Kilcullen in 2011 Pt 1
The year began as the previous one had ended—cold. Snow was still causing various community cancellations, and the Stephen's Day Wags & Wellies charity football match was postponed twice, eventually being played on St Patrick's Day.
January also saw concerns become public about the loss of €600,000 in grants for a proposed Childcare and Family Resource Centre, for which a committee had been working for a decade. In a response, a public meeting organised by Kilcullen Community Action resulted in the formation of a new group to restart the project.
The planning application by KCA for another long-term project, the lowering of the CPC convent wall and replacing the stone with a railing, got into top gear with an architectural appraisal of the structure. This was to result in the work being completed before year's end.
A local family in Gilltown, the McGlincheys, was part of a national radio story when they took on a challenge from the John Murray Show to undertake a 'digital fast', or do without all their electronic gadgets for a week. That prompted some pupils and the principal of Brannoxtown NS to do similar in support. In turn, RTE 1 sent in TV cameras to the school to follow up the story.
In February, ten youngsters from the Drama Dynamics theatre workshop also brought Kilcullen in focus nationallly, when they appeared on the RTE 2 youth TV programme Elev8 to give their opinions on the Government and political leadership.
The famous artifact owned by the Byrne family, Dan Donnelly's Arm, went off again on its travels as part of a Fighting Irishmen exhibition which had already seen it shown in New York, Boston, Omagh and Croke Park. This time it was on display in the University of Limerick.
A presentation on how home dialysis can help people with failed kidneys live a more normal family and working life was made at the home of Padraig and Liz Maloney, Castlemartin. Padraig is a dialysis patient, and the occasion was also a reminder of the importance of the Diageo Charity Race at the Punchestown Festival in the summer, which has raised more than €1.1m for the Punchestown Kidney Research Fund over 21 years.
The General Election also took place in February, and a very special voter, 'Bridgie' Aspell, went to Scoil Bhride to cast her vote, then finished up that evening in Fallons, blowing out the candles on a cake to celebrate her 101st birthday.
The following day, local FG candidate Martin Heydon was elected to represent Kildare South in Dail Eireann.
From the other side of the world, locally-born Irene McDonnell wrote of the terror in the earthquake in Christchurch, where she lives with her family. "For each and every person still alive they will never, ever forget those terrifying hours," she wrote, "but we are alive to tell, emotionally shattered, but with a glimmer of hope in our hearts to go on and help each other in any little way we can."
In March, writer and broadcaster Christy Kenneally gave an inspiring and humourous talk on dealing with bereavement.
In the middle of the same month, as well as in the middle of the recession, Brendan and Mairead Talbot opened their Dresser Store, reflecting a return to traditional tastes and values. As its name suggests, Brendan and Mairead sell kitchen dressers, all made in Brendan's joinery at Kilmead near Athy. They were just one of a number of small entrepreneurs who braved the waves of the financial downturn to set up new businesses.
In the music game, locals were also setting up new bands and strumming to make their names in a variety of pubs throughout mid-Kildare. They included the Flock of Budgies from Kilcullen, who look like making a seriously big impact in coming years.
Local writer Hazel Gaynor went back in time to the 1930s, and took a try at working the way a housewife (we allowed use that term now?) had to do things in that period. She detailed her experiences on her Hot Cross Mum blog. The project was undertaken by Proctor and Gamble, who have undertaken lots of research to explore the 'Changing Face of Motherhood' over the last 80 years.
March also saw the final legal clearance for Kilcullen Boxing Club to move to its new premises at Kilcullen Community Centre, marking the end of an era which began in the early 1960s when the club built its own premises, the JFK Hall.
April opened well for Tara Haughton, a CPC student who came up with the 'Rosso Solini' idea for making ordinary shoes into fashion items. She captured the Senior Student Enterprise Award at the national finals in Croke Park, heading off competition from over 15,000 students from 400 schools around the country.
Kilcullen Drama Group put on a tour de force version of Brian Friel's 'Dancing at Lughnasa', a presentation of a dark and sad part of an Ireland of not so long ago.
And another bit of dark Ireland of not so long ago surfaced during the annual Childrens Easter Egg Walk organised by parents of Brannockstown children. A shotgun was found hidden in a tree as the youngsters searched for eggs on the Green Avenue.
In the KARE McMahon Centre on the CPC campus, a poignant occasion was the planting of a tree in memory of Joe Maher, who had driven a bus for KARE for more than three decades. And St Brigid's Hospice benefited from a Coffee Morning which had been organised in tribute to him.
Down in Market Square, the riverside wall was seriously damaged when a car coming down the north hill at speed missed its turn and careened into the square. At the time of writing, ine months on, the damage has not yet been repaired.
Back on the other side of the world, the death in Australia of a woman born in Kilcullen in 1918 ended the direct link with the town for an Australian actor who counts among his credits the TV series 'Home and Away', many films and stage plays, and the voice of an alien, Lama Su in 'Star Wars'. Margaret Mary Phelan, the daughter of a saddler working for Berneys who emigrated from 'a divided island', was aunt to actor Anthony Phelan, who today lives in Sydney.
There was an enthusiastic turnout in mid-May when Neven Maguire came to Nolans Butchers on behalf of the Craft Butchers of Ireland, giving tips on how to cook secondary cuts and signing copies of his latest book.
In yet another Kilcullen 'wall' story, a badly derelict section over the Valley Park was repaired in days, as part of the upcoming visit of Queen Elizabeth of England. It was just one of a number of improvements in the area to take place as part of the monarch's private visit to Gilltown Stud. Her drive-through Kilcullen brought crowds out for what everybody agreed was a great day.
Kilcullen's input into Palestine Awareness Week was organised by seven Cross & Passion Transition Year students who were working to earn John Paul II Awards. In association with the SUAS Knitting Group they both raised awareness of the situation, and helped to provide aid to a maternity hospital in Bethlehem.
An era ended when John Joe and Noreen Dowling quietly closed their Flowers & Gifts shop on Main Street, after 49 years in the business.
June opened with Brannockstown festival, highlights of which were a tour of Harristown House and a talk on the old Sallins-Tullow railway, which passed through the village.
In mid-month, the new Community Playground, built at a cost of more than €230,000, was opened by Fr Paddy Ryan, whose efforts as curate in recent years had helped the project enormously.
The month also saw the 80th birthday for local man Gerry Coleman, who was presented with a special cake in Fallons.
It was June too when another enterprise was set up in Kilcullen, this time a local place for getting bedding plants and other gardening requirements. The Garden Shop was established by Kevin Noud Landscaping from Kilrush.
And the month ended with another opportunity for Kilcullen to shine on the national TV airways. This time it was the GAA's turn, picked as a team for Celebrity Bainisteoir. The celebrity in this case was RTE's Brenda Donohue. Unfortunately the club didn't get beyond the first round, being narrowly beaten by Derry.
(The second half of 2011 in Kilcullen will be recalled tomorrow.)
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