BUSINESSES RALLY AROUND FOR HAITI

Before this month’s devastating earthquake Haiti was recognised as one of the world’s poorest countries, writes John Ahern. Given its lack of infrastructure this tiny nation is ill equipped to deal with a natural disaster that has caused such destruction.

Slowly but surely much needed aid is getting through and agencies are helping restore some semblance of normality to the stricken Haitians. Help is still badly needed and the response from Irish people has been exceptionally generous.

This week Mike McCarthy of Mellerick’s Pharmacy in Fermoy helped kick start a campaign that will help raise much needed funds for the Haitian Earthquake Appeal.

In a very short space of time local ice cream manufacturer, Silver Pail, supplied collection buckets (free of charge), Slattery Travel came up with posters for the buckets (also free of charge) and thanks to a great team effort these buckets have been distributed to businesses around the town.

It’s hoped that every business in Fermoy will have one of these plastic containers situated in a prominent place. Mike said he was delighted with the level of support the appeal was receiving and he thanked all those who had helped get the project off the ground.

Proceeds from the appeal will go to GOAL who have a considerable amount of personnel on the ground in Haiti.

‘CREME DE GRAS’ – A DROP OF WHAT YOU MIGHT FANCY!

- “Cannabis plants worth around €15,000 in upstairs bedrooms” -

One North Cork man has taken the recession busting idea of ‘growing your own’ to new highs.

Gardai were amazed when they issued a search warrant for a house in Glantane outside Mallow. They not only found cannabis plants growing in almost every room of the house but also were impressed by some of the ways the weed was used including its inclusion in a rather potent cannabis laced drink being sold as ‘creme de gras’.

While the usual cannabis cookies were on hand the alleged drug dealer had also blended his own cannabis infused butter, which would no doubt add a little something extra to your morning toast. However, this was not the only way that the cannabis was used in this cottage industry in North Cork.

“In all my years in the garda, I have never seen anything like this. It was absolutely amazing. The cannabis butter was one thing. It was used to make the biscuits. But the bottles were something else,” a senior garda said.

In the bottles, gardai were told by the alleged drug dealer and home chef, that he had distilled his own cannabis alcohol, which he was selling as ‘Creme de Gras’. The gardai believe that the man was running his cottage industry for some considerable time.

“We discovered cannabis plants worth around €15,000 in two upstairs bedrooms which were specially adapted for growing, with heat foil, fans etc. It seems that he has been supplying food and drink laced with cannabis to a number of clients. The man, who is in his 40s, hardly raised an eyebrow when we discovered his special brand of ‘cannabis butter’ packed in containers,” a garda spokesman said.

The man was arrested and taken to Mallow garda station for questioning. He was detained under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act. He was released without charge and a file will be sent to the director of public prosecution (DPP).

BALLYNOE FARMER TAKES A STAND AGAINST APPALLING ROAD CONDITIONS

In the aftermath of a very cold snap the bulk of the region’s roads are taking a hammering, however, new levels of destruction were plumbed when this writer visited the townlands of Rathdrum, Glantane and Killesseragh in Ballynoe.

I travelled to the effected area (off the Britway to Ballynoe road) expecting some good sized potholes but instead found one road completely impassable, another with a massive trench running across it and water running in every direction.

A BIT OF HELP

My guide was William O’Keeffe, a hardworking and sincere man who made contact with the local press seeking ‘a bit of help for a couple of bad roads’. William is a dairy and sheep farmer who along with several other residents must travel the affected roads on a daily basis.

“It’s a bad situation that has got worse and worse, the impassable road you photographed leads to an outside farm I have, I must take another route to get to it, the trench speaks for itself, a lot of people turn back when they come to it, it’s very difficult altogether on the people living around here.”

ALTERNATIVE ROUTE

Not that his case needed any backing up but William insisted on visiting his neighbour in Killesseragh, Eileen O’Donovan. Eileen, a quiet unassuming woman said that she was living in a lovely place with terrible roads.

“You can see the situation for yourself, by any standard the roads are in a very dangerous condition, the postman must take an alternative route to deliver letters and at the moment people are just getting through where the trench is but it’s very bad,” she said.

A striking feature of the area is the number of new houses along the effected roads – all are struggling to get to and from their residences.

PA’S EMERGENCY PLAN GETS THE GREEN LIGHT

A new sub-committee to deal with emergency situations is to be formed on Cork County Council after Cllr Pa O’Driscoll proposed it in a motion.

The committee, which will consist of six members of the county council and senior members of staff, is to be tasked with putting in place structures to allow for public participation in dealing with emergencies such as the extreme weather conditions that were experienced in December and January.

Cllr O’Driscoll placed the motion with Cllr Tim Lombard (Minane Bridge) at the meeting of the council last Monday.

During his address to the meeting, while proposing the motion, Cllr O’Driscoll said, “The council’s strategy for dealing with the recent events were limited. National roads were salted, but rural roads, estates and footpaths were left in a condition that was dangerous. Some rural areas were literally impassable. For any future effort to address such an emergency we must be able to use the goodwill of people in our local communities.”

Cllr O’Driscoll went on to say, “Local IFA leaders said farm machinery could be used to salt rural roads. This is a suggestion that is worth further consideration, and should be examined by the council now, and not be left aside until we find ourselves in a dire situation again. The provision of salt bunkers or bins are not a new idea, local authorities are using them across the UK for local communities to spread salt on footpaths and in estates. We should examine best practice in the UK and see if this can be adopted in County Cork.”

The motion was strongly supported by members from all political parties represented on Cork County Council. Cllr O’Driscoll asked that the membership of the new committee be ratified at the next meeting of Cork County Council, and that a timeline be introduced to ensure that the work of the committee is done efficiently so that a pilot scheme can be implemented by next winter.

Speaking to The Avondhu after the meeting Cllr. O’Driscoll said, “I am delighted that the members of Cork County Council supported my motion to form this committee and put in place a structure for increased public involvement in dealing with issues that were always seen as the responsibility of the county council. The reality we face is that the council is under serious financial pressure and will no longer be able to deliver the same level of service as we have come to expect. This committee is about acting to resolve issues that we are going to be facing, rather than just talking about the problems.”

Cllr O’Driscoll finished by saying, “Those who have ideas on how the goodwill of people can be utilised by the county council to benefit our communities should make these ideas known, so that when we do end up facing another crisis we will be prepared to act.”

‘SHOWBOAT’ THE MUSICAL FOR MITCHELSTOWN

The musical juggernaut that is the definitive musical ‘Showboat’ is due to dock in Mitchelstown on Tuesday, February 16.

The choice of ‘Showboat’ for this year’s Mitchelstown Musical Society production is due to many requests by people familiar with the genre to do a show with recognisable music and songs.

Since its inception the society has concentrated on the more unusual shoes – ‘Jack the Ripper’, ‘Viva Mexico’ and ‘Big Al’ – all performed with great aplomb by our new society. The entire company has been busy since last October learning dance routines, solo songs, dialogue and great choruses like “Ol man River, ‘Can’t help lovin that man of mine’, ‘Bill’, ‘Only Make Believe’ and more.

The words and music of “Showboat” were written by Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern, so the quality is assured. The two artistic geniuses, Mick Finn and Mick Treacy, have been burning the midnight oil – designing, building and painting sets and backdrops into a setting portraying the ‘Showboat’, the theatre and all the various stages to create the ambience in keeping with this fabulous production.

Throughout rehearsals Therese Horgan and Aine O’Sullivan have been examining and measuring the various characters in the show and sourcing costumes and props suitable for different roles. The final result of their work and talent will be spectacular.

Direction and choreography is under Margaret Carlisle and Christopher Hennessy. The final result will be a tribute to their stagecraft, musical and choreographic expertise and great experience in theatrical productions.

Society officers, Joe McMahon and Jim Flynn, are doing the rounds of local businesses canvassing their support. Mitchelstown Business people have been unstinting in their support and it is hoped that, not withstanding the present recession, they will continue where possible. Their support provides the financial nuts and bolts for our annual show and gives MMS a wonderful morale boost during our five months rehearsal campaign.

Finally, our thanks to the management, staff and club members of CBS, St Fanahan’s College and the Town Hall for making those premises available, also to the clubs who altered their schedules to accommodate the society’s programme.

The show will run from Tuesday, February 16 to Saturday, February 20 at 8pm nightly at the CBS. Tickets are now available at Jim Hyland’s, Lower Cork Street.

If past experience is anything to go by tickets will be like gold dust, so order yours right away!

LIAM LAWTON CONCERT FOR GALBALLY CHURCH

It was confirmed this week that the internationally acclaimed vocalist and composer, Fr Liam Lawton, is to perform in concert at the Church of Christ The King, Galbally on Easter Monday night, April 5. The event, kindly facilitated by local PP, Canon Denis Talbot, is being organised to raise funds for Galbally Community Council.

“We had been on the look out for a suitable attraction since our annual garden fete was cancelled due to bad weather last August,” community council chairman, Jim Fitzgerald, told The Avondhu.

“The fact that we’ve succeeded in securing a date with Fr Lawton is a real coup for us. His concerts are invariably sold out well in advance so the demand for tickets, which will be put on sale shortly, is likely to be very high.”

Liam Lawton is a unique artiste whose music has etched itself on the landscape of Ireland and far beyond. Drawing from the sacred and rich tradition of his culture, Liam has found a contemporary voice for ancient longing and the quest for the divine in modern life. His music is timeless and finds echoes in ages past with lyrics that are poetic and powerful finding a resonance in every day life.

Since ‘The Clouds Veil’ became, in late 2002, arguably the most universally used piece of music in churches across all denominations around New York and throughout the United States in the aftermath of the tragic events of 9/11, the name Liam Lawton has taken on a new resonance and meaning across the United States.

Followers of all faiths and beliefs seemed to embrace its message as an antidote to the tragedy and loss at the time.

Prior to 2002, the music of Liam Lawton had been widely issued both in sheet music form and on CD in USA, and Liam had become one of the most respected writers of choral and sacred music, in the American music field.