AT OUR RECENT A.G.M. Mike O’ Neill, chairman of the Hall Committee since it began in 2003 stepped down. Tributes were paid to his leadership skills, foresight, dedication and professionalism. Tony O’ Brien (Treasurer) complemented Mike and thanked him for all the hard work. Mike led from the front and was never short of ideas.

The new Chairman James Tobin, thanked the Committee for electing him and said it was an honour for him to take the position. He thanked Mike for his Chairmanship and for the professional manner in which he conducted it. The Parish owed Mike O’ Neill a debt of gratitude in the way he brought the Committee together and built and completed the Hall. We now have a hub where we as a very rural Community can come together and enhance the quality of our lives. The culmination of the whole project was of course the recognition given to our Community in winning the Pride of Place award; plans are underway to celebrate this with a function, more details later.
Votes of sympathy were passed to the following families on recent berevements,Eileen and Ger Mc Carthy Thompson, Ahearne Family, Lucey family,Mc. Sweeney familiy, Farrell Family and Long family.
We wish Eoin Murphy a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him up
and about again soon. A programme of events is presently being organised for the coming year details will be given once dates have been finalised.

Remember to book the hall or simply make an enquiry for birthday parties, meetings, classes, or anything else you may require the space for you can do so by calling 087 9675399  between 7pm and 9pm.
The KGK Community Sports Hall is kindly sponsored by Tallow Area Credit Union

THE YOUGHAL RNLI LIFEBOAT was launched on Saturday 14th of May 2011 at 3.12 pm to report of a 3.5 meter rib that had experienced engine failure four miles south of Ardmore.   The exact location of the rib was not known when the RNLI launched but managed to locate them thanks to the help of the Waterford Coast Guard Helicopter.

The Youghal RNLI under the helm of David Slattery and crew members Erik Brooks and Liam Keogh arrived on scene and found 5 persons on board the rib. They took all five on board the Lifeboat and established a tow to Ardmore pier where they were left safe and well.  The Youghal Lifeboat then returned to station.

 

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the Ireland and the UK. The RNLI operates over 230 lifeboat stations with 43 in Ireland. The RNLI is independent of the Coast Guard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824 its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 137,000 lives. The RNLI is a charity registered in England, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.

KATIE TAYLOR produced another tour de force to claim a comprehensive victory in Youghal on Friday night last ( May 6th 2011). The World and European lightweight champ recorded a comprehensive 23-2 win over Germany’s Maike Kluners on a St John’s BC hosted show at the Walter Raleigh Hotel in Youghal. Kluners, ranked eight in the world, took two standings counts in the second frame of this encounter. Katie will set her sights on her fourth European Union title in a row in in Poland later this month. The 2011 Women’s European Union Championships will take place in Katowice from May 29th to June 5th.

Click on image to see Katie in action ( including other boxers, spectators and presentation by Youghal Town Council) at the Walter Raleigh Hotel, Youghal. – Photo: Michael Hussey www.youghalonline.com |  email: news@youghalonline.com

Deise Designers Offer Peep At Potential For Youghal Quayside – By Christy Parker

AN INSIGHT into leisure and tourism possibilities on Youghal’s quayside was afforded to visitors to the Mall Arts Centre on Wednesday last (May 4th), where a project exhibition by third year architect students from Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) was hosted. A wind surfing academy, a birthing centre and a salmon yawl making facility were amongst the innovations presented by the designers.

As part of their five-year course, each of 49 students had been briefed to develop an idea for a building ‘relating to the river,’ and based on Nealon’s Quay (behind the snooker hall, for uncertain readers!). Fifteen of the completed projects were brought to the centre and it is fair that works of inspired innovation and high accomplishment were presented.

An unprecedented liaison had seen a few hundred students, from second through to fifth year, had “scoped” the town last September, explains third year lecturer Garry Miley. The third year faculty had worked on two projects; one was a culinary-based challenge to design a site opposite the post office. That was presented last January. The second semester focused on the potential for Nealon’s Quay.

Garry explains that the concepts also attempted to “get away from the idea that architecture has to be commercially driven. We preferred to think that projects can first and foremost be identified and created by on a community basis,” he elaborates, “and their viability explored afterwards.”

Amongst the ideas laid out across two floors of the Mall Arts Centre were:

Family Bathing Centre: Reflecting a concept found in Blackrock, Dublin and influenced by Scandinavian practice, this involved a series of cabin structure, anchored in the harbour and accessed by a pier. The cabins, for hire would accommodate families, with shower and food facilities incorporated. Beats jumping off the quay wall, one might reflect!
Salmon Yawl Building Centre: A multi-storey purpose-designed building in which visitors could watch traditional craftwork being conducted. Each floor, easily accessible floor, would represent a different stage in the boat-making process.
Centre of Excellence for Skilled Rowers and Scullers: A high-tech, year round training centre for those aspiring towards the higher echelons –perhaps Olympian standard- of the sport.
Wind Surfing Academy: With design acknowledgment towards the traditional British type pier, this fixed construction had a ‘fun’ as well as a serious ethos, with barbecue and other culinary attributes attached.
Training Centre for Search and Rescue: Effectively a large, deep pit accessing the river bed and below it, where allowance is made both for deep sea training and underwater platforms from which to watch it.
A Birthing Centre: There was approximately a 50/50 gender ratio and one female student researched the prevalence of natural water births annually in Co. Cork, when exploring this concept. The expertise of nurses, midwives etc. was consulted when designing the facility, based on practicality and likely demand.
Sea Philosotherapy Centre: A series of constrictions linked by the common agenda of providing sea-based treatments and therapies, such as seaweed baths, salt baths, jacuzzis, etc. These centres are particularly popular in the south east France.
Turkish baths: Again utilising the seawater proximity, a female Parisian student, on an exchange programme brought a non-Irish design technique to the project with the quayside extended, as reflected in many of the works, to accommodate luxury, health and recuperation.

Real world

The concepts paraded were not necessarily those likely to achieve the highest scores in the WIT exam marking process, but were chosen “because they offered very diverse ideas, with no one piece having any strong relevance to another,” explains Garry. “We were also conscious of the hope that architects and council officials would have something to reflect on when considering the town’s development and potential.”

Practicality was also semi-suspended in that third year level students are encouraged to let their imaginations flow freely. “They are aware that in later progress and in the wider world, economic and even scientific realities would have a greater bearing,” says Garry.

In that real and judgemental world, the examples shown would cost anything from €1m to tens of millions of euros to build. “The point is, that the ideas are real now,” counters Garry, “if the money ever became available. Furthermore, they could be generated on a smaller level for a far lesser cost, if the will was there.”

Click below to see a proposed surf centre project for Youghal, Co. Cork, Ireland, by a 3rd year Waterford Institute of Technology student

Shop windows

All 49 concepts will shortly be assuaged in WIT for exam marking purposes. However Youghal may again see them along with designs from other themes from various WIT architect levels. “We hope to be able to place a lot of the students’ projects in vacant shop windows in Youghal next September,” says Garry.  Perhaps in the future one of them will be viewable in life-size format from the Youghal snooker hall!

********

Kilkenny Student Brings Fresh View Of Youghal To The Surface – By Christy Parker

One of more relevant aspects of the WIT architectural project was that the students saw Youghal, its flaws and potential from standings that were a) relatively young b) creative and c) outsider. Kilkenny girl Anita Morrissey personifies all three and her forthright views, delivered without compromise, offer sea food for thought!

Anita arrived in Youghal, for her first time, via the bypass from Cork. Her first close-up view of Youghal was the Foxhole industrial estate. After that “it took awhile to get past the town’s historical interests which are just fantastic,” she recalls. “But I didn’t actually see the sea for ages. It’s quite hidden.”

Having found the quayside and unearthed the beaches, she was smitten! “You have amazing  natural amenities here,” she exudes. “But they are so very under-utilised. If we had these in Kilkenny we’d be absolutely exploiting them to the hilt.”

Anita considers that Youghal’s future growth will depend immensely on tourism and sees the development of the quayside as fundamental to that cause. “You simply have to utilise it. And be innovative. People will come to see something that’s any way unique or different and the same applies to the beach areas,” she encourages.

Seating and eating…

Beyond or before the unique, she shudders at the dearth of basic imagination regarding the norm. “Look, you don’t even have much seating on Nealon’s Quay. People can buy snacks and sandwiches locally but they can’t sit by the river and eat them! Get simple concrete seats even!”

In case one wonders why anyone would want to join the seagulls in the car park, she reminding us to consider what should be the bleedin’ obvious. “The Blackwater is beautiful and steeped in history. This is the river where people bought, sold, exported and imported. Don’t you see how attractive that is to visitors?! Now you can re-generate income from the river on leisurely rather than an industrially, especially given that the town’s accent on heritage and history is already quite impressive.”

It is impossible to avoid devil’s advocate and mutter something Cork County Council’s twin brakes, health ‘n’ safety when innovation sets off downhill. “You have to get past bureaucracy, push boundaries,” she retorts. Considering for a moment she surmises, “Perhaps Youghal relies too much on old thinking. I’ve noticed resistance to change amongst some older people. With respect, it’s important to let young ideas and energy loose. These are the people who don’t want to have to leave here.”

See more of the proposed projects for Youghal by clicking on the videos below

COMMUNITY SERVICES AT CUMANN NA DAOINE seem to have been saved following agreement between its board and the owners of its League of Cross base. Speculation had been rife in recent weeks that hugely popular resource centre was to close and services more or less dispatched to Midleton. However following intervention from local politicians, in tandem with Cork East TD David Stanton, agreement in principal to retain the centre in Youghal was reached at a meeting last week. It is understood that the finer detail were agreed at a subsequent meeting and the centre will remain open pending ratification. This is expected to occur in the coming days. An optimistic Deputy Stanton has observed that Youghal may furthermore enjoy the benefit of strong SECAD presence in the town alongside Cumann na Daoine.

 

THE FUTURE looks a little brighter at the very least for young Keith Phelan and his family following the Youghal boy’s trip to Germany for inaugural stem cell treatment for cerebral palsy. The 10 year-old pupil of Bunscoil Mhuire travelled to Dusseldorf with his parents Tony and Mag, where he underwent the revolutionary procedure in a bid to generate improvement in his condition and to enhance his quality of life long-term. The outcome proved positive, with the benefits in their early stages promising further and considerable progress.

The trip, undertaken amidst faith and hope, was accommodated by considerable charity from Keith’s home community. For over a year, numerous individuals and organisations gave their moral, physical and financial support to meet the €9,000 cost of the medical treatment alone.

Stem cells therapy

Stem cell treatment involves the removal of isolated, autologous (adult) stem cells from the body. The cells are taken from bone marrow, usually through a long thin needle inserted into the hip. Children undertake the extraction under a local anaesthetic. The cells quickly multiply million-fold before being re-administered to the body. The re-insertion can occur via injection or by intravenous drip, as was administered in Keith’s case.

It remains a mystery as to how or why the treatment works but it is assumed that stem cells discharge certain substances which activate the diseased tissue. The cells may also replace damaged tissue. Though scientifically unproven, it is being adapted to treat a varied range of degenerative conditions, including stroke, MS, diabetes, spinal injuries, Parkinson’s, arthritis, neuropathy, Alzheimer’s, heart damage, eye disease, autism and incontinence, with varied success. It is estimated that XCell’s success rate sees roughly one third of patients experiencing no positive results, one third seeing moderate improvement and one third experiencing excellent results.

Testing time

Keith arrived at the Dusseldorf XCell centre unaware of the purpose of his trip. “He became a little agitated when he saw the medical equipment,” recalls Tony. His parents were unsure as to whether Keith would prove suitable for treatment at all and if he was, there was concern that he would react badly to a local anaesthetic, as he is prone to do.

All worries proved baseless. The medical team, under Professor Dr. Nils Haberland, administered a very small dose of local anaesthetic, with no side effects. This facilitated the 40-minute procedure during which Keith’s stem cells were extracted. The family then waited anxiously for two day to learn whether the cells multiplied sufficiently and also whether they were of adequate ‘vitality’, the term that defines stem cell quality. If these criteria were not met, that would mark the end of the mission. To everyone’s immense relief, the procedure produced an excellent 18 million cells of high vitality. The treatment was allowed to proceed.

Retrain the brain

Meanwhile Keith had commenced physiotherapy at the centre, under a female specialist described by Tony as “excellent.” It was defined that Keith’s brain, having suffered bleeding at birth, was formatted towards instructing certain responses and behaviour. This produced many behavioural symptoms, including drooling and a negligence or inability to perform many physical actions, manifest in restricted limb movements to the point of paraplegic, slouched posture and epilepsy. “Basically, she said his brain must be re-formatted and helped to develop new habits, so to speak, over very long period of time,” says Tony.

Demanding and receiving Keith’s full attention, Dr. Haberland initiated a physiotherapy process called the Face Former. “It’s a device something like a gum shield,” explains Tony “and he undergoes exercises four times daily to help curb persistent drooling, which is caused by his tongue being relatively stagnant.”

The re-admission of Keith’s stem cells was relatively painless. It involved administering mannitol, a serum which allows ‘opens a portal’ for an hour or so, to allow the stem cells to travel to the brain. In Keith’s case this was done through an intravenous drip, rather than a spinal injection. After six days in Germany, he returned home.

Improvement

Since his return, Keith’s general demeanour has been noticeably better and signs of improved abilities are discernible. “He is much more inclined to sit up straight, he tries to use his left arm for the first time and his reading is also much better,” Tony reports. “Some of that may be down to the therapy he receives here at home or it may be largely due to the stem cells, or perhaps a combination of both. Beyond the physical, it is hoped that Keith’s mental approach to his condition will also benefit from the new process. “Dr. Haberland advised us that while we may do all we possibly can for Keith, he must also be encouraged to all he can for himself,” Tony reflects.

Onward fight

The future is brighter and holds much promise, hope but it also remains unclear and indefinable. “Firstly, it’s important to understand that there is no magic cure. Keith won’t suddenly transform into a regular person,” Tony explains. “He will always require a degree of care. But what we are trying to achieve is to improve his independence and quality of life as much as possible.

For now Keith will adhere to his regular physiotherapy schedules, combining the programme provided from Dusseldorf with that of his Irish care. Throughout the next year, the family will liaise with the XCell Centre, after which the centre will judge whether Keith would benefit from receiving further stem cells.

However in the meantime and by way of maximising his progress, the centre is very keen for Keith to visit a different centre in the German city of Unna, ideally within months. There he would undergo a week long course of advanced neuro-rehabilitation, a sort of gymnastics-physical-speech therapy. It costs €5,000 and, along with the necessary absence from work, Tony isn’t sure how practical or possible it is to comply. “We will continue to fundraise as best we can,” commits Tony and see where we go from there. Whatever happens, Keith is and always will be, loved dearly by us all.”

As they address each day in turn, the Phelan’s are eager to thank all who have brought Keith this far. “From the very bottom of our hearts, my family and I thank the people of Youghal and beyond who have supported us. It is so very heartening to know that people can be so kind and giving. It gives us strength to move forward.”

Tony wants it known that should anyone else in a similar situation require advice or guidance, the Phelan family will gladly provide what help they can. Indeed hope can spring from the most unexpected wells. During their time in Dusseldorf, the family met a family from Mayo also seeking stem cell intervention. They had no idea the centre existed until an internet search led them to youghalonline.com.

Donations to the Keith Phelan Fund can be made at:

AIB bank Sort Code 93-43-05; A/c No: 95841087.

Meeting commences at 7 pm. Inquiries: Cumann na Daoine (024) 91900

THE DIVERSE issues of elderly abuse and house insulations are the subjects of a public conference being organised by Muintir na Tire at Youghal’s Cumann na Daoine on Wednesday May 11th.

Pauline Glavin, HSE Senior Protection Officer in the North Lee area, will employ DVD and power point technology in her address, which will offer wide-ranging information and advice on the issue of abuse against the elderly. Inspector Senan Ryan of North East Cork division will also speak. There are almost 2,000 incidents of elderly abuse reported in Ireland per annum. Ms. Glavin will advise both on how to recognise such abuse – whether physical, sexual, discriminatory, neglectful, financial or otherwise- and how to challenge it when it is detected.

Mr Morris O’Brien of the Warmer Home Scheme will speak on house insulation. Particular emphasis will be placed on this scheme, which is government-sponsored initiative aimed at ensuring warmer, healthier and more energy efficient houses for people on low incomes. Diarmuid Cronin, a community development officer with Muintir na Tire will contribute to the presentation, with information on grants and benefits that are available and of which many people may be unaware.

Question from the floor will be welcomed on both issues on both nights and the meetings commence at 7 pm. Inquiries: Cumann na Daoine (024) 91900

Websites:  http://www.hse.ie/eng/services/Find_a_Service/Older_People_Services/Elder_Abuse/

http://external-wall-insulation.ie/index.html

TDs meet local artists across Ireland as part of National Campaign for the Arts ‘Meet and Greet’

On Monday 16th May artists, audiences and all those who make the arts happen in East Cork will Meet and Greet newly elected TDs Sandra McLellan (SF), David Stanton(FG) and Minister for Trade and Innovation Séan Sherlock (Lab) as part of the National Campaign for the Arts’ (NCFA) nationwide ‘Meet and Greet’.  This is the third national mobilisation of the arts community by the NCFA.

The ‘Meet and Greet’ will be held in Sirius Arts Centre at 11:30am and is one of 40 meetings organised with the nearly all the 76 new TDs in their 43 constituencies nationwide.

Direct engagement with TDs is one of the NCFA’s key strategies, ensuring that the arts are on local and national government agendas and continue to be recognised as a vital part of contemporary Irish life.

The 40 nationwide MEET AND GREETS have three main purposes.

The NCFA and its members in Cork East want to engage new local representatives and demonstrate the value of the arts in helping create the society we all want.
The Cork East Meet and Greet aims to inform and excite these decision makers about the arts, highlighting the impact and penetration of the arts in the area.
Given the value of the arts  to the economy, to Ireland’s international reputation, to tourism and to the general wellbeing of our citizens, TDs will be asked to support the National Campaign for the Arts’ call for sustained funding for and investment in the arts.

DETAILS OF MEET AND GREET

When: Monday May 16 2011

Where: Sirius Arts centre, Cobh

Time: 11:30 am (suggest people get there early)

Who: Sandra McLellan TD (SF), David Stanton TD (Lab) and Sean Sherlock TD (lab)

More information: www.siriusartscentre.ie AND www.ncfa.ie

ABOUT THE NCFA

Established in September 2009, the National Campaign for the Arts is a broad and inclusive coalition that reflects the scale, reach and diversity of the arts in Ireland today. Its membership has a national reach that includes major festivals, venues, producers and representative organisations in visual arts, theatre, film, dance, music, literature, architecture and collaborative arts.

For more information on the NCFA, visit www.ncfa.ie

KEY FACTS AND FIGURES

Since 2008 there has been an overall 25% reduction in Arts Council funding to the arts sector from €84.6 million in 2008 to €65.1 million in 2011.

Jobs

The total of direct, indirect and induced employment, supported by the arts and creative industries, is 95,649 jobs.  (Total direct, indirect and induced employment in arts council funded and wider arts sector is 26,519).1.
Taking into account economic multipliers, the Value Added dependent on the cultural and creative sectors in 2008 was €11.8 billion or 7.6% of total GNP2.

Tourism

According to Failte Ireland Survey of Overseas Travellers/CSO Travel and Tourism, Cultural Tourism is worth over €2 billion to the economy – this includes both domestic and overseas tourism.
According to Tourism Ireland cultural tourism is the only growth area of the tourism market and has continued potential for growth.
Nearly 50% of total overseas visitors visited a cultural/historical attraction in 2009. 3
Galway Arts Festival alone was worth €24.5 million to the local economy in 2008.4

Investment – The arts provide value for money

A recent study showed that public investment in the Abbey Theatre of €8.3 million brings €40 million annually into the Irish economy5.
Total Exchequer expenditure on the cultural and creative sector in 2008 was €330 million6.  Direct Exchequer revenue from the cultural and creative sectors in 2008 was approximately €1 billion7. We give back more than we receive.
Of the €76 million that was used in the funding of arts organisations and individuals across Ireland in 2008, €54 million was returned directly to the Exchequer in the form of income, VAT and other taxes8.
For every €1 the Irish Film Board has invested in a film and television production, over €6 was attracted from international sources9.

Audiences

Theatre Forum’s survey of audiences in 49 Arts Council supported theatres and festivals in 2009 showed that:

More than 1 in 4 Irish households bought tickets for arts events in 2009. 10
1.8 million tickets had been sold, worth over €35 million, in 49 Arts Council funded festivals and venues in 2009. 11
Over 500,000 people worldwide attended a theatre and/or dance performance by an Irish company in 2008. 12.

Cork East Fine Gael TD, David Stanton has welcomed retention of Cumann na Daoine services.

“Cumann na Daoine were established in 1996 and have been operating successfully in Youghal since then. In 2008 Cumann na Daoine developed a community resource centre in Youghal which hosts a large range of activities and services such as Community Radio Youghal, FAS, VEC, HSE, a women’s group, men’s group, an art group and a disability group. The centre also offers SECAD courses, aftercare cancer supports, GROW and an Older People’s Network.

“I understand that an agreement has been reached between Cumann na Daoine and South and East Cork Area Development (SECAD) Ltd. This agreement will allow all existing Cumann na Daoine Services to continue to operate until the end of the current funding programme in December 2013.

“As part of a national integration strategy which began last year, responsibility for local community development programmes, such as Cumann na Daoine, is to be transferred to the relevant local development company, which is SECAD in this area. Both Cumann na Daoine and SECAD should be congratulated as they have worked very hard to reach an agreement which is suitable to both parties.

“I believe this agreement will retain all existing Cumann na Daoine Services in Youghal which have been a huge benefit to many people there. The agreement should also allow for a greater SECAD presence which should prove an additional boost for the people of Youghal. I wish both organisations every success in continuing and developing services in Youghal.

Cork East Fine Gael TD, David Stanton has learned that work will commence this week on the new Health Centre in Youghal. The health centre, currently located at Catherine Street, is due to be relocated to Unit 4, Millennium Court, Youghal.

“I am pleased that work is due to begin on the new Youghal Health Centre. I was advised by HSE staff that they hope that the new centre will be ready and open for business by the end of June. The current premises has limited access making it far from ideal for users of the health centre and its staff. I know I and my colleague in Youghal Cllr Barbara Murray receive regular representations from people in Youghal who are anxious to see improvements to their local health centre.

“I am confident that the new building being leased by the HSE, will be a much more modern, efficient and comfortable premises,” said Deputy Stanton. I understand that the HSE had initially hoped that the new centre would be operational before now but due to a number of alterations to the layout works will only begin this week. It is hoped that works will be completed in the next four to five weeks and the centre will be opened once these are completed.