TIMOLIN TOYMAKER IS FINALIST IN 2026 FAMILY BUSINESS AWARDS

A toy-making business co-founded by a ten-year-old pupil of Ballyshannon NS has been selected as a finalist in a national business competition, writes Brian Byrne. William Alexander Toys, based in Timolin, is a father-and-son enterprise operated by Ioannis Syrigos and his son William, which is in the regional final for the Innovative Family Business of the Year (Leinster) at the 2026 Family Business Awards, in association with Goodbody. The winner will be announced on Thursday, 5 November, at the Johnstown Estate in Enfield.

The enterprise, which gets its trading name from William’s first and middle names, designs and 3D prints toys, puzzles and stereograms in a home workshop. The products include several ‘fidget’ toys especially suitable for school sensory rooms, and the business has been approached by a commercial provider of such facilities to have William Alexander toys included in their equipment.

Meeting the young entrepreneur in his working environment can be somewhat overwhelming as he points around a range of high-tech equipment, blithely talking about the applications and merits of different 3D printers, laser engravers, and mould presses. The sense is that I’m listening to someone who has acquired degrees in electronics and engineering, more than a boy still with some years of primary school to finish.

William and his father. (Photo: Holst-Photography-Ireland.)

William’s mechanical and entrepreneurial traits were obviously inspired by his father’s career as an engineer, academic, scientist, AI expert, explorer and businessman. Ioannis’s Ancient Origins online magazine details interests and investigations and articles relating to archaeology, folklore, mythology, various scientific disciplines, and what are termed simply as ‘unexplained’ and ‘weird facts’.

William earned money for his first 3D printer by doing work for Ancient Origins. His earnings today come from selling William Alexander toys at local markets. He says he likes selling (“and I’m very good at it”). During my visit to Timolin, William’s printers were producing Halloween-themed toys, clearly getting ready for the market before the end-of-month festival. 

He also showed an invention-in-progress, an electronic palm scanner that can tell fortunes. “It works,” he commented before putting it aside to explain the technique involved in turning photographs into personalised holographic images inside glass blocks.

The business has a comprehensive website illustrating ‘Premium Toys for Extraordinary Kids’, with sections on Book Nooks, Sensory Treasures, Personalisation, and Dragons. That last is a series of collectibles for children (or adults who might be so inclined!) which are added to with new designs every month. There’s also a plan to devise an adventure game which will incorporate the dragons. 

Reflecting the recent commercial interest in the sensory toys, there’s now also a business-to-business (B2) website, William Alexander Studio.

William muses about, at some future stage, bringing the enterprise to the attention of the Dragon’s Den equivalent in the family’s Greece homeland, for investment and scaling up. As it is, a friend in Greece with her own 3D printer is already manufacturing and selling William Alexander products there.

In the meantime, though, there’s finishing his years at Ballyshannon NS to be done, and consideration of further education. We’ll leave for another time his commentary on whether or not education will be overtaken and made redundant by AI, even before he reaches that stage …

William working on a sculptural wall hanging. (image: William Alexander Toys.)

With the finished product. (image: William Alexander Toys.)

William and his friend Marilena at a market. (image: William Alexander Toys.)

Some of the wide range of products produced at the workshop. (image: William Alexander Toys.)

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TRACEY CONTINUES MARATHON PUSH FOR SKATE PARK

Kildare County Council is being asked to develop an urban design framework in Kilcullen that would include a skate park and greenway on council-owned land at the rear of Kilcullen GAA and Kilcullen Business Park, writes Brian Byrne. The request is the substance of a motion from Cllr Tracey O'Dwyer for the next meeting of the Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District.

The councillor has been pursuing the bike track–skate park project with the council for three years. In November 2023 she asked for a suitability assessment for the site for such a youth activity, and did receive a commitment to a feasibility study, but with the caveat that it would "have to wait until existing projects and works outlined in the Parks Section Works Programme have been completed."

Expressing the hope that the study could be carried out in 2024, she asked that the item be kept on the Progress Report. 

In January 2024, Cllr O'Dwyer repeated her hope of a commitment to the facility in a 'wish-list' in advance of completing her first five-year stint as a public representative. In April of that year, she sought confirmation of progress from council officials, and a site meeting was arranged. 

In January 2025, a skate park was included in several motions from the councillor accepted as objectives of the Kilcullen Settlement Plan. By April 2025, various spaces in Kilcullen were being evaluated for the proposed skate park, against a background of funding having been put aside for three such facilities in the Kildare-Newbridge MD. Cllr O'Dwyer expressed the hope that the project could work through the steps to get to design stage and tender by the end of last year.

The marathon continues ... Wednesday, 21 October.

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BARRY DEAY MEMORIAL 5K WALK/RUN

The Barry Deay Memorial 5K Walk/Run will take place on Monday, 26 October 2026, at 12pm at Crookstown Millview Athletic Club, Inchaquire, Narraghmore. 

Keeping Barry’s spirit alive, donations can be made on the day or via Revolut, with proceeds going to CRY Ireland and Crookstown Millview Athletic Club. 

For more information, follow @barrydeaymemorial.

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RUNNING WITH RAGGY TO KEEP WALKWAY LIGHTS ON

Kilcullen GAA’s own Bobby Molloy will run 160km over 24 hours on 16–17 October around the community walkway to raise money for Kilcullen GAA, writes the club's Mark Phelan. The run will start at 11am on Friday 16th and will have kids from Scoil Bhride running alongside in relays. 

Bobby will run through the night and the mammoth effort will end on Saturday 17th with kids from our juvenile academy running with Bobby for the last hours as we round out our academy year.

This run is only for children and sponsorship cards are being distributed via Scoil Bhride. We ask anyone who uses the walkway or any of our facilities to consider sponsoring a child.

As costs soar, so does the need to keep fundraising to Keep The Lights On. Let's get the kids Running With Raggy and Bobby — all your support is greatly appreciated. 

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VALLEY VOICES CHRISTMAS SINGALONG

Valley Voices Kilcullen Community Choir is hosting a Christmas Family Singalong on Sunday, 20 December, at 7:30pm. The event will take place at Kilcullen National School, and all ticket proceeds will benefit the Kilcullen Lions Club. 

Tickets are priced at €10 and can be bouugt from Frances Clare at 087 9746000, Daragh Fitzgerald at 087 2563340, or via Eventbrite at this link. 

A wonderful evening of music and community spirit is promised.

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BOOK YOUR SCARY SEAT FOR HOKUM

Just in time for getting into the Halloween spirit, Kilcullen Bridge Cinema is showing an atmospheric folk horror film on Tuesday 20 October. Hokum is an Irish ghost story with a sense of fun. 

Directed by Damian McCarthy and starring Adam Scott, Peter Coonan, David Wilmot and Florence Ordesh, Hokum tells the story of successful American author Ohm Bauman. He travels to a creaky hotel in Ireland to scatter his parents’ ashes. Rude and dismissive towards the locals and staff, Ohm is nonetheless fascinated by the stories about the hotel’s supposedly haunted honeymoon suite. When one staff member mysteriously disappears, Ohm investigates and uncovers the hotel’s many dark secrets. But he also draws the attention of some very sinister and dangerous forces.

It is a delightfully eerie story, both blackly comic and genuinely creepy. Severance star Adam Scott leads the cast, giving what has been described as his best work to date. Hokum promises an evening of scares, chills, wicked jokes and supernatural gloom.

Tickets €7 on sale in Woodbine Books, Kilcullen, and on Eventbrite.

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REGISTRATION OPEN FOR RUN RUN RUDOLPH

Registration is now open for Kilcullen GAA's 2026 Run Run Rudolph event, which promises to be bigger and better than ever. The event takes place on Saturday and Sunday Dec 12th and 13th, with distance options of 2.5km, 5km, 10km, and half-marathon.

Participants can register at popupraces.ie and enjoy a 10 per cent early bird discount by using the code KilcullenGAA before October 31st. 

For more information on the event and routes, visit the Run Run Rudolph page on kilcullengaa.ie. Note that entry is limited to maximum capacity, so early registration is advised. 

All proceeds will support the upkeep of the facilities.

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WHIST ON THURSDAY

The monthly Whist Drive organised by Kilcullen Lions is on Thursday, 15 October, in Scoil Bhride. Start time is, as usual, 8pm.

All card players welcome.

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OPEN DAY FOR 2027 JUNIOR INFANTS AT HALVERSTOWN NS

A reminder that an open day at Halverstown National School for prospective Junior Infants will be held next Thursday, 15 October, from 1:15pm to 2:30pm. It will feature stories, sweet treats, and lots of fun.

The school has also provided details about the after-school care provided by Cairdeas Childcare, which includes an infant story club from 1:40pm to 2:40pm and a homework club from 2:40pm to 6:00pm, with flexible pick-up times. 

Children receive a snack during sessions, and evening activities include homework supervision and games. Various attendance options are available. 

Cairdeas is an independent registered company and all staff are fully trained, Garda vetted, and insured. Contact Mary Sherlock at 087 7798235 for any inquiries.

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CLIMATE AND ENERGY TO DOMINATE COUNCIL MEETING

Climate and energy topics will dominate at the full meeting of Kildare County Council at Áras Chill Dara on 19 October, writes Brian Byrne. Topping the agenda is a cross-party call for the government to impose an immediate national moratorium on new data centres until formal planning rules are in place to assess peak electricity demand, local grid capacity, and the mandatory use of district heating systems. 

Members will also ask the council to consider a feasibility study to install photovoltaic solar panels as a canopy on the car park at Áras Chill Dara, to help reduce the emissions footprint of the council's HQ. 

Measures called for to future-proof the local authority itself include mandatory climate literacy training for councillors, to support oversight within statutory carbon budgets, and a dedicated climate adaptation programme targeting surface-water flooding caused by intense rainfall.

Another motion seeks fresh updates on the county’s long-term Wind Energy Strategy and there is also a request that the authority accelerates home retrofits to a minimum B2 standard, alongside a pilot scheme funding energy audits for local community halls.

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