Christmas Mass Times

Abbey Church
Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24, at 9pm;
Christmas Day, Saturday 25th December at 9.30am and 11.30am.

Parish Church
Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24, at 8pm;
Christmas Day, Saturday, December 25, at 8.30am and 11am.
St. Stephen’s Day ‘Feast of the Holy Family’ at 8.30am, 11am and 7pm.

Killusty Church of the Sacred Heart
Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24, at 9pm;
Christmas Day, Saturday, December 25, at 10am.
St. Stephen’s Day ‘Feast of the Holy Family’ at 10am

Emigrants Newsletter on Sale
The Annual Fethard & Killusty Emigrants’ Newsletter is now on sale in local shops at €12 each. This year’s issue is the largest yet with over 250 pages of articles and photographs including features of ‘Stella Days’ and Killusty National School Centenary Celebrations. We expect this year’s issue to sell out fast so we advise early purchase to avoid disappointment.

The annual Church Gate Collection in aid of the Annual Newsletter will take place in the parish weekending January 2. Your support is much appreciated.

Carol Singing in aid of CRC
The annual ‘Carol Singing’ on the streets of Fethard will take place on this Thursday, December 23, commencing from Fethard Town Hall at 8pm. All are welcome. Proceeds will be donated to the Central Remedial Clinic in Dublin to supplement their annual 'Santa Bear Appeal'. This is a very worthwhile cause for the CRC’s on-going support and help for affected children and their families.

The GOAL Mile
The annual GOAL Mile will take place again this year on Christmas Day, at 12 noon. Assemble at the Town Hall. Walk, jog, run, crawl, bring the dog! Whatever you fancy, come along and join in the fun.

Fethard GAA Club News
Fethard GAA Annual Convention will take place shortly after Christmas.

Congratulations to Mary Kane (Kerry St Fethard) on winning €200 in the December County Board Club Draw

This week’s Lotto Jackpot €5,300 was not won. The numbers drawn were: 1, 4, 14 and 24. We had no match three winner so the following drawn tickets won €30: Josie Fitzgerald (Kiltinan, Fethard); Nancy Ryan (Tullamaine, Fethard); Philippi Sabatini (Main St Fethard); Mary Murphy (Coolmore, Fethard); Arian Duffy (c/o Merrys Clonmel). The €50 Lucky Dip went to: Marta Williams, (Rathgormack, Co Waterford).

The previous week’s numbers drawn were: 4, 14, 22, 27, with two match three winners of €75 each to Ann Marie Butler (Main St, Fethard): and Mary Godfrey (Derryluskin, Fethard). The €50 Lucky Dip going to Tom Kearney (Killusty, Fethard).

The previous week’s numbers drawn were: 13, 14, 25, 30. There was no match three winners so the following drawn tickets won €30 each: Davy Maher (8 Barrack St, Fethard); Ester Breen (Barrack St, Fethard); Dylan Tobin (Kilnockin, Fethard); Michael Teehan (Moyglass, Fethard); Megan Coen The Green, Fethard). The €50 Lucky Dip winner was Ann Marie Butler, (Main St, Fethard).
The previous week’s numbers drawn were: 7, 19, 26, 32. There was no match three winners so the following drawn tickets won €30 each: Austin O’Flynn (Abbey St, Fethard); Josie Fitzgerald (Kiltinan, Fethard); Bernadette McManus (Burke St, Fethard); Greta O’Dwyer (Red City, Fethard) and Danny Kane (Kerry St. Fethard). The €50 Lucky Dip going to Josie Fitzgerald (Kiltinan, Fethard).

Thanks to the Fethard Branch of Clonmel Credit Union for providing the tickets for the draws.

Our Sincere Condolences are at this time with the family of James Connolly (The Valley) and the family of Susan O’Meara (St Patricks Place) on their recent bereavements. Go ndeana Dia trocaire orthu.
We wish all our officers, committee, players, team selectors, club members, supporters and sponsors, a very Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year

Fethard Bridge Club Results
On Wednesday, December 15, we played for Christmas Prizes which were presented at our Christmas Party in Slievenamon Golf Club on December 17. The results were as follows:
1st Gross: Carmel Condon and Brendan Kenny;
2nd Gross: David O'Meara and Nell Broderick;
3rd Gross: Rita Kane and Kay St. John;
4th Gross: Brigid Gorey and Betty Walsh;
5th Gross: Anne Connolly and Eileen Frewen;
6th Gross: Bridie Lee and Mike Burke.
1st Nett: Philly Kenny and Nora Lawrence;
2nd Nett: Gemma Burke and Carol Kenny;
3rd Nett: Frances Burke and Breda Walsh;
4th Nett: Annie O'Brien and Marie Delaney;
5th Nett: Mary Tierney and Betty Egan;
6th Nell: Monica Anglim and Margaret Smith.

On November 24 we played for the Gross Turkey and the results were:
1st Gross: Michael Kenny and Tony Hanrahan;
2nd Gross: Brendan Kenny and Carmel Condon;
3rd Gross: Berney Myles and Eileen Frewen;
1st Nett: Ellen Rochford and Suzanne Opray;
2nd Nett: Annie O'Brien and Marie Delaney;
3rd Nett: Bridie Lee and Mike Burke.

Our Nett Turkey and Change of Partner Turkey competitions had to be cancelled because of bad weather. Bridge resumes on January 5. Anyone looking for a partner contact Berney Myles at 6132038.

Launch of New Photographic Artwork
The launch of a photographic project at Fethard Youth Centre, took place on December 15. The project was part of the South Tipperary County Council Arts Service Connex10 Youth Arts Programme. Participants from the Youth Centre attended workshops entitled Composition and Context with artist Pat Looby. Through the workshops the group explored some elements of photography that focused on creative composition and choosing a subject. The theme for this project was a sense of place and time, and the students used the locality of Fethard to create imaginative, original photographs that were hung in the Youth Centre to be on permanent display. For further information about the project contact Sally O'Leary, Arts Officer, South Tipperary County Council, 052 6134565 or email sally.oleary@southtippcoco.ie

Xmas Macra Notes
Recently a great night was had by many members of South Tipperary clubs as a number of us took ourselves on the trip to Limerick to see the welsh 'Cardiff Blue's' take on the might of Munster in Thomond Park, despite the weather and the fog that obscured play for the last ten minutes it was a great evening. Afterwards many of us retired for the evening to the nearby 'Sin bin' for a night of craic before heading back to the hotel in the wee hours.

Recently we have had a number of new members who've joined our club, this is great to see and a great boost for us all as the lifeblood of any club is to have a constant trickle of new members every year.
At the last meeting in Butler's, Michael Manley from Cork was in attendance. Michael directed us and guided us through to the national drama all-Ireland final in Waterford back in March. He announced that next years play will be 'The Hitchhiker', a 25 minute American thriller. It is a very challenging play to stage and should be an interesting one for the club to take on. Rehearsals start in January.

Fortnightly soccer on a Friday night in Clonmel has finished, it will resume again next October. Volleyball is on going in Clerihan hall every Thursday night at 9pm.

For those interested in the South Tipperary New Year’s ball in the Clonmel Park Hotel, tickets are selling fast so make your booking quickly with Michael Mockler on 087 9019443. Tickets are a recession busting €40, which includes a mulled wine reception, meal, band and disco! Dress code is formal.

Finally may we thank all the people in the area who helped out the club here in Fethard during the year, you are too numerous to mention individually.

We are grateful for all those who supported our events and advised us along the way. We wish you a happy and safe Christmas from all here at Fethard Macra.

For anyone interested in joining the club or with any enquiries regarding our activities contact our chairperson, David Ryan on 087 9454384.

Hunting News
The Tipperary Foxhounds, due to the prevailing arctic spell, were forced to cancel their Moyglass meet on Saturday. They did, however, hunt at Boscabell on Tuesday and Ballydine on Thursday. Their best run on Tuesday was from Georgesland over Mayfield to Kevin Walsh’s and back again to Georgesland where they caught him. On Thursday from Ballydine, having drawn Peter Curling’s blank, moving across the road to Bawnmore they found again.

A fox found here could not be forced to leave and was left. From Joe Ryan’s they were quickly away. Running through the large fields towards Ballinahinch they caught their fox after just twenty minutes. From Kilbreedy they hunted to Ardmayle Bridge back down to where they found and lost him. Finding in Longfield Stud they hunted up and down the long grove by the banks of the Suir.

This fox also decided there was no place like home and was marked to ground. Their last draw in the large bog by the railway line proved blank. Derry decided to hunt the hounds on foot for exercise on Saturday. Drawing Buffana Wood they hunted very well in the forest and over to Burnchurch.

With the White Heathers
The Ballylusky White Heathers also had to cancel their meet at Peppardstown on Sunday. As hounds are now only out one day per week Donie decided to give them a gallop in the big plantation across the road from Kickham’s Tree on the Cloneen Mullinahone Road.
An excellent mornings hunting ensued. Finding just inside the entrance gate hounds were away immediately. Hunting with great cry they ran three circles of the covert with a few short excursions out and back again before marking to ground near the road, an excellent forty minutes. Drawing on they found again right on the edge of the forest at the Cloneen side. They ran right to the other end and down almost to the Five-Eyed-Bridge. Doing a U-turn here Charlie ran back almost to where found. He left covert here and ran right-handed up to the Kylenagranagh Road. Right-handed again he ran back towards Ballycullen where they checked and were stopped as hounds had just about enough.

Hunting is certainly a funny old game. Last season Donie drew the same covert for two hours and failed to find. This season what was intended to be just a hound exercise operation turned out to be probably the best mornings hunting of the season. As Ned Kelly said, just before his execution, ‘Such is Life’.

Winners in the December draw were First Prize: €200 – Barry Walsh; Second: €100 – Katie O’Flynn, Woodvale Walk. Hounds meet at Drangan on St. Stephen’s Day; Sunday, January 2, Coolbawn; January 9, Ballylusky and January 16, at Loughcopple.

The Ballylusky White Heathers wish all landowners, followers, supporters and readers of the column a very Happy Christmas, a Holy and Prosperous New Year and Good Hunting for 2011.

Emigrants Newsletter collection
The Annual Church Gate Collection in aid of the Fethard & Killusty Emigrants Newsletter will take place in the parish (after Christmas) weekending, January 2, 2011. Proceeds will go towards covering the cost of posting over 900 Newsletters free of charge to our emigrants living throughout the world.

We appeal for your support as our annual donations have dropped by 25% over the past two years and we accept this is due to the effects of the current recession. But in recession time, the number of emigrants from our parish drastically increases and with this in mind we ask you to enable us to continue our service by supporting our church gate collection or by making a donation online at: www.fethard.com/donate/

Please hand in your change of addresses and any new address for the Emigrants’ Newsletter mailing list to Joe Kenny, Rocklow Road, or Carmel Rice, Brookhill, as soon as possible. Every year, a certain number of Newsletters are returned because people have changed address or come back home to live. Please help us avoid this waste of postage costs by checking if your family member’s addresses are up to date and letting us know if they have changed since last Christmas.
The Newsletter has gone to print and will be on sale in local shops in the coming week.

Fethard and Killusty Community Games
The committee of Fethard and Killusty Community Games would like to take this opportunity to wish everybody a very happy and holy Christmas and successful 2011. Due to a big increase in the number of events on the National Programme activities now begin much earlier in the year so therefore we hope to arrange a meeting in very early January to establish the teams we wish to enter for 2011. Closing date for these entries with the county board is Saturday, January 15.
The team events on offer are: badminton, basketball, camogie, chess, choir, draughts, under-10 mixed football, under-11 hurling, under-12 girls’ football, handball, futsal, tennis, outdoor and indoor soccer, mini rugby and tag rugby, volleyball and under-14 juvenile quiz. The quiz was quite a success last year.

It is important that people give this some thought over the Christmas period and decide what teams are definitely available. There is no point in entering teams just for the sake of it. This can be very confusing and destructive to the team draws.

Individual events catered for are: art, athletics, cycling on grass, gymnastics and swimming, but these may be entered at a later stage.
The current committee are: Joe Keane (chairman), Peggy Colville (secretary), both chairman and secretary will also undertake the work of treasurer; Peggy Colville (public relations), Helena O’Shea (development officer), Alice Butler (games director); Helena O'Shea and Alice Butler (delegates to county board), Valerie Connolly (child officer). Committee: John Stokes, Aine Tyrell, Tom Tobin, Denis Burke, Mary Walsh, Patsy Lawrence, Kieran Butler, Mary Horan, Justin McGree, Anthony Wall and Mary Lynch.

Big thank you to all who assisted with our events during the year. Keeping you all on the mailing list.

Community Lotto Christmas Prizes
The numbers drawn on Wednesday, December 15, were 12, 14, 17 and 24. We had No Jackpot winner and two ‘Match Three’ winners who received €75 each: Seamus Doherty, c/o Nellie Ryan; and Willie O'Donnell, Red City.

This week’s three ‘lucky dip’ winners of €50 each were: Marty Davey, Farranshea; Tony Morgan, Slievenamon Close, Fethard; and Aidan Kenny, Barrack Street, Fethard.

We also had six Christmas turkey & ham draws this week the winners were:
Christmas Turkey Winners: Audrey Devitt, Strylea, Fethard; Margaret Phelan, Strylea; and Josephine Boland, Rathkenny, Drangan.

Christmas Ham Winners: Mary Shanahan, c/o Nellie Ryan; Pat Carroll, Main Street, Fethard; and Anna Cooke, St. Patricks Place, Fethard.

The Lotto Committee would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support during 2010 and look forward to your continued support in 2011. A very Merry Christmas and happy New Year to all. The lotto will resume on Wednesday, January 5, 2011.