front L to R: Anastasia Kealy and Willie Kealy

On Sunday 5th July, Anastasia Kealy will surly break a lot of records when she celebrates her 106th birthday. Stasia, alert and well, is an aunt of Liz Sheehan, St. Patrick’s Place, and speaking about her long life says, “I never smoked or I never drank and I don’t know the taste of whiskey and I don’t know the taste of wine.” Looking back on how she has lived her life she added: “I never said or did anything bad to anyone, thank God, and anyone I could help out I did. That’s the way I lived.”

Originally from Ballinphrace near Rathdowney in Co. Laois, Stasia is the last surviving member of the Kealy family and has outlived her 12 siblings, six of whom didn’t survive childhood. She has never travelled outside of Ireland, but contently looks back on her life and at a time when things were simpler.

In recent years Stasia moved to live in Castledermot where she now resides. We congratulate her on this special occasion and wish her a very Happy Birthday!

Fethard & Killusty Community Lotto
The numbers drawn on 10th June were 6, 14, 24 and 27. We had no Jackpot winner and two ‘Match 3’ winners who received €75 each:
Nora O'Meara, Cloneen, Fethard;
Johanna Bradshaw, Drumdeel, Fethard.

The three following Lucky Dip winners received €50 each:
Maura Meagher, c/o N. Donovan;
Marion Noonan, Drangan;
Ellen Morrissey, Barrack Street, Fethard.
Next week’s Jackpot continues at €10,000 and the Jackpot sellers prize is €1000.

Enjoying the sunshine

Fethard girls enjoying the good weather on Main Street L to R: Chloe Byrne, Orla Lawrence, Amanda Ryan, Aisha Tobin and Stephanie Allen.

Fethard & Killusty Community Council
The next meeting of Fethard & Killusty Community Council will take place on Tuesday 23rd June at 8.30pm in the Tirry Centre, Barrack Street.

Election 2009 – The Local Perspective
The Irish Local Government structure provides a forum for the building and expression of community identity. One of the main benefits of local government is the very fact that it is local and therefore accessible to us all. In its role as a mouthpiece of shared community interests a local authority can factor an area’s history, geography, political culture and economy into its decision-making process. Elected councillors are the supreme decision-makers in any local authority and most candidates go forward with a general commitment to serve the community. The recently held elections have brought forward a new mix of councillors to represent the Fethard Electoral Area for the next five years. These are Cllr. Jimmy O’Brien (FG); Cllr. John Fahey (FG); Cllr. Joe Brennan (FG); Cllr. Denis Landy (Lab); Cllr. Eddie O’Meara (Ind) and Cllr. Sylvia Cooney-Sheehan (FF).


Cllr. Jimmy O'Brien, poll topper for the Fethard Electoral Area

This was Jimmy O’Brien’s first time contesting the local elections. He had been co-opted onto South Tipperary County Council during 2006 following the untimely death of his father, Michael. Fittingly, the third anniversary of this event occurred on day before the elections were held. Wow, what an impression did Jimmy make at the polls! He topped the poll with a massive 2438 first preference votes (accounting for 23.9% of total votes) and was duly elected on the first count with an excess of almost 1000 votes over quota. It is believed that this is the highest vote ever achieved in the Fethard Electoral Area. Well done, Jimmy. Elections aside, it had been a busy time for Jimmy as the newest member of his family was born during the week. Indeed, the celebrations at the count centre, on Saturday, were made all the sweeter for Jimmy and family with the surprise arrival of his wife, Úna, and baby Tiernan to cheer him on.

Jimmy would like to express his sincere gratitude to the people of Fethard and surrounding area for their support to him throughout the election campaign and, especially, on Election Day. He looks forward to representing the people of Fethard into the future and pledges to continue to work for the betterment of the entire area. Jimmy is intent on maintaining the hands-on approach he has developed in his role as public representative and firmly believes in developing direct lines of communication with those who seek his assistance. During the campaign trail Jimmy found that the single biggest issue was the deplorable state of many rural roads and he considers that one of the greatest challenges facing the local authority is the consequences of the discontinuation of small grants, such as the housing adaptation grant. He believes that, for a relatively low cost, these grants benefit people and greatly improve their situation and, looking at the wider picture, enable people to stay in their own home for as long as possible, negating the much bigger cost, to the State, for nursing home care. Looking to the future, Jimmy would like to see the significant tourism potential, and associated benefits, of Fethard being realised. He would also like to see the provision of adequate childcare and eldercare facilities in each community throughout the area.

A stalwart of South Tipperary County Council, and former Chairman (2007-2008), Cllr. John Fahey is commencing his third term as a public representative for the Fethard Area. John would like to thank the people of Fethard for the support shown to him during the election campaign. He would particularly like to thank Fethard Community Council, Fethard Historical Society and the many other organisations with whom he has worked with for the past ten years and looks forward to continuing to work with them into the future. In his time as Councillor John has seen much progress in the workings of the local authority, he believes that the current collaboration between the various sections within the Council itself and also between the Council and other organisations greatly benefits the general public and community groups. He says that there is much co-ordination of services, both internally and externally, and ‘joined-up-thinking’ is, slowly, becoming a reality. This situation is a big improvement from a time when each group worked in isolation with little or no contact with others.

The main issues that John came across when he was canvassing were worries in relation to jobs, people had either lost their job or were fearful that they would lose them, and the state of the roads, there was much criticism of the ineffectiveness of tar and chippings. John believes that the major challenge for the Council, in addition to the roads, is the public water supply. He considers that the quality of water is a big concern and that it is necessary that adequate funds are secured to develop the, long-promised, Fethard Regional Water Scheme.

Cllr. Fahey has identified the following projects to be addressed in Fethard. The acquisition and development of the lands at Rocklow Road to include a Childcare Centre, Playground, Amenity Area and extended pitch and sports areas; Improvement to the Town Wall following the recent allocation of €85,000 funding; an overall plan for the Town Hall with a view to getting it back to its original best and a building to be proud of; to ‘sell’ the uniqueness of Fethard as a tourist attraction and to promote the development of additional tourist accommodation; to avail of the role of the Heritage Officer, Labhaoise McKenna, especially in the education of young children so that they will develop a lifelong appreciation of their hometown and the provision of a full time professional Youth Worker for the area.

John considers that the people of Fethard should be proud of the history and heritage of the town. He acknowledges the ongoing work carried out by organisations such as the Community Council and the Historical Society and looks forward to creating and maintaining links, in whatever way he can, between them and the County Council.
The following extract ‘The County Councillor’s Song’, taken from the recently published ‘All Politics is Local: A Guide to the Local Elections in Ireland’, was first printed in 1900. Is it still true today?

I am a county councillor, a very public man
To benefit the people I’ll do everything I can;
In all my waking moments for their welfare I will scheme
And in the arms of Morpheus of improvements I will dream.
local legislator and a man of high renown,
I am the county councillor, the greatest man in town.

Corpus Christi Procession in Fethard

Leading the Corpus Christi Procession in Fethard on Sunday last were L to R: Fr. John Meagher OSA, Fr. Anthony McSweeney C.C., Fr. Peter Haughey OSA, and Pauline Morrissey.


Gus Maher photographed at the Corpus Christi Procession in Fethard on Sunday last. Gus never fails to miss coming back to Fethard for the annual procession.

Fethard Macra