December 2019 FREE! The Meath Coaster Magazine and Services DirectoryExamination, Scale, Polish & X-RaysDon’t su er with Toothache We have a walk in Emergency Service. No appointment needed Just call in to our surgery. Save Money Have 2 fillings done at the same appointment Belfast Prices Mon - Fri 8am to 8pm Saturday 9am to 5pm Nervous Patient? Don’t worry, we specialise in treating nervous patients. Talk to us and let us put you at ease Whitening Our take home teeth whitening kit is the best value in Ireland €€40 o €450 days a week We open late 6 each Join us on Facebook or visit us online €40 for Medical Card Patients For example multiple crowns (2 or more) We have a team of Anna, Apryl, Chris, Claire, Estefany, Fiona, James, Jill, John, Rebecca, Sara and Shauna are looking forward to meeting you dedicated dentists 12 FREE for RSI patients www.balbriggandentalcare.ie 120WALK IN EMERGENCY SERVICE We provide an emergency walk-in dental service. You do not need an appointment, just arrive. Our clinic is open late, 6 days a week. ++ Tel: Web: 59 Drogheda Street, Balbriggan, Co. Dublin (between Supervalu & the Garda Station) Dr. John Heeney & Associates B.A., B. Dent. Sc. Hons (T.C.D.), B. Rad (U.C.D.), D.C.R. (London) Tel: 01 - 841 7344 www.balbriggandentalcare.ie 01841 73 44 8 to 8 Dental Balbriggan Balbriggan© December 2019 The Meath Coaster 4 The Meath Coaster Magazine and Services Directory S ince June 2005, T he Meath Coast- er is published monthly and dis- tributed in County Meath between Grange Rath, Donacarney, Mornington, Bettystown, Laytown, Julianstown and Stamullen, as well as in some local shops. Each print issue has over 7,000 copies. The Coaster Digital Edition is available online @ www.meathcoaster.com/library, This month’s cover is of Laytown's Voyager in moonlight by Paul Hayes). If you have any interesting seasonal photos or of local people or places, send your photos to the Meath Coaster at dermot@meathcoaster.com Your Local Media We proudly promote Citizen Journalism which means ordinary citizens “playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analysing and disseminating news and information” All our articles are directly submitted by local people. As a local publication serving our communities, if there is something you’d like to submit for publication, please email it to the address below. We try our best to publish all local material but the pages fill up fast! . CONTACT DETAILS Address for correspondence: The Meath Coaster 147 Betaghstown Wood Bettystown Co. Meath Phone: 041 9813860 Email: dermot@meathcoaster.com Where to Get A Coaster You can get a copy each month from Tesco Bettystown, Dunnes Stores, South- gate; Limited supplies are in Pat’s Centra, Bettystown; Parish Rooms, Julianstown; St Pats, Stamullen, Centra Stamullen. All Rights Reserved © Meath Coaster 2019 PRINT DEADLINES A s the printer closes over the Christmas and New Year holidays, the closing date for the JANUARY issue is Monday December 16 th . Distribution will begin at the start of the month. ADVERTISING RATES T he Meath Coaster is the only media delivered to the door in this area since 2005. It is also available online. Advertising in the Coaster works. If you have a local business or provide a local service, then tell people about it. Effective advertising needs repetition and time to produce results according to best practice research. Check out our discounts for longer term bookings. To get our ad rates, please either... Go to www.meathcoaster.com Phone 041 9813860 or Email: dermot@meathcoaster.com Merry Christmas to All!and Happy New Year! MERRY from all at Meath Office Bettystown Town Centre, Bettystown, Co. Meath www.bohanhyland.ie Meath@bohanhyland.ie© December 2019 The Meath Coaster 6 Tree Lighting in Laytown W e would like to invite you to the Christmas tree lighting in Laytown. The event will be taking place on 7 th De- cember beside the playground in Laytown. Each year a group of local residents club together to bring some festive cheer to Laytown, its sure to be a fantastic evening and a great way to kick off the festive season. Starting at 6pm we will have some Christ- mas carols followed by the official switch- ing on of the Christmas lights by the Cathaoirleach of Meath County Council, Cllr Wayne Harding. Once again Gilna's the Cottage Inn will be hosting a Mulled wine reception after the event. We look forward to seeing you there! The Laytown festive committee would like to thank Meath County Council for their ongoing support in organising the event and of course to all those involved in making the event happen. Finally we would like to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Laytown Tidy Towns An Oxygen Chamber for Slav S lav is 14 years old and lives on the Minnistown Road, between Laytown and Bettystown. He is fighting with can- cer, stage IV. His family are currently holding local fund-raising events for him to buy a hyperbaric oxygen chamber. The chamber costs €70,000 and so far, about €20,000 has been raised. Currently Slav travels three times a week to Newry for treatment. As he has com- pression fractures of 6 vertebrae, it is very painful for him to travel the 450km in- volved every week. During November, there was Falconry family Day, a cycling event and a “Dress for Less” in the Village Hotel with all the proceeds going to Slav’s registered Trust account (under Irish law, a charity has to be beneficial to more than one person). The family would like to sincerely thank everyone who helped. Slav has a GoFundMa page at www.go- fundme.com/f/oxygen-for-slav and see also http://www.help4slav.com/. Following his diagnosis, Slav was initially given a 5% chance to survive 3 years. The family are appealing to the community for support. The oxygen chamber treatment might really be life changing for him. Free Range Bronze Turkey, Smoked Ham, Goose Spiced Beef, Free Range Chicken... or how about Duck, Pheasant or Venison? We’ve got lots of variety so far a really tasty Christmas treat that’s sure to please, Visit Callaghan’s Butchers. Enter our Traditional Christmas Draw! Lots of Prizes CALLAGHAN’S Q U A L I T Y BUT C H E R S Bettystown, Co. Meath Telephone (041) 9887885 Find Us On© December 2019 The Meath Coaster 8 Franciscan College Gormanston National Catering Award F ranciscan College Gormanston is the first school in Meath to be awarded the Irish Heart Foundation national Hap- py Heart @ School Catering Award. This award recognises the commitment and hard work of the school’s caterer, PVL Catering, and team of staff and students in promoting Healthy Eating Practices. Valerie Leech of PVL Catering has been the school caterer for over 2 years and all at Franciscan College Gormanston are delighted that her hard work and huge contribution to the healthy lifestyle of the students has been recognised nationally. Through achieving this award parents and the wider community can be reassured the college is providing the best food for students and staff. College Principal Mr Dermot Lavin said ‘For young people to achieve their full potential it is essential they eat healthily. National Catering Award Receiving this national Happy Heart @ School Catering Award acknowledges our whole school commitment to a healthier and positive school environment.’ Daffodil Planting Many thanks to Transition Year students, parents and other pupils who came out © December 2019 The Meath Coaster 9 early on a Saturday to plant daffodil bulbs, sponsored by Indaver and Duleek and District News. When the daffodils bloom they will be picked and sold, with the pro- ceeds going to the Irish Cancer Society. Hamlet in Smock Alley Theatre 6 th Year students attended ‘Hamlet’ as part of their study for Leaving Certificate Eng- lish. It was an excellent production. The opportunity of a question and answer ses- sion afterwards with the actors was very appreciated by the students. Cheque Presentation Well done to the Transition Year students from last year who recently presented a cheque for €1,006.28 to the Irish Can- cer Society. The students worked hard to raise the funds, including a sponsored head shave and bake sale held over 2 days. Christmas Carol Service We extend an invitation to the local com- munity to attend our annual Christmas Carol Service at 6pm in the College Chap- el on Monday 16 th December 2019. This service co-incides with the 60 th anniver- sary of the laying of the first foundation stone for the church back in 1959. We look forward to welcoming you. § smock alley theatreNext >