ANYONE FOR TENNIS IN MITCHELSTOWN?

Mitchelstown Tennis Club is one of the oldest sporting organisations in the town.

Formerly known as Mitchelstown Lawn Tennis Club, it has produced many fine players over the years such as the great Butch Cotter, the very talented David Casey and of course Marianne O’Keeffe, a superb all round sports woman.

Their present grounds are 30 years old and if everything goes according to plan they will have a new home and top of the range facilities in the not too distant future.

For now they must make do with their tarmac courts which were excellent in their day but have become obsolete with the advance of synthetic surfaces. The weather plays a big part in the amount of tennis that’s played in Mitchelstown as the courts become very slippery when it rains.

However, with the forecast reasonably good for the next couple of weeks expect plenty of activity. The club would like to see more young people take up the sport and an open invitation is extended to prospective members.

The club meets for training every Wednesday at 7.30pm; if you turn up with a racquet you’ll get a match. Those who promote the game in Mitchelstown are hugely enthusiastic about their chosen sport which they claim is accessible to everyone regardless of age.

With the right facilities and the necessary coaching Mitchelstown Tennis Club could yet see a return to the glory days.

NEW RELIGIOUS ORDER MAY LOCATE IN MITCHELSTOWN

A religious order that’s expected to come and live in Mitchelstown in the coming months is currently hosting evenings of prayer in honour of the Mother and Lady of All Nations.

The Family of Mary Community, having paid a number of visits to Mitchelstown, is currently working on the practicalities of setting up a community in the area.

Members of the community are now expected to again visit the locality with the founder of the order, Fr Paul Maria Sigl and host three evenings of prayer entitled ‘God shows the way to true peace, through Mary, the Mother of All Nations’.

While plans for evenings of prayer have not yet been finalised, other planned nights of prayer may be of interest to people in Mitchelstown.

They are as follows: Thursday, August 13 - St John’s Cathedral, Limerick 7pm Eucharistic Adoration, 8pm conference. 9pm Holy Mass. Friday, August 14 - St John the Baptist Church, Nicker, Pallasgreen. 7.30pm Holy Mass followed by Eucharistic Adoration and conference.

Saturday, August 15 - Cathedral of SS Peter and Paul, Ennis. 6.30pm Holy Mass followed by Eucharistic Adoration and conference.

Further details are available from Nancy McCormack at 061-384261.

BALLYLANDERS COUPLE ‘GIVING AWAY’ HOME TO START NEW BUSINESS

While the country is in the grip of the worst recession in decades, one enterprising Ballylanders couple have put their home up for grabs in an effort to start their own business. The couple have started their online business senbring.com to enable them to beat the recession and to empower other people to do the same.

“The website will help us beat the recession as members can become their own boss and make a decent living or extra cash as a ‘bringer.’ Also ‘senders’ will be able to speedily send packages, etc at a reasonable cost,”

Senbring.com founder, Declan Quinn, told The Avondhu, “By listing on Senbring, ‘senders’ can have their packages or any items sent from one address to another in record time. The ‘bringers’ can earn money by delivering the packages for the ‘senders’ while en route to their own destination or as part of their new ‘bringer’ job.

"As a service based global website business, Senbring’s philosophy is to organically grow rather than ever seek external funding. This is where its members come in. As part of the website release, we will reward Senbring’s most dedicated advocate. This is the member that is the most successful in terms of spreading the word for www.senbring.com. And, for all those who log on to the website there is the added bonus of a chance to win a house,” Declan Quinn said.

To win the 4 bedroom home, last valued in excess of €250,000, the winner must basically have told the most amount of people about Senbring through the website’s ‘Tell a friend’ link.

Extra details and criteria relating to the competition are on www.senbring.com. Every month until December of this year, Senbring will also award €1,000 to the 50th sender, who is a person or business, that uses its website to have an item sent/posted within Ireland.

There will also be a similar reward for the 50th bringer, who is a person or a business, that picks up and delivers items for senders using Senbring. Within the coming months, Senbring plans to provide additional employment opportunities in Ireland in the following areas: marketing, website development, IT, customer care, management, finance, software applications development, facilities and ground keeping plus student co-op programmes.

“Our view of Ireland and the highly educated pool of talent available means we have found it easier to find the right sort of skilled people for these job roles. Senbring also believes in a work life balance where their staff can look forward to coming to work as much as they look forward to going home to their family and friends. Given this, and despite these difficult economic times, Senbring is one of those companies where employees want to remain in for a rewarding and challenging balance to life,” Declan Quinn concluded.

For more information and a chance to win a house log on to www.senbring.com

LAST MINUTE HITCH FAILS TO DERAIL HEAD TO HEAD CYCLE

A last-minute hitch failed to deter the resolute group of cyclists who completed their Malin to Mizen Head cycle in memory of their late friend, raising funds for his respite centre in the process.

A number of local men were included in the group that set out from Malin Head last Wednesday, finishing at Mizen Head on Sunday, August 2, which took in a number of towns along the way, including an emotional stop-over in Macroom, the home town of their friend Daniel Kingston, who passed away following a brave battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma last February at the age of 25.

However, speaking to The Avondhu, Kilworth local Eoghan McCarthy said the organisation of the cycle hit a speed bump when the Cork-city based garage that had promised the use of a van for the trip pulled out at the last minute, claiming that it could not provide the vehicle as none of the support drivers were over 28 years old.

“We were almost caught out very badly with no van but luckily Blackwater Motors in fairness to them stepped in on the Monday morning and cut us a good deal with Steve (O’Riordan of Castlelyons) able to pick up the van within an hour of the other garage not giving it to us.”

Eoghan added that the group were still angry that the other city-based garage pulled out at the last minute having enjoyed the publicity of being associated with the cycle and insists that the support drivers’ details had been provided to the garage well in advance of the cycle.

He continued by thanking Blackwater Motors who, having provided the last minute deal at a fair price, saved the cycle from being cancelled. Eoghan told The Avondhu that the hitch failed to spoil the week however.

“It was a brilliant week overall,” he said.

“Basically it was the bunch of people we had in the group who made it what it was, everyone very supportive of each other. Two of the girls on the cycle in particular showed their unfaltering determination – some nights they were on the bikes until half eight to complete the stages of the cycle with the rest of us, we were seriously impressed by everyone’s dedication.”

Eoghan added that while the poor weather they endured last week was disheartening at times, overall the spirits were high.

“Coming into Mizen was my own highlight – someone had assured me that the road into Mizen was flat but it felt like hill after hill after hill that went on forever! Coming into Cork city having come from Thurles was very good as well, it was good to get back to our home city, it gave me a real surge of energy,” he said.

In conclusion Eoghan said the group were all very proud of their achievement, and hope that Cork ARC Cancer Support House, the centre Daniel used when ill, would benefit from their efforts.

For information on how to donate to Cork ARC Cancer Support House, and to see a photo gallery of the Malin to Mizen cycle, visit www.malin2mizencycle.com.

THE DEATH OF PAD JOE WALSH

Many tributes were paid this week to Pad Joe Walsh (PJ) of Church Street, Mitchelstown who passed to his eternal reward at Cork University Hospital on Friday.

Born in Gortnasna in 1933, PJ was educated at CBS Mitchelstown and St Colman’s College, Fermoy. A former employee of Mitchelstown Co-op and later Dairygold, he was keenly involved in sporting circles, was a founding member of Mitchelstown Community Games in the mid 60s and was also a committee member of Grange Athletic Club for many years.

A lover of the outdoor life, P J enjoyed nothing better than to take his dogs for a walk in Glenseskin Wood or on the nearby ranges. Throughout his life he had a keen interest in public affairs and 1999 saw him become a member of Cork County Council when he took the Fine Gael seat vacated by the late Conor O’Callaghan.

He secured 1,369 first preferences and he served as a local county councillor up until 2004, proving to be a truly great representative for his constituents in that time. PJ decided against seeking re-election in 2004 due to failing health.

His former county council colleague, Aileen Pyne, this week described him as ‘a gentleman, an astute politician and a true statesman’.

“I had the honour of serving with him for five years on the council. I had known Pad Joe as a Fine Gael activist for years and was very much aware of his immense contribution to the local community.

"In the five years he was on the council, he worked flat out for his constituents and to do his utmost for the betterment of Mitchelstown. Though small in stature, he was a giant in contribution and there is no doubt but he would have retained his seat only for falling into ill health”.

Ms Pyne concluded by expressing her deepest sympathy to his wife Alice, daughters Margaret and Ann and son William. Speaking of his involvement with the Grange/Fermoy Athletic Club, Bob Burke said Pad Joe was one of the driving forces behind the club, ‘holding the position of chairman for many years’.

“I had the pleasure of travelling the length and breadth of Ireland with Pad Joe down through the years. He was a major inspiration to his daughters Margaret and Ann and his son William when they ran for the club and was hugely involved when the Galtee Grange Internationals were at their peak in the late 1970s and early ‘80s,” Bob said, adding that PJ was a brilliant man for attending meetings, “and of course he was also involved in the county board.”

Pad Joe was also a great believer in the co-operative movement and was always a noble advocate of, and promoter for, the local credit union in the town. The huge crowds calling to his home on Saturday and at Mass on Sunday bore testimony to the esteem in which Pad Joe was held.

The removal of remains took place on Saturday night to the local church and interment took place at Brigown New Cemetery on Sunday afternoon following 12 o’clock Mass.

He is survived by his wife Alice (nee O’Keeffe), daughters Margaret (Mullins) and Ann (O’Flynn), son William, brothers Jim, Br Frank (Ned), Willie, John, Mike and Denis, sisters Mary (Kenneally) and Peg (Brennan) to whom we extend our deepest sympathy. May he rest in peace.

‘VIABILTY OF BUSINESS THREATENED BY CUTS’

The Health Service Executive (HSE) has put contingency plans in place across the country after hundreds of pharmacies withdrew from the medical card scheme last weekend. In Castletownroche Robert Duffy has withdrawn his pharmacy from the Community Drug Schemes.

“I regret the inconvenience the current HSE/Minister Harney crisis has imposed on our customers. The community of Castletownroche has been provided with a pharmacy service since 1951, when it was founded by Fred O’Riordan. I purchased the pharmacy in 2001 and invested to meet the changing requirements of pharmacy practice. The imposition now of 34% cuts in fees by the HSE is unsustainable for a rural pharmacy and threatens the viability of the business.”

Mr Duffy went on to point out that the IPU (the pharmacists’ representative body) has called for the appointment of a mediator in this dispute but, he says, the Government has shown no interest to do so.

“Pharmacists have laid down no pre-conditions for dialogue with the HSE but are being stone-walled in their attempt to resolve the situation. I do not want to see pharmacy reduced to patients sent to designated dispensaries, in a queue system, receiving prescriptions through a hatch without any interaction with the pharmacist. It is not what pharmacy is about. It is for this reason that I withdrew from the Government Community Drug Schemes.”

Elsewhere in the area, the dispute seems to be having very little, if indeed any major, affect. In Kilfinane, Power’s Pharmacy are continuing to dispense medicine to their regular customers only while all four pharmacies in Mitchelstown are operating the medical card scheme as it stands.

“I will continue to dispense medicine to my customers but I am doing so because I have to. If I stopped it would be the final nail in the coffin for my business and it seems that is what Minister Harney and the HSE want for a lot of pharmacies around the country,” one Mitchelstown pharmacist told The Avondhu this week.

The pharmacies in Mitchelstown are not withdrawing from the scheme. Peter Murphy of The Abbey Pharmacy is continuing to work with the HSE under protest.

“For now we are continuing to operate as normal for the month of August. Minister Harney must at least sit down and discuss the situation with the Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU). The enforced 34% cut is a drastic move no matter how you look at it. We have had to let three people go already and this is having a knock on effect on the service we offer our customers and this can’t continue,” Mr Murphy told The Avondhu.

In Fermoy all five pharmacies are operating as normal. They have, however, expressed their anger at how they see the HSE and the Minister for Health treating their businesses.

A spokesperson for the HSE would not comment on Minister Harney’s refusal to discuss the situation with the pharmacists but did confirm reports that a number of threats of violence have been made against locum pharmacists working in the temporary dispensing centres which it has established because of the dispute with community pharmacists over fees.