< Previous© November 2017 The Meath Coaster10Scoil Oilibheir Naofa.Christmas FairThe Scoil Oilibheir Naofa Christmas Fair will take place on Sunday 26th November from 2-5 o’clock. There will also be a sensory hour from 12 noon. We would greatly appreciate donations that can be used as spot prizes on the day. Please support Scoil Oilbheir Naofa’s par-ents association by attending.Halloween AssemblyThe Halloween assembly took place on Friday 27th October. During the assembly the children danced to ‘Thriller’ and ‘the Monster Mash’. Puppet Theatre. The children love to visit the puppet thea-tre during Literacy and Drama lessons. The puppet theatre is an excellent re-source for oral language lessons. © November 2017 The Meath Coaster11F. Watson & Son LtdFuneral Directors Complete Funeral ServiceLAYTOWN, CO. MEATH Tel: 086 0275440 • 041 98382279 DYER STREET, DROGHEDAwww.droghedafunerals.ieServing the Entire East Meath Area and Drogheda since 1921LoughcrewThe children in Loughcrew have been enjoying their new state of the art Life Skills Room. They have been busy hon-ing their cooking skills and just as impor-tantly – cleaning up afterwards. © November 2017 The Meath Coaster12BDLM Youth ClubLuckily we all survived another Fright Night in the Youth Club. Some scary folk turned up to the club as we prepared for our Halloween night and they were just the volunteers. Then more amazing blood thirsty scary little folk turned up too and if they had dressed in costume and put face paint on then they would really have been more frightening to look at. The other scary one’s that did dress up (or down, depend-ing on how you look at it) for the Hal-loween occasion really got into character and before we knew it, we were having a party. We had witches, ghosts and ghouls, super heroes, clowns and fools, jokers and float-ers, but you know what, they all looked cool. So we did what you do at every party and we turned the music up or put the beats on as the cool kids would say. Personally I didn’t hit the tiles as I didn’t want the guys running for cover. Now my own philosophy on dancing is “don’t practice till you get it right, but do practice until you can’t get it wrong.Now as a way of getting the money these guys pay in at the door on each club night back to them, we spent close to €230 on © November 2017 The Meath Coaster13041 98 444 98 041 98 111 98086 838 4444www.eastcoastcabs.comEAST COAST CABSEAST COAST CABS SERVICING MEATH COAST & DROGHEDA REGIONS CABS - 4, 6 & 8 SEATERSNEW RANGE OF MINI-VANSCOACHES - 16, 24, 36 & 54 SEATERS AVAILABLEprizes in the form of Halloween parapher-nalia i.e. skeleton’s, skulls, pirates, light up pictures, zombie tombstone signs, trick or treat goodie bags, pumpkin lights, gothic skull bracelets, skull and pumpkin wands, candle holders a walking talking scary mary animated bride “ I don’t think anyone really wanted her – she really was creepy” and some cinema vouchers to mention but a few. And as Ryan Tubrity would famously say “there’s one for everybody in the audi-ence” Yes everybody got something. We would like to say a big thank you to our door men who looked after the door for the night (marvellous work) and an even bigger thank you to our Youth Lead-ers in the club as they organised games, painted some scary looking faces to make them look even more scarier and hard and all as it was, gave out prizes for the best dressed Halloween costume of the night to the most deserving. They are a real asset to our club so keep up the good work. §© November 2017 The Meath Coaster14News from JulianstownJulianstown & District Community As-sociationOn Thursday 26th October Julianstown Tidy towns were invited to attend the Municipal Pride of Place Awards in the Conyngham Arms Hotel in Slane which is run by Meath County Council to encour-age volunteers with the excellent work they carry out in the many villages and towns of Meath. It was an exciting night with more than 90 local groups represent-ed there. I am delighted to tell that we started off the night with Julianstown winning the first prize of the night for its Youth Project. Jim O’Connor and the children from Bal-lygarth Manor wanted to help our declin-ing bee population and planted a beautiful Wildflower Meadow in the Estate. They then planted Sunflowers all around the village! We have 97 bee species in Ire-land: the honeybee, 20 species of bumble-bee, and 76 species of solitary bee. Bees are the most important pollinator of crops and native plant species in Ireland. They are a key component of our wildlife and one of the busiest, least appreciated work forces we have. A study from the Depart-ment of the Environment found that bees are worth €53m a year to the economy. Food for thought!Next up was the category small village and Julianstown won first for this! Well done all who helped make this possible! You have to admit the village does look very well all year round.The Lime Kiln won first prize for its beautiful shop front and John and Jackie should be very proud of how the prem-ises look to all the passersby. You may recall that the Judge for the National Tidy Cathaoirleach Paddy Meade, Cllr. Eimear Ferguson, Cllr. Wayne Harding, Cllr. Stephen McKee, Cllr. Sharon Tolan, Cllr. Tom Kelly presenting Mary Logue with Volunteer of the Year Certificate.© November 2017 The Meath Coaster15Towns was also enchanted by the prem-ises. The gastro pub and shop looks stun-ning all year round!You may wonder how Julianstown is so clean given all the traffic that goes through our village, well, it’s mainly all down to Mary Logue and well deserved she won Volunteer of the Year. Thank you to every single volunteer; you are just wonderful and a credit to our lovely village. Thank you so much for the weeding, strimming, mowing the grass or helping out at our events for the village. Community is what matters and helping each other. Great night and well done again. Congratulations also to Sonairte on win-ning three awards, and Sevitt Hall for their housing estate!Whitecross National School Children return to school on the 6th No-vember after their mid terms break. Par-ent teacher meetings are set for November 29th and 30th. This is except for the Junior Infant classes whose parent teacher meet-ings takes place in January. The school will shortly be enrolling four Syrian chil-dren and we wish them well in settling in and making new friends. Dochas Global Citizen Award 2017Local man Bobby McCormack received the annual Dochas Global Citizen Award 2017 for his tireless work as Director of NGO Development Perspectives, whose mission is to contribute to lessening poverty, inequality and climate change through transformative education and ac-tive global citizenship. Santa In JulianstownSanta & Mrs. Claus will be arriving by vintage tractor at the Lime Kiln on Tues-day 12th December at 6 p.m. We are thrilled to have the Mornington Gospel Choir on hand for the carol singing and then it’s time for all the younger folk to meet the Man himself. TrafficMembers of Julianstown & District Comm. Assoc. have arranged a meeting with Nicholas Whyatt, Senior Executive Transport Dept. of Meath Co. Co. and we will update you next month on the out-come. It is proposed to discuss €300,000 funding which has been ring fenced for our village in which we hope to get firm proposals from council as to what will happen with the funding.Keep up to date with Julianstown events by liking our Facebook Page ‘Julianstown Tidy Towns or by checking our webside page www.julianstowncommunity.com © November 2017 The Meath Coaster16St. Vincent de Paul AppealStar of the Sea ConferenceLaytown, Bettystown, Mornington & DonacarneyDear FriendsIt is now the time of year when we make a sincere appeal to you for funds for Christmas. Our only source of fundrais-ing in this area of Laytown, Bettystown, Mornington and Donacarney is through you; from our monthly church collections and our appeal letter at this time of year.We are a local conference taking care of the lonely, poor and disadvantaged. We visit families living below the breadline who are marginalised and finding it so hard to cope in these difficult times. We, as a group, in the name of the community, strive to the best of our ability and within our limited means to help those among us who find themselves in genuine need.If we succeeded in some way during the years, it is because of the loyal and contin-ued support which we have received from you, our benefactors, over the years. For this we thank you most sincerely.Christmas is the busiest time of year for us. The festive season is a joyous time for many - is also a time of greatest hardship for those in need. We do our best to bring a little cheer by providing financial and personal help which comes from you, our benefactors in the community.We would appreciate your donation, no matter how small. Donations can be given to any member on our list, or at our church gate collection on Saturday 2nd December and Sunday 3rd December.Never underestimate the difference you make.(‘It is in giving that we receive’)Yours sincerely,Conference President & MembersStar of the Sea ConferenceLaytown, Bettystown & Mornington & Donacarney Society of St. Vincent de Paul – Freefone No. 1800 677 777 §East Meath Meals On WheelsA series of bridge nights were run in Laytown & Bettystown Golf Club during the summer kindly organised by Margaret Smith.A cheque for €1,000 was presented to East Meath Meals on Wheels this week.... a very generous donation to our local ser-vice & gratefully received by Berna Car-thy Chairperson.Berna thanked Margaret for running the bridge, Frank Davey for kindly doing the cards each week and the Golf Club for providing the facilities.Pictured above from left to rightCaptain Denis Taylor L&BEveleen Higgins Meals on WheelsBerna Carthy ChairpersonMargaret Smith tournament directorLady Captain Susan Clarke L&B© November 2017 The Meath Coaster17The Humble HedgehogAs the dark nights close in and win-ter approaches we see the trees re-splendent in their autumn colours. As they shed their orange-golden leaves, little piles form on the ground and very often, making a home in these leaf piles is the hedgehog. Hedgehogs, or Gráinneogs as Gaeilge, are of huge benefit and a true friend of anyone who loves to garden be-cause their favourite food is our least fa-vourite garden inhabitant; the slug. Insects are the core diet of hedgehogs as well as snails and even small mice. Did you know the little hedgehog doesn’t just snuffle along in the undergrowth? They are surprisingly fast on those tiny feet and can also climb and swim! At this time of year the hedgehog is very busy preparing for hibernation. They eat as much as they can continually building their fat reserves to bring them through winter to spring. Because they are noc-turnal animals we rarely see them, but if you are lucky enough to have some living in your garden you can thank them for eat-ing all those pests by leaving out a shal-low bowl of water and another of cat food, apples, carrots or leafy greens. Do not give them milk (hedgehogs are lactose intolerant!) citrus fruits, onions, garlic, avocado or any processed food. If you keep an eye on the food bowls you should see them pay a visit after dark. However, if you come across a hedgehog during the daytime, be it in your garden or anywhere else, then it is in real trouble. Often at this time of year baby hedgehogs, called hoglets, can be born late and will not have enough time to build up that all important fat reserve for winter. Some will go out during the day in desperation which means they need our help to sur-vive. Should you see a hedgehog in day-light be sure to give it a helping hand by wrapping it in whatever you have avail-able to you and taking it to a vet. Unfortunately hedgehog numbers are de-creasing and the reasons for their decline are not fully understood. It is thought they have been affected by loss of habitat, in-creased road traffic as well as poisonings from slug pellets and rodenticides. In ur-ban areas barriers to movement like con-crete walls channel hedgehogs out onto dangerous roads. So if you have a log pile, overgrown hedge or leaf pile in your garden maybe leave it undisturbed over the winter which will al-low some prickly but extremely cute pest control to move in. §© November 2017 The Meath Coaster18The Stamullen Roundup By Grace TierneyOur local Hope For Homeless group is running their Operation Christmas Backpack appeal again this year. They are aiming to distribute backpacks filled with useful items to 200 people at their Christmas dinner at the GPO in Dublin on the 18th of December. The full details of what they need are listed at https://www.facebook.com/HopeforhomelessDublin/ and all donations of items are very much appreciated.Don’t forget the Alan Bonner Memorial Night, mentioned last time, is on 4th No-vember, 7.30p.m. in the City North Hotel.Please note that the St. Patrick’s GAA club’s fundraising boxing night has been moved to the 17th of November due to the senior football championships.The new solar-powered speed signs on the Stamullen Road in Gormanston are reported to have resulted in an 18% de-crease in speeding in the village, although it’s a shame to see one has already been vandalised. Walkers have noted that many cars are still speeding when passing the signs. The council are looking at running another check this weekend and may then review what else can be done.The pedestrian path beside the Grange that connects Stamullen to City North (a vital link for those using the Matthews bus service) will be closed for two weeks (late Oct-early Nov).Date for your diary – the cycle club’s an-nual Christmas Poker Classic will be held on the 1st of December in Whyte’s pub.East Meath Hospice Association would like to thank all who attended and con-tributed to their recent fund-raising coffee morning in Whyte’s. They raised €1,000 and all funds raised locally are spent lo-cally.The Golden Girls thank the Transition Year students of Gormanston College for their donation of apples which they picked and delivered to the group.The Clare Douglas School of Ballet con-tinues its ballet classes at the Parish Hall every Tuesday afternoon. New pupils welcome, details available from Clare at 087-2636124.If you’re interested in playing bridge you’ll be glad to hear there’s now a group playing on Thursday evenings 7.20-10.20p.m. in the Old Library in Naul. All are welcome. If you do visit Naul, you’ll notice one obvious landmark is missing. The large chestnut tree which stood be-side the Seamus Ennis Centre for more than a hundred years has been felled. Not a victim of Ophelia, it had to be removed due to disease.Got Stamullen news? Send it to Grace (087-9074145) or grace@meathcoaster.com © November 2017 The Meath Coaster19Bettystown Parking WoesOver the past year, there has been an increasing problem with the parking situation outside the businesses situated on the main street in Bettystown. Customers of the local businesses are strug-gling to find parking spaces because these public spaces are al-ready occupied from as early as 7am each morning by commuters. Cars are left parked in the same spot for a period of 10-12 hours on the main street in Bettystown which means that custom-ers who wish to use the pharmacy, cafe or hairdressers are hindered and must park far away or find somewhere else to go. This has resulted in a huge impact on the sales of local businesses.Bernard Crombie, the Supervising Phar-macist of Stacks Pharmacy notes “Many of the pharmacy’s customers are elderly and would have difficulty walking great distances. Many elderly customers have complained about this to pharmacy staff and vented their anger as they feel they should be able to park outside the shop and pop in and out for their medication or advice etc. This is killing the town as the parking is not being used as intended.”It is very important that there are multi-ple disabled car parking spaces outside Bettystown pharmacy as many elderly patients can only walk a short distance without difficulty and these customers need easy access to get their medication, however even these disabled spots are be-ing used with no local authority checking up on valid permits.Other commuter towns and villages in Ire-land have a 1 or 2 hour free parking policy and then a charge for every hour used for parking after that and this has deterred peo-ple from parking on main streets all day.There is a car park situated behind the lo-cal SuperValu in Bettystown which was burnt down earlier this year and this car park should be used by the local commut-ers. This would leave spaces on the main street for customers to park and to con-tinue their business in Bettystown. We Need Meath County Council To Take Action! by Mark Keegan §Next >