Ballymore Ladies GFC

Ballymore Ladies held their AGM in The Thatch on Tuesday December 9th. The meeting was attended by committee members, team members, management and Michael Horan on behalf of the juvenile section.

Junior D Champions
Chairperson Jacinta O’Rourke opened the meeting by congratulating the team and management on the hard work put in throughout the year culminating in a league semi-final and the championship win. The championship final was a particularly sweet win over one of our great rivals!

County Trials
The Kildare clubs have been divided into 4 regional teams who play each other every week, giving the new Ladies management team an opportunity to see the best the county has to offer. Best of luck to Lesley Tutty, Dawn Murray, Fran Burke and Teresa Gorman representing Ballymore.

Election of Officers
Only two of last year’s committee decided not to stand again this year. Thanks to Louise Tutty and Jackie Smith for all their work as the club’s PROs in 2008.

The 2009 committee is as follows
Chairperson Jacinta O’Rourke
Asst. Chairperson Aisling Rigney
Secretary Caroline Deegan
Treasurer Bid Meade
PROs\Registrars Deirdre Hackett\Sharon O’Donoghue
Children’s Officer Sinead Gorman
County Board Delegate Jackie Smith

Management
After the success of 2008 the club is delighted that the same team will be training and mentoring them next season. They refused to say a few words at the AGM but we’ve been promised a speech from the manager at the awards night!
Simon Murphy
Joe Piggott
John Hubbard

Fundraising
For the first time a separate committee has been put together to plan and carry out the fundraising duties for Ballymore Ladies.
Sarah Malone
Ashling Hubbard
Anne-Marie Gorman
Lesley Tutty
Stacey Balfe





Bag Packing Day in aid of Juvenile section
A bag packing day has been organised to raise money for the underage girls’ registration fees. The junior girls will be packing bags under the supervision of some of the senior ladies.
If you are in Dunnes Blessington on Sunday 21st December please support the girls!

Awards Night
An Awards night is being organised for Saturday March 7th in The Thatch. The night is a celebration of the championship win and will include the annual presentation of the club awards.
It was also proposed at the meeting that the Welly Match be held on the same day.
Keep an eye out in next year’s bugle for confirmation of all events.

Juvenile Section
Michael Horan spoke about the great work being done for the girls at underage level. They now have teams playing from March through November in a number of girls leagues and are also hoping to enter a team in Cumann na mBunscoil in 2009.
The senior ladies have agreed to help out with training and with the after school matches where possible.

Training
It is hoped that training will start on the first Monday in February
(confirmation in next month’s bugle). We are always looking to recruit new players so if you are interested please come along.
T shirts
BALLYMORE LADIES v neck t shirts on sale in Daybreak ( Janets)
for only €10

Thank you
Finally we would like to wish all our sponsors and supporters a very Happy Christmas and hope that we can add to our Championship success in 2009!

Sharon & Deirdre
_________________________________________________________

SENIOR GFC

The clubs A.G.M was held on the 15th of December. A report will follow in next’s months Bugle. All support is welcome in the coming year, no matter how small.ANNUAL AWARDS
The Young Player of the Year Award went to Keith Fennell; Senior Player of the Year Award went to Tommy Archibold whilst Clubman of the Year is awarded to: Eoghan Barrett. Congratulations to all on a great year!A big thanks to all our sponsors during the year, Ballymore Oils, Kieren Langan, Pat Murphy’s Bar and Naas Insurance Ltd. Without their help, it would not have been possible to run the club. Also the committee would like to thank the many people who took part in the various events and who donated their time and money. Without this help, we would not be able to run the club. Best wishes to all for a Peaceful Christmas and Happy New Year.

We extend our sympathy to the family of the late Micheal Murphy, member of the legendary ’53 “Three in a Row” team, may he rest in peace, amen.
Ballymore-Eustace’s Proud Handball Record – Part 7

Paddy Monaghan (featured in an article in the September 1999 Bugle) occupies a unique position in the club. His playing career of over sixty years extends way beyond that of any other player of my acquaintance. Sadly, Paddy died on May 31 of this year. Originally, Paddy was over shadowed by such as Bobbie Grattan, Jim Bolger, Bill Lawlor and Liam Evans. In 1953, Paddy partnered Bill Lawlor to success in the All-Ireland junior hard doubles championship. Due to an objection, Paddy and Bill had to win that particular title twice over.

In his early days, Paddy was not involved on the official side of things. Paddy became a club official in 1964 and since then he has occupied various posi­tions both at Club and County Board levels. He has the distinction of being the only Kildare man to hold the position of Chairman of the Leinster Handball Council. Over the years Paddy has traveled the length and breadth of Ireland with our players and also accompanied Tom O'Rourke to San Francisco in 1978 when Tom won the Atlas Travel under 22 trials.

There is no doubt that much of the credit for the very successful run the Club has enjoyed over the years must go to Paddy. Paddy's special interest has been in juvenile handball and for his efforts in this area he has received special recognition in 1974 from Central Handball Council. To prove he was not a spent force on the playing front Paddy made history in 1981 by becoming the first Kildare man to win the Leinster 40 by 20 golden masters singles title.

Tom, Billy and Judy Doran were all members of the Club. Tom played the game for recreation purposes before he immigrated to England while Judy, who was married to Paddy Carthy - himself a good racquetball player, was mainly interested in racquetball at which she was one of our top lady players before her untimely death. Billy was a stylish, two handed player who while awaiting employment in the middle fifties got lots of handball practice. It all came good for him in 1957 when he reached three All-Ireland finals winning two of them. Unfortunately handball successes are no substitute for steady employment and shortly after his successes Billy went to England in search of work. Some nine years later he returned home and won a senior hard doubles medal in partnership with Greg Lawler in 1969.

Billy was a natural athlete who never tired of playing and I gather still plays the occasional game. He was good at all forms of the game and also adept at racquetball. In the simpler days of the fifties when we had to make our own entertainment Billy was, to use an expression associated with a later decade, the leader of our pack keeping us entertained with handball, athletics and swimming not to mention the occasional bar of a song. Do you remember Billy your straw hat that "sorta" floated over the Liffey Bridge (with a little help from your friends) while you were giving us a rendering of the "Banana Boat Song"? In the words of Phil Coulter's most famous song "Those were happy days" not least because we were all young and had yet to experience the trials and tribulations of life that come with advancing years

Seamie Curran was Billy's partner in both softball and hardball and together they were a formidable duo. Like his partner, Seamie was equally good at hardball and softball. Like Billy, Seamie also immigrated after his successes. Unlike Billy, Seamie has remained in England and married Mary Tipper of Lackan and they have settled down in that Ballymore enclave known as Reading. Seamie and Mary have a family of five children. Before immigrating, Seamie had been Club Secretary and carried out his duties with diligence.

Congratulations

To Eamonn Deegan on winning the Kildare Handball Award for 2008. This was announced at the Kildare G.A.A. Sports Stars night in the Hotel Keadeen on November 22. Eamonn received this award for his contribution towards handball over a long period of time. In 2000, Eamonn won this award in conjunction with John Browne in recognition of their win in the All-Ireland Emerald Masters “A” 40 by 20 Doubles.

© Matt Purcell (December 10, 2008)

The table quiz in the Ballymore Inn Halloween night raised E1200.00 towards an anesthetic machine for a hospital in Belarus. Thanks to Barry and Georgina O Sullivan, Tom O Rourke and Liam O Toole and all who contributed on the night.

In a small box please:
FOUND
“Signposts”
A resource pack for teachers (folder)
On Thursday, 11th December,
Truce Road area.



KTK Community Levies
Readers, Mike gave you an update on KTK Levies in last month’s Bugle; no major news since then except to say that monthly meetings are now being held and hopefully, progress should be evident in The New Year. Several projects submitted have been approved in theory by the committee but updated invoices and project analysis have since been requested. The submission by Ballymore Eustace Historical and Heritage Society has been ‘given the nod’ by the committee and should be put before the Naas Area Meeting at the end of January. If approved by Kildare County Councillors, the society should receive a substantial donation in Spring 2008. I am being deliberately vague about this as my experience to date on approved projects has been mind-boggling – such has been the time lapse between meetings plus changes of council personnel on the committee that approved submissions have had to be reviewed and basically, start from scratch again. Hence, my repeated usage of ‘should’ in this brief. The Bandhall proposal to tarmacadam the car park has also in theory been approved but, through no fault of the Bandhall Committee, will be reviewed at the end of January (submissions got mysteriously lost in Council cyber space…) Fingers crossed, Readers and remember, turtles eventually get where they are headed…….eventually. zzzzzzzzz Rose

Wolfe Tone Cumann DrawMany thanks to all who supported the annual raffle in aid of Wolfe Tone Fianna Fail Cumann. 1st Prize €150 - John Nolan, Naas; 2nd Prize €100 voucher Ballymore Inn - Shannon Slevin Doyle, Blessington; 3rd Prize €50 - Mary Campbell, Ballymore Eustace; 4th Prize Kevin Keenan, Jr; 5th Prize June Keenan, Kevin’s mum; 6th Prize Ned Deegan; 7th prize John Kennedy; 8th prize John Kennedy; 9th prize Gerry Morgan; 10th Prize Mark Power.
A happy Christmas to cumann members and to all who sold tickets, donated prizes or bought tickets. Special thanks also to Sean Power TD & Minister of State, Cllrs Mark Dalton and Martin Miley Jnr who attended the draw but biggest thanks to Des Kennedy who, once again, sold more tickets than anyone else – 90 books in total!

Prize
Niall Mellon Raffle
Winners
1st
Membership Naas Health & Fitness Gym (3 months)
Mary O Connell, Brannockstown
2nd
Champagne & Wine Hamper
Martin Horan
c/o Sheryl Horan
3rd
€100 Voucher "The Ballymore Inn" & Cuddly Toy
Robin McDermott
4th
Beautiful Jewellery Set & Bottle of Wine donated by Melissa Fisher
Killian Brennan, Kilmeague
5th /6th
M&S Watch
M & S Watch
Dylan Water and Celine O’Neill



Thanks to all who supported the raffle in aid of Niall Mellon Blitz 2009; local women Janet Deegan and Denise Kelly will be joining the crew heading out to South Africa next year to build permanent homes in poverty stricken areas. Thanks to all who sold or bought tickets and to all who donated prizes. A happy Christmas to you.


STEINER EDUCATION – A PARENT’S PERSPECTIVE



Being a long time customer of An Tearmann, the lovely café in Kilcullen, I had always had a general awareness of the Kildare Steiner School- their emphasis on creativity and beauty found in nature. I also recall hearing Rekka Patel praising the school and its teachers, but I guess I had never really stopped to consider it properly. It wasn’t until one day last summer someone said “Have you though of Steiner education” when I was grappling with the issue of our son’s failure to thrive as a dyslexic child in the state school system. Despite all the best efforts of teachers and the Principal, we felt matters were spiralling down- it was a tough year.

Afterwards we all reflected that the mention of the Steiner system was “like a lightbulb going on”. From the first “googling” of the Kildare Steiner School’s website, to the conversation on the phone and then the meetings with the teachers it was like a gradual process of enlightenment. A family member recently remarked “It was a real leap of faith” to change our son’s school after third class and maybe it was…The school is situated in Gormanstown, just beyond Brannockstown and the site is lovely, even if it does need some further work- there are lots of exciting projects in progress like the newly erected polytunnel, for all weather plant growing and a clay oven in the parent and child garden.

There is a small, but beautifully formed purpose built school building, and the classes are small- a pupil teacher ration of 1:13 in our son’s class. The classrooms are bright and welcoming and the teachers are very special, warm , kind, intuitive and calm. The whole of the national curriculum is covered, including Irish, but it is taught in quite a rounded and holistic way. For example in geography the older classes have been making amazing, hand drawn maps of Ireland , complete with all the detail. All the necessary facts seem to be fully absorbed, but the process is one that seems to appeal to all our human facets, reflecting the message “Schooling the head , hands and heart”.

As Steiner schools in Ireland are not currently recognised under the state system (although they are inspected regularly by the Department of Education), there is a fee payable by parents and then regular fundraising to make up the inevitable shortfall. In the relatively short time I have been involved with the school however I have been struck by the energy and enthusiasm of parents to engage with this. It’s certainly not the kind of school where you simply drop off your kids and drive away, the school actively encourages parental involvement and communication at all levels.

In my dealings with the Kildare Steiner School during the last six months I have been deeply impressed by the extent to which everyone involved with it seems to live out the philosophy of the founder of this type of alternative education- Rudolph Steiner, who said:

“Receive the child with reverence, educate the child with love, send the child forth in freedom”

The difference in our own child’s self confidence and academic achievement has been incredible so far and we all look forward to the continued illumination and growth that began in June, when the light bulb came on in our darkness.

Angie Thompson

To Contact the Kildare Steiner School please ring : 045 401919- if the teachers are in class please leave a message and someone will call you back as soon as possible.