< Previous© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 10© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 11 BREXIT Preparatory Supports Oifig Fiontair Áitiúil Comhairle Chontae na Mí Local Enterprise Office County Meath Contact LEO Meath for all BREXIT Supports Now! T 046-9097510 E localenterprise@meathcoco.ie W www.localenterprise.ie/Meath/Training-Events/Online-Bookings Our mentors and customs experts will provide practical advice and sup- ports for your business Multiple dates and venues across Meath throughout September and October PRE-REGISTRATION NECESSARY FREE BREXIT Mentor Programme FREE BREXIT Customs Workshops FREE BREXIT Advisor Clinics© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 12 The Stamullen Roundup By Grace Tierney C ongratulations to Ivan Curran and family of Broadleas farm, Stamullen who recently hosted “Big Week on the Farm” with RTE. They really shone and it was great to see so many local people getting involved in agriculturally themed games, or cheering on the participants. I still haven’t spotted his amazing camo- style tractor around the village, but I’m keeping an eye out. Local woman Mary and the team from the very successful Jumping Joan’s crèche in Gracemeadow (which has been in busi- ness for 14 years) are taking on a new challenge – they’re opening Jumping Joe’s crèche in Kilbreck/Glasheen. You can find more details on their facebook page (www.facebook.com/jumping.joe- creche.1) or contact them on 086-8875901 about booking a spot. Did you know we’ve an adult ladies bas- ketball group in Stamullen? They gather on Monday nights (8-9p.m.) in the G.A.A. club. They play for fun and fitness, and all ages and skill levels are welcome. It’s grand if you haven’t played since school. The first night is free and it’s a fiver on a pay-as-you- go basis thereafter. Contact Fiona at 086- 3853254 for more information. Stamullen FC’s Academy for boys and girls aged 4+ is back for the season at the Gormanston park pitches from 10-11a.m. on Saturdays and new players are most welcome. Email stamullenfc@gmail.com for more info. If you have a youngster interested in gym- nastics you’ll be pleased to know there are classes in Stamullen every Thursday 4-5p.m., 5-6p.m. and 6-7p.m. You can contact Lesley Ann at skerriesgymnas- tics@gmail.com for more details.. Well done to the staff and students of Fran- ciscan College Gormanston, our local sec- ondary school who held their open even- ing during the month. The pupils guided parents and 6 th classers around with pride, while more demonstrated the extra cur- ricular activities available – gaelic, rugby, badminton, athletics, walking club, chess, debating, sewing club, green schools, Gaisce, the heart healthy canteen, larg- est school library in the area, young sci- entists, vibrant transition year (optional), after school study, student council, peer mentoring etc. If you’ve a child for confirmation or com- munion this year here are the dates for your diary. Confirmation in the parish will take place on Thursday 27 th Febru- ary 2020 at 11a.m. and 3p.m. while First Holy Communion will be in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Gormanston (that’s the chapel at the college) on Satur- day 25 th April 2020. Irish beginners/intermediate classes are resuming shortly in Whyte’s pub, Stamullen and all are very welcome – including Junior/Leaving cert students. Email cuplafocal2018@gmail.com for further information. Another event to watch for in Whyte’s is their annual fancy dress Halloween party – this year being held on 27 th of October. An Autumn Seminar is being held in Stamullen Martial Arts (Cara Ti, Gi- blockstown, Stamullen) featuring Karate, Kubudo and Tai-Chi with Sensei Seamus O’Dowd from Friday 11 th – Sunday 13 th of October. Contact them via their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Stamul- len-Martial-Arts-222043138131679/). Got Stamullen news? Send it to Grace (087- 9074145) or grace@meathcoaster.com© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 13 Providing Professional Print Services to Meath Coaster Since 2009 2020 Calendars Ideal Fundraiser! 1,000 28-page Glossy A4 Colour Calendars €1.48 each Includes VAT * Excludes design© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 14 News From Julianstown & District Community Association By Niamh Bn. Uí Loinsigh Halloween Family Fun in Julianstown Saturday, 31 st October from 6.30 to 8pm At Julianstown Community Garden H alloween is an annual holiday celebrat- ed each year on October 31. It originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. So please come along dressed up in your scariest outfits and join in the fun. We will have the usual refreshments available with games of ap- ple bobbing, toasted marshmallows and lots of scary monsters, witches and fairies around the garden. Admission is €5 per family and we do hope to see you there! Julianstown & Stamullen Volunteers celebrate 10 years of delivering Meals on Wheels “As Chairman of Julianstown & Stamullen Meals and Wheels it gives me great pleas- ure to report that we have now been de- livering meals on wheels to our senior citizens for 10 years and I believe that the meals on wheels service is a critical com- ponent of the continuum of care services that enables older people to remain living in the community or to return to their own homes after a stay in hospital.” Said Ollie Gaughran Julianstown & Stamullen Meals on Wheels members celebrated 10 years delivering meals to senior citizens in the Glenside Hotel on Wednesday the 18 th September. Chairman Ollie Gaughran thanked the volunteer drivers past and present for their commitment to the on- going success of Meals on Wheels. Ol- lie also thanked Aogán and Karen Dunne, owners of The Glenside Hotel, and their staff for their wonderful support in pre- paring the lovely nutritious meals, which are then delivered to local people by local people. If you would like to have a meal delivered to your door please contact 085 7222068. Julianstown Tidy Towns Clean up continues every Saturday morn- ing. Why not join us and help us improve our village. We meet at the Julianstown Village Garden Car Park at 10.30 am. Julianstown & District Community As- sociation was invited by Fergus O’Dowd T.D. to attend the Oireachtas Joint Com- mittee on Transport, Tourism and Sport. Fergus is Chairman of this committee and Niamh Bn. Uí Loinsigh and Brendan Lodge attended on behalf of Julianstown seeking a Bypass for our village. The Department of Transport read out their presentation. This was followed by Des Foley, Director of Services and Nicholas Whyatt of Meath Co. Co. who made great representations on our behalf. Fergus O’Dowd was, as were we, rather perturbed at the lack of information that the Department of Transport had to of-© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 15 fer the committee and let his feeling be known. Niamh Uí Loinsigh spoke at length as to why we should have a By- pass and Brendan Logue also pointed out the traffic delays, accidents, and our inability to safely cross the road. Declan Breathnach T.D. and Imelda Munster T.D. also spoke of the immediate need for a Bypass for Julianstown. Cllr. Paddy Meade and Cllr. Annie Hoey were also in attendance. An appraisal was sent to the Department by Meath Co. Co. in December and they have only now agreed (as a result of our joint meeting) to progress it to the next stage which will involve another survey being done on the traffic!! The earliest a Bypass can be delivered is 8/13 years and that is despite the fact that the R132 is the 16 th busiest road in Ireland and commuters from East Meath & South Drogheda have the longest commute of 1⅟2 hours. Link for film of meeting - https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=F65WzirOg3s A public meeting to protest about the East Meath traffic situation will take place on 16 th October 2019 at 8.00pm in the Glen- side Hotel. The special guest speaker will be Dr. Fred Logue, Solicitor, and an expert in plan- ning matters. A strong public showing at this meeting will indicate the feeling of the people of East Meath and South Drogheda about this matter. If you would like to be included in the mailing list for East Meath please contact eastmeathrevival@yahoo.com Cúpla Focal Irish beginners/intermediate classes re- suming shortly. Why not join us for a cúp- la focal in Whyte’s pub, Stamullen. Email cuplafocal2018@gmail.com for further information. Tá faile roimh chách! All are welcome). Junior Cert/Leaving Cert students are also very welcome! § Celebrating 10 years of delivering Meals on Wheels© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 16 Get Growing Garden Course If you missed our last course, we have a new one starting 10 th October here in Sonairte. Our Gardening course is suit- able for all, including urban homes with limited space. Learn how to plan your garden and grow your own vegetables and fruit. A practical hands on course, sowing seeds, planting, using a raised bed, har- vesting and maintaining crops. Raised Beds Why not invest in a raised bed and grow your own veg, for €30 each or discounts for 4 for €100. With the 1-2-3 Vegetable growing system, you will have almost eve- rything you need to successfully grow your own vegetables.§ O pen Friday to Sunday 10-5. Come visit our gardens and nature trail and on the way out, make sure you drop into Sonairte Eco shop, all our products are environmentally friendly, with a large range of home cleaning products. We also have some of our fresh Organic produce straight from the garden, salad bags, rasp- berries, gooseberries and plenty more. Sonairte Cafe We were delighted to open the doors of our café again to the public and delighted to hear such amazing feedback from the public for our first month in business. Sonairte Café is vegan and vegetarian based with products sourced straight from our garden on to your plate. Were open Saturday and Sundays 10-5. Fresh Sonairte Produce We’re now selling our fruit and veg at lo- cal markets. We’ll be at the Cottage Mar- ket the 8 th of October and the Drogheda market in Bolton Square every other Sat- urday. Volunteer As always we need volunteers to keep de- veloping the Centre, mainly to help main- tain the garden, if you have a few hours to spare and would like to help us please email hello@sonairte.ie or contact us on Facebook and we will be in touch with you. Sonairte© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 17 • Private weekly appointments • Non-judgemental one-to-one support • Easy-to-follow Food Plan • Well-balanced diet • No supplements or meal replacements Weight Loss Made Simple 3F Fingal Bay Business Park, Balbriggan K32 CV07 tel: 087 778 2371 | info@easyweigh.ie | Visit www.easyweigh.ie | follow us on PRIVATE WEIGHT LOSS CLINIC, BALBRIGGAN Open every Wed & Thurs 9am – 7pm Start Your Weight Loss today Book your 30-minute no-obligation Assessment only €20 041 98 444 98 041 98 111 98 086 838 4444 www.eastcoastcabs.com EAST COAST CABS SERVICING MEATH COAST & DROGHEDA REGIONS CABS - 4, 6 & 8 SEATERS NEW RANGE OF MINI-VANS COACHES - 16, 24, 36 & 54 SEATERS AVAILABLE© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 18 One Good School Franciscan College Gormanston F ranciscan College Gormanston is one of only 4 schools in Co Meath select- ed to take part in this initiative run by Jig- saw Mental Health. Jigsaw’s One Good School supports the mental health and wellbeing of young people by developing a shared responsibility for mental health across the whole school community. The Gormanston ‘One Good School’ team was set up last May, made up of staff, parent and student representatives. The first task of the team was to issue Wellbeing Ques- tionnaires to all staff, parents and a ran- dom selection of students. The question- naire results are now being summarised and will form the basis of future work around the ‘One Good School’ initiative. Welcome First Years! A warm welcome is extended to all our 1 st Years who integrated quickly into the school, thanks to the unique Clann sys- tem. All new students become a member of one of four Clanns throughout their stay at Gormanston College. Already our new 1 st year students have been invited to represent their Clanns in an Indoor Soc- cer Blitz, Basketball, Outdoor Soccer and Chess competitions. The rivalry of the Clanns is an age old tra- dition of Gormanston College. This year Clann Eanna would like to welcome Mr S Guiney as their new Caomhnóir. The challenge now is to stop Clann Froinsias winning two in a row! 1st Year 2019.2020 Open Evening 19 th September saw our doors open to pro- spective students accompanied by their parents and guardians. They were treated to musical performances, science experi- ments, a Harry Potter themed school li-© October 2019 The Meath Coaster 19 brary tour and a host of other curriculum and extra-curricula delights. Current stu- dents who participated in the Open Even- ing did a fabulous job representing the college – they are a credit to themselves, their parents and the school. Further information on the admissions ap- plication process is available on the school website www.gormanstoncollege.ie. Higher Options 6 th Year students attended the Higher Op- tions conference in the RDS on 19 th Sep- tember. This gave students the opportu- nity to talk directly with representatives from all the main Irish Universities and colleges, as well as those from education facilities further afield. With a high per- centage of students going onto 3 rd level ed- ucation from Gormanston College (86% in 2018) it is important they are equipped to make the right decision on the direction their future will take. Leadership and Team Building Training – Prefects and Student Council Members Taking place over 6 months, this training is designed to equip students in leadership roles, with the skills to reach their full potential. It gives students a clear under- standing of what is expected from them, to unlock their potential to represent their school community and how, through the example they set, they can encourage and motivate others to make a difference. The workshops take place on a regular basis and are hosted by an outside facili- tator. Franciscan College Gormanston is pleased to support this investment in its school community. §Next >