Issue 34 Volume 10 : Thursday October 22nd 2020

MOYA LAUNCH VIRTUAL FESTIVAL

As the virtual MOYA festival is set to take place this coming Bank Holiday weekend, there’s no better time to announce the launch of their brand new website www.moyaballybunion.ie

The festival of Meditation, Ocean, Yoga and Art (MOYA) was unable to take place last May Bank Holiday weekend due to Covid restrictions and as this is still the case with us back in level 5 lockdown, the usual October weekend festival cannot take place either, so the organisers with the help of the practitioners, are running a virtual MOYA instead, offering a full programme online.

Basically, this means that people can benefit from and enjoy workshops and classes from the comfort of their homes, wherever they are in the world and it has also opened up MOYA to practitioners who don't live here, including Ballybunion native Aisling Sugrue-Clardy in the US, Marita Harold in Dubai and Michelle Walsh in London. Continued on page 3

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Hello and welcome to another edition of Ballybunion News. Well, Lockdown has begun for the next six weeks and if that wasn't bad enough, the geniuses who run our country have decided to close the golf courses also. Since Covid first raised its ugly head back in March, there has been no known positive case traceable to a golf course either here or in the UK but apparently its much safer to allow GAA, Rugby, Horse Racing, Coursing and Tennis instead of people walking outdoors and hitting a golf ball in the fresh air whilst social distancing. I give Up !! Like I said last week, we the people, are the only ones who can stop the spread of the virus by obeying the restrictions and staying at home as much as possible, so we just have to batten down the hatches and grin & bear it for the next six weeks and then maybe we can enjoy Christmas. Please keep an eye on an elderly neighbour or someone near you who may be living alone during these awful times and make sure that they are warm. Stay Safe Everybody,

GerGerGerGer

A Note from the Editor

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Continued from front page...

“MOYA couldn't come at a better time with all the stresses in the news and in our lives at the moment” founder and chief organiser Gráinne Toomey told Ballybunion News.

“It is also good for Ballybunion to be at the fore-front of wellness right now and we need to keep promoting the town as a place for solace and peace for people. It is also supporting small local businesses like Rosarie O’Connor (Shamanic & Reiki Healer), Cathy Healy (Che Yoga Kerry) and John Edwards (Wild Water Adventures) all of whom have connections to Ballybunion” she added.

There’s a full programme of workshops and activities available online throughout the bank holiday weekend so get browsing the website or visit MOYA’s Social Media pages on Facebook (MOYA-festival) and Instagram (@Ballybunionmoya). You can also make contact by email : moya.ballybunion@gmail.com or telephone : 087 7837448

CAPTAINS CHARITY DAY RAISES €53,000 FOR LOCAL CHARATIES &

ORGANISATIONS

Ballybunion Golf Club Captain Seán Healy’s Charity Day held on August 30th raised a whopping €53,000 all of which was donated to a number of organisations and charities in the North Kerry area.

It was the biggest sum ever raised from a Captain’s Charity Day at the club with St Josephs Secondary School and Ballybunion Sea & Cliff Rescue among the local beneficiaries, while Presentation Secondary School Listowel, Áras Mhuire, Kerry Parents & Friends, Listowel Hospice, Nano Nagle School and Multiple Sclerosis Society also received contributions.

Over 150 teams took part in the event which was played over both courses and the cheques were presented to members of the various charities outdoors on Wednesday at the club.

BGC Captain Seán Healy presenting a cheque to Ballybunion Sea & Cliff Rescue members Emmet Lynch and T.J. McCarron from the proceeds of his recent Charity Day. Pic by Francis Bennett

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Cahill’s Main Street Ballybunion

Proudly Supporting 48 Local Jobs Home Delivery Service Available Tel : 068-27244

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YOUR GUIDE TO WHATS OPEN IN

BALLYBUNION

The introduction of Phase Five has further thrown business in Ballybunion into total disarray with only what are classed as “essential” retail outlets allowed to remain open.

Under the regulations, all of the town’s pubs have closed and while restaurants are permitted to remain open, they can only cater for takeaway orders.

Here are the businesses that continue to trade :

♦ The Marine Hotel & Restaurant are open for collection on telephone orders (068-27139) on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 5.00pm

♦ Namir’s Restaurant open daily for takeaway

♦ Cahill’s Supervalu open from 7.30am to 9.00pm Sunday to Thursday and 7.30am to 9.30pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

♦ Buckley’s filling station and convenience store at East End, Bunyan’s shop on Doon Road and Browne’s Butchers also remain open.

♦ Ballybunion Post Office is open Monday to Friday from 9.00am to 5.30pm and on Saturdays from 9.00am to 1.00pm. Services include AIB and Ulster Bank Banking and you can also pay your utility bills.

♦ Joyce’s Newsagents & Shop is also open seven days from 7.00am to 7.30pm.

♦ Seaside, the coffee shop located close to the Castle Green are open on Saturdays and Sundays between 11.00am and 5.00pm

♦ Culloty Craft Gift Shop are open for online sales, click and collect, or avail of their postal service

♦ Lynch’s Hardware Monday to Saturday

♦ Coast Café open from 11.00am on Saturdays and Sundays plus Bank Holiday this weekend

♦ Brosnan’s & Enright’s Taxis are also running

♦ Takeaways & Fast food Restaurants also open

BGC Captain Seán Healy presenting a cheque to St Jo-sephs Secondary School Principal John O’Donovan from

the proceeds of his recent Charity Day. Pic by Francis Bennett

CREDIT UNION TOPS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE

The results of a survey this week in the Irish Times, shows that the likes of Ryanair, Vodafone, Aer Lingus and Eir, are among the country’s worst businesses when it comes to customer service, while Ireland’s Credit Unions are tops when it comes to satisfying the needs of their customers.

The survey which was also carried out last year, sees Ryanair at the bottom of the pile with 55% failure rate on its customers expectations followed by Eir (36%) and Aer Lingus (29%).

Meanwhile, Credit Unions and An Post both exceed their customers expectations by 33% and 32% respectively while An Garda Síochana were up there too with 30%.

Personally, I would put Sky television ahead of Ryanair for worst customer service !

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REASONS FOR OPTIMISM As the country has entered Stage Five lockdown for the next six weeks in a bid to arrest the march of the Corona virus, the important thig for us all is to remain positive during this difficult time.

“Easier said than done” says you, but we simply must cling to the hope that we’ll come out at the other end of this some day and hopefully sooner rather than later.

One good reason to be optimistic is a recent statement by one of Ireland’s foremost Covid-19 experts Professor Luke O’Neill a well-respected Biochemist at Trinity College who claims he is quite confident that a vaccine for the virus will be available by the end of this year.

Prof O’Neill suggests that the data coming from pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is very promising and expects emergency authorisation use in the United States for its Covid-19 vaccine by the third week of November.

If the Pfizer vaccine gets approval and in all likelihood it will, it will then be followed swiftly by others and he believes that the majority of the populations of the US, the European Union and the UK will be vaccinated by the end of the second quarter next year.

“It’s a sign that people are looking at this in a positive way, some might work better than others and the question is who’s will be the most efficacious but the more we have the better.” he said in a recent RTÉ interview.

If the vaccine gets approval and shows that it can work in the lead up to Christmas, then production will be ramped up in the coming months and antigen tests are also being currently developed which will be able to indicate immediately, if people are positive or negative for Covid-19.

These tests will be more widely available in the next two to three months and will make a return to normal life more certain and there is some other good news also which has seen the numbers who die in ICUs dropping from 39 per cent to 12 per cent globally.

Here in Ireland, over 52,000 people have tested positive and there have been 1865 deaths, while the positivity rate of those tested in the last week is at 7.3%, so please stay safe, obey the regulations and this will all be over sooner than you think.

7.45am to 8.00pm Mon to Fri 9.00am to 8.00pm Sat & Sun

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FRIDAY, SATURDAY & SUNDAY FROM 5.00PM TEL : 068-27139

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Level Five Restrictions : We cannot gather to celebrate Mass in person but St. John’s Church will remains open for private prayer.

Please sanitise your hands on entry and enter through the left hand side of the church. Maintain social distance of two metres from fellow parishioners, exit through the righthand side and again sanitise your hands when leaving the church.

Mass : Weekday masses for intentions will be said privately while Saturday night’s vigil mass (7.00pm) and Sunday morning mass (11.30am) will be streamed live on the St Johns Facebook Page.

Office : The Parish office remains open on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tel : 068 27102. Thank you for your continuing co-operation, stay safe, stay healthy and God Bless.

Please Pray for the Souls of : Thomas McEnery late of Fethard Co Tipperary & Dromin Ballybunion and Betty O’Carroll of Ballylongford who passed away during the week. Also for Gerard Higginbotham late of Main Street who died in Warwickshire, England. Anniversaries : Francis Carroll, Bridie Whelan, Colette Corrigan, Donal Holly, Denis & Noreen O’Connor of Dirra, Deceased members of the Kelly family of Lahardane

Masses will be offered for the following :

Friday 10.00am : Station Mass for Doon West, Cliff Road, Lartigue Road & Main Street

Saturday 7.00pm : Tom Corridan (Month’s Mind), Claire Keane, Denis & Noreen O’Connor of Dirra, Deceased members of the Kelly family of Lahardane

Sunday 11.30am : Francis O’Carroll, Bridie Whelan & Colette Corrigan

Monday 10.00am : Station Mass for Church Road, Hillview Close, Fuchsia Drive and Spraymount Road

Wednesday 10.00am : Leslie & Mary Buckle

St John’s Parish News with Fr Seán HannafinSt John’s Parish News with Fr Seán HannafinSt John’s Parish News with Fr Seán HannafinSt John’s Parish News with Fr Seán Hannafin St John’s Parish News with Fr Seán HannafinSt John’s Parish News with Fr Seán HannafinSt John’s Parish News with Fr Seán HannafinSt John’s Parish News with Fr Seán Hannafin

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Fifth Class with teacher Gráinne Lyons at St Josephs Primary on the very last day before the school closed in October 2011 and they moved into the brand

new Scoil Íosagáin the next day

Lighting Up time at the Castle Green

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Patricia Duggan Rosemary Horgan Thomas O’Callaghan Muireann Beasley October 27th October 27th October 28th October 30th

Finola Kissane Anne-Marie Crowe Majella O’Connor Ciaran Daly October 21st October 21st October 21st October 24th

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AccountantsAccountantsAccountantsAccountants

Hannan & Culloty, Church Road Tel : 068-27428

Bars Bars Bars Bars

Courtney’s, Main Street Tel : 068-28038

The Exchange Inn, Main Street

Tel : 068-27123

Liston’s Bar, Main Street Tel : 087-2265932

Mikey Joe’s, Main Street

Tel : 068-27288

The Railway, Main Street Tel : 068-27303

B & B / GuesthousesB & B / GuesthousesB & B / GuesthousesB & B / Guesthouses

Beasley’s 19th Lodge, Golf Links Road Tel : 068-27592

Cashen Course House,

Golf Links Road Tel : 087-2898453

Courtney’s Bar Main Street

Tel : 068-28949

Liston’s Bar Main Street

Tel : 087-0962387

Building & Carpentry ServicesBuilding & Carpentry ServicesBuilding & Carpentry ServicesBuilding & Carpentry Services

N & C Courtney, Main Street Tel : 087-2471670

James Fogarty, Doon Road

Tel : 087-9154265

Car Repairs & DismantlersCar Repairs & DismantlersCar Repairs & DismantlersCar Repairs & Dismantlers

Dirra Cross Motors Asdee

Tel : 0863510478

Credit UnionCredit UnionCredit UnionCredit Union

Listowel Credit Union, (Ballybunion) Main Street

Tel : 068-27685

Dog GroomingDog GroomingDog GroomingDog Grooming

Magic Coat Grooming, Listowel Tel : 068-22040

Electricians Electricians Electricians Electricians

Stephen O’Connor, Lisselton Tel : 087-8382166

Financial Advice & ServicesFinancial Advice & ServicesFinancial Advice & ServicesFinancial Advice & Services

Eoin Liston, McGuire Liston

Financial Tel : 087-1341500

Filling Station & Convenience Filling Station & Convenience Filling Station & Convenience Filling Station & Convenience

StoreStoreStoreStore

Buckley’s, East End Tel : 083-3921792

Hair & BeautyHair & BeautyHair & BeautyHair & Beauty

Girlie’s Beauty Lounge, East End

Tel : 083-3523278

Magic Scissors, East End Tel : 068-27568

Rose’s Hair Studio, Main Street

Tel : 068-28898

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A Fabulous image of the Virgin Rock taken by Grainne Toomey of Grá Photography last weekend

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HotelsHotelsHotelsHotels

Kilcooly’s Country House, Main Street

Tel : 068-27112

The Marine, Sandhill Road Tel : 068-27139

McMunn’s, Sandhill Road

Tel : 068-28845

Wilde, Sandhill Road Tel : 068-27942

Music & DiscoMusic & DiscoMusic & DiscoMusic & Disco

Ger Walsh

Tel : 087-6061822

Painting & DecoratingPainting & DecoratingPainting & DecoratingPainting & Decorating

Tommy “Tucker” O’Connor Tel : 087-2924214

PharmacyPharmacyPharmacyPharmacy

Ballybunion Pharmacy

Supervalu Complex, Main Street, Tel : 068– 27437

PhotographersPhotographersPhotographersPhotographers

Francis Bennett, Ahafona

Tel : 087-2460491

John Kelleher Photography Tel : 087-6428411

Marie Rohan, Lisselton Tel : 086-3681022

John Stack, Listowel Tel : 087-6020990

Physical Therapy ClinicPhysical Therapy ClinicPhysical Therapy ClinicPhysical Therapy Clinic

Deirdre Mulvihill, East End, Tel : 087–4683588

Manual Solutions Sandhill Road

Tel 087-9271996

Sports & RecreationSports & RecreationSports & RecreationSports & Recreation

Ballybunion Health & Leisure, Tel : 068-28111

Taxis/Hackney Taxis/Hackney Taxis/Hackney Taxis/Hackney

Billy Brosnan, East End

Tel : 087-2577737

Liam & Rose Enright, Ballyeigh Tel : 087-2604113

Veterinary SurgeonsVeterinary SurgeonsVeterinary SurgeonsVeterinary Surgeons

Joe O’Connor,

Island Veterinary Clinic, Listowel Tel : 068-22040

Upholstery Services Upholstery Services Upholstery Services Upholstery Services

Peter Sheehan, Lartigue Road

Tel : 086-8240457