Community notices

PROLOGUE:  It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.  Frederick Douglass.

DEATHS:  We offer sincere sympathy to Marie Sweeney and family, Killarney Road on the death of her brother Martin Tuohy in the US.  May he rest in peace.  Sincere sympathies too to the Cahill family, Knocknasna on the death of John in Galway.  May he rest in peace.

QUIT SMOKING: Stop Smoking for 28 days and you’re 5 times more likely to stop for good. Quit Mid-West is a free service for providing tips, tools and support to help you stop smoking. For further information contact 065-6865841. A counselling service to support parishioners who wish to stop smoking is now available at St Ita’s Hall, Abbeyfeale.
For an appointment contact 065-6865841.

DANCING WITH JOHNJOE:  Dance nights will commence on Sunday, October 24 in the Scartaglen Heritage Centre from 9-11pm with music by Neilly O’Connor.

COFFEE MORNING: A big thank you to everyone who supported the coffee day on September 30 last, and subsequently by sending in donations.
To date  €1,562 was raised with a few more donations promised. The plan is to do a cheque presentation next Thursday to Milford Hospice and Friday to Recovery Haven. In the meantime, if anyone wishes to make a donation, it can be left at Kathleen’s Foodstore or An Siopa Milseán. Many thanks.

MISSION MONTH:  ‘We Cannot Remain Silent’, ‘We cannot but speak about what we seen and heard’.  Our own Fr. Tim Galvin will be one of the speakers as Missionaries share their experience of working in Sudan and South Sudan. Thursday, October 21 at 8pm. Register online  https://www.dioceseofkerry.ie.  For further information contact email  [email protected] or phone 064 6632644.

NOMINATIONS for Family Carer of the Year Awards must be in before 22^nd of October, details from 1800 24 07 24 or contact www. familycarers.ie

ONE MILLION STARS TO END VIOLENCE:  The West Limerick Network are aiming to weave 5,000 stars by Friday, |November 19.  Half the stars will go to the Hunt Museum Limerick city and the remainder will stay in West Limerick and feature in an art installation to represent solidarity with women affected by domestic violence.

EDUCATION: Kerry College of Further Education and Training with campus locations in: Clash Road, Denny Street, Monavalley, Cappanalea and Listowel. Kerry College offers courses for PROGRESSION, courses for EMPLOYMENT and APPRENTICESHIPS. Late applications are welcome for our 2021/2022 academic year.

LOCAL AUTHOR LAUNCHES NEW BOOK:  A new collection of short stories by Pat McLoughlin has just been released. The title of the book is ‘Just One More Thing’. The book is available at ‘An Siopa Milslean’ (Mary Flynn’s), Abbeyfeale or online at www.limerickwriterscentre.com.  As with Pat’s previous books all proceeds go to local charities.

LOCAL HISTORY COURSE:   Monday evenings from 7pm -9pm Starting October 18, 2021 at the Old Tech, Mountmahon on the  Further Education and Training Abbeyfeale Campus.
The aim of this programme is multipurpose. The course will explore the history of the West Limerick area and areas of specific note from ancient times right through to the present. The course will also trace the impacts of different societies on the development of
the West Limerick area. The knowledge, skills and competencies acquired on this programme are relevant to personal development and participation in society, community and employment and provides a basis for further progression. The programme covers the acquirement of basic knowledge, skills and competencies in a narrow range of fields of learning.

INTIMIDATION:  Drug Related Intimidation is a criminal offence, and An Garda Siochana and the National Family Support Network highlighted this back in 2013, with the Drug Related Intimidation Reporting Programme, however, a lack of awareness of the programme, means that some family members can go without support, and some people (including workers in organisations) may be at a loss if a situation of drug related intimidation is disclosed to them.It is a very difficult situation that a person could find themselves in, through no action of their own. It may be, that they didn’t even know their family member was using substances.  Whatever the circumstance, it can be isolating and heart breaking, and for that reason, it is important that people who find themselves in this situation know that there is support out there, and they are not alone.  Drug Services can direct a family member towards a family support project or worker who can help them around the stress and strain of the circumstances where a family member is using substances (www.drugs.ie) and An Garda Siochana can support the family member in terms of their safety and security when faced with an incidence of drug related intimidation. There is a designated Garda Inspector allocated to Drug Related Intimidation in every county.Limerick: Detective Inspector Ronan McDonagh    Henry Street Garda Station 061 212 400.  Kerry: Inspector John Kelly Tralee Garda Station 066 7102300.  It’s never too late to ask for help.

RETROFIT: The Deep Retrofit of a home means carrying out multiple energy upgrades all at once to achieve a BER of A-rating. Firstly, you will need to reduce the level of heat loss so that you keep heat in the home for longer. This involves some or all of the following: wall insulation, roof insulation, floor insulation, window upgrades. The next step is to look at an efficient renewable heating system to support the transition away from fossil fuels. The typical heating system installed on a Deep Retrofit Pilot Project is an air-source heat pump.  It also includes mechanical ventilation to maintain good indoor air quality. Other renewable energy technologies such as solar water heating panels and solar photovoltaic panels may be appropriate for your home.  Thanks to Jer Kenneally, Knockanure for his research.

https://www.seai.ie/grants/home-energy-grants/deep-retrofit-grant/

COLLECTION: Bishops are asking parishes throughout Ireland to undertake a special Church collection on 6 and 7 November to invite the public to support Trócaire in its work to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in East Africa. Bishops also discussed that in the countries where Trócaire works, less than 5% of the population have been vaccinated for Covid and infection rates are up to 50%.  An additional 200 million people have fallen into poverty globally as a result of the Covid crisis.  Bishops highlighted that wealthier countries, while protecting their most vulnerable citizens, also have a moral responsibility to ensure that the populations of developing countries have equal, rapid and effective access to Covid vaccine coverage. For more on Trócaire’s East Africa appeal see www.trocaire.org.

MENOPAUSE AND ME WEBINAR:  Health and Wellbeing Mid West Community Healthcare invites you to join us for our free webinar.  Speakers on the night: Dr. Cassie McVeigh, GP with a special interest in menopause, perimenopause and HRT.  Nodlaig Moore, Clinical Psychologist.  Charlene Hyland, Women’s Health Physiotherapist.   Members of the Health and Wellbeing Team and women sharing their lived experience of menopause.  This takes place on October 21 from 7-9pm.

GUITAR LESSONS:   with Margaret Carroll will return at the Library Athea shortly.   Enquiries to 087-9395273.

GLÓRACH NEWS:  Our charmed relationship with the weather continued on Sunday last at the GAA grounds with the weather conditions more akin to mid-summer than mid-October, and the upbeat mood continued with a slightly larger crowd attending our drive-in Bingo.  Continuing as per normal every Sunday at 2 pm, with two more days in October and hopefully pleasant weather.  All profits from the Bingo on October 31st will be going to the Abbeyfeale Christmas Lights Committee. Very colourful bingo signage greets visitors to the town from all sides, but for those who might have missed the time on the posters, it’s 2 pm at the GAA grounds in Abbeyfeale every Sunday, whatever the weather.

ABBEYFEALE YOUTH  CLUBS:  There have  been youth clubs up and running for the past 16 years, providing an essential service for hundreds of young people. The success of the club is down to the participation of the many parent volunteers who over the years have given their time to the club. Theyouth club is an essential service for our young parishioners, providing an opportunity for them to socialise together in a safe environment. The club leaders are currently planning the reopening of the club, but this can only happen with the support and participation of parent volunteers.  We are now seeking the help of parents of first year, second year and third year students in secondary school. In fact, the club will only reopen when there are sufficient parent volunteers in place. We are coming out of probably one of the most challenging times for young people in our lifetime. For the well-being of our teenagers it is essential that we get the clubs open, so that they can once again experience normal social interaction. We  are still appealing to the relevant parents to help us in this
important work. Do consider volunteering. If you would like further information please contact Noreen on 0872353306 or Fr Tony on 087-2600414. We would ask that grandparents bring the news of this appeal to their children and grandchildren. All Covi-19 requirements will be implemented by the clubs once they are open.

COVID-19: In Abbeyfeale we can accommodate up to 500 people for Mass. For marriage ceremonies the number of people allowed to attend is 100. In order to maintain safety, we suggest that no more than 6 people sit in any one seat. People living in the same household may sit together. Stewards will continue to direct people to seating and we ask you to follow the guidance of the church stewards, so that we don’t have a situation where people are all gathered together in one section of the church and other areas of the building are
empty. Those attending Mass are still required to wear face masks as we are in an enclosed area and all visitors to the church should continue to sanitize their hands.
Windows will remain open for ventilation purposes. As the autumn approaches and the temperatures drop, parishioners are urged to wrap up well. Some seats will remain
closed off to help maintain some distance between people attending Mass. Any person with COVID-19 symptoms should not attend Mass. You should self-isolate and contact your doctor for advice. Now that we have additional capacity we encourage more parishioners to attend Mass in the church.

HEALTHY PLANET, HEALTHY PEOPLE PETITION: The Season of Creation runs from September 1 (World Day of Prayer for Creation) to October 4 (the feast of St. Francis of Assisi). Amid numerous crises which have shaken our world, the theme this year is “Restoring Our Common Home”. During this season we are asked to join together to celebrate creation and protect our common home through prayer, reflection and action. After the Season of Creation there will be UN meeting on Climate Change in November of world leaders in Scotland (known as COP 26) and another UN Conference of world leaders on Biodiversity is scheduled to take place in China during Spring 2022.
In preparation for these UN meetings a petition known as the Healthy Planet, Healthy People Petition which has been endorsed by the Vatican Department for Integral
Human Development and is now available at http://healthyplanetandpeople.org/ for dioceses, parishes, and individuals to sign. It is envisaged that this petition with
signatures will be presented by Pope Francis to the Presidents of these upcoming UN conferences.

UNICEF:  “Get a Vaccine/Give a Vaccine.” It hoped to deliver 2 billion COVID-19 vaccines to the most vulnerable families, in the poorest countries, including Health workers and the most high-risk people on our planet. UNICEF is inviting us to sponsor a present of the Vaccine to those in the Third World. The vaccine is freely accessible to us, and we don’t even have to pay for it. So many in the poorest countries have no access to it. Already, in appreciation of how lucky we are in comparison to them, the cost of almost 2,000,000 vaccines for people in the Third World has been donated.
What a nice way to put into practice the message of the Gospel ; – Of loving one another as He loved us and expressing that love by showing kindness to those who are in
no position to pay us back. If you would like to be part of this there are a few ways;- You can send your donation by post to Freepost, UNICEF Ireland, 33 Lower Ormond
Quay, Dublin D01 R283. By Phone; (01) 878 3000; By Email; [email protected]

ADORATION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT: Adoration in the main church every Friday, after the 10.00am Mass – 6.00pm. Entrance through the front door of the church. Please note that when there is a Wedding Mass celebrated on a Friday, adoration will be from 4 to 6.00pm. Pope Paul VI: “Eucharistic adoration extends its influence far beyond the individual adorers, touching their homes and families and reaching out to the parish community and beyond”

DROMTRASNA CHALLENGE:   There was a huge turnout last Saturday at the annual fundraiser for Milford Hospice organised by Kieran Flannery and family.  It took place on a day that threatened rain on more than one occasion but held good mostly. Congratulations to all who participated.

MARRIAGE ENRICHMENT WEEKEND, 5th – 7th November 2021 Restore Communication, Renew Commitment and Rekindle Romance. This is an online experience (using Zoom), starting on Friday evening at 8pm and ending on Sunday afternoon at 2:30pm. Details https://www.marriageencounter.ie

CHURCH NEWS:    Fr Tony Mullins 0872600414, Fr Dan Lane (Retired) 087/2533030, Fr Denis Mullane 087/26219.  Fr Dan Lane will be on call every Wednesday. Fr Mullins will not be available on Wednesdays. Fr Lane can be contacted on 087-2533030  www.abbeyfealeparish.ie email [email protected] Church Sacristy 068 -51915 Parish Office 068 -31133. To book a |Mass intention contact the church before or after Mass on 0668 51915. Mass Intentions: Wednesday 10am Betty Power.
Thursday 10am Timmy & Mary Broderick and deceased family members Main Street.
Friday 10am Willie Maurice Harnett, Knockbrack  17^th Anniversary.
Friday 7pm D P Woulfe  1^st. Anniversary
Intentions for next week
Saturday 6.30pm Margaret & William Meehan and their daughter Catherine Main Street.
Richie Roche, Ballybehy 1st Anniversary. Baby Tommy Moran. Patrick Nash Knocknasna.
Tom Lou Ahern Shanbally. Sunday 10am Eileen & Patrick Roche, Killarney. 12 noon Connie Healy, The Hill. All Souls Day is on Tuesday, November 2. Parishioners will find purgatorial lists in their weekly box of envelopes. These lists should be brought to the
church on the weekend of October 30/31. On Saturday we concluded the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation in the parish with the former 6th class pupils of Meekilly, Knocknasna and Dromtrasna schools. Over the past two weekends in four
ceremonies 80 young people have been confirmed. We acknowledge the work of all our primary school teachers involved in preparing the pupils for the sacraments. This weekend we acknowledge and thank Ms. Kelley Ni Airtneada, Meenkilly N.S., Ms. Ann Marie Downes and Ms. Aileen O’Connor, Dromtrasna N.S., and Mr. Billy Quirke, Knocknasna N.S. We congratulate all the children who were confirmed. We thank the
parents for their cooperation and support over recent weeks. We also acknowledge the assistance of the staff in Coláiste Íde agus Iosef, especially Ms. McCarthy, School Chaplain, who did so much in recent weeks in helping the students make the final preparations for the celebration of the Sacrament. Thanks to Ann, Bride and Trish who helped with the preparation and distribution of the confirmation gowns and in preparing the
church for the ceremonies. Thanks to Fr Dan Lane who helped lighten the burden of work. After the school mid-term break we will begin the parish sacramental preparation programme with the children and parents who are preparing for First Communion and Confirmation in 2022.  Confessions will be heard on Saturday evenings just before the Vigil Mass from 6.00pm to 6.25pm. We return to hearing Confessions in the Confession boxes. Some slight alterations have been made to the boxes to make them safer during the ongoing pandemic. We would ask that parishioners who want to go to Confession follow all safety guidelines by sanitizing their hands when entering the church, wearing a mask and follow the instructions which will be placed on the door of the confession boxes. If anyone would like to celebrate the sacrament outside of the confession box let Fr Tony know and he will make alternative arrangements for you.  October month of the Missions and of the Holy Rosary. During the month of October, we reflect and pray for the mission of the Church throughout the world. We pray for all our missionaries, priests,
religious, lay women and men who have dedicated their lives to spreading the ‘Good News’ of the Gospel around the world. The world is in crisis. In many poorer parishes in Africa, Asia, and Latin America it is overseas missionaries who are on the front line and who are
caring for some of the most vulnerable communities in the world. During this
month we pray for missionaries and we also support them through our
generous financial support. More details of how we can support the missions
will be published in the newsletter next weekend.  Readers List The new list is being organized at the moment. New readers are always welcome.
If interested in taking up this ministry telephone Fr Tony on 087/2600414.  POPE Francis has recognized a miracle obtained through the intercession of his predecessor Venerable John Paul I, who will now be declared “blessed.” Often called “the smiling pope,” John Paul I died unexpectedly on Sept. 28, 1978, after just 33 days in office. A priority of his short pontificate was carrying forward the work of the Second Vatican Council.  Nine new seminarians have begun their 2021-2022 academic programme and formation for Irish dioceses. These students are currently undertaking the propaedeutic programme in the Redemptoris Mater Seminary, Dundalk, Archdiocese of Armagh; Royal English College, Valladolid, Spain; and, Royal Scots College, Salamanca, Spain. This brings to 64 the total number studying for the priesthood.

CLOVERFIELD DAY CARE CENTRE: Are announcing that the weekly Whist Drives will resume on Tuesday, October 26 at 8.30pm.  All are welcome.

LIMERICK MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION:  Please call 061 446786 and we would be happy to chat to you. We are available from Mon – Thurs 11am-4pm.  Email [email protected]
Protect Your Mental Health
1. CONNECT – Talk, listen, reach out and chat…
2. BE ACTIVE – Walk, cycle, run, garden…
3. TAKE NOTICE – Be mindful and live each day
4. KEEP LEARNING – Grow your mind…
5. GIVE – Volunteer & help someone else…
Call the Samaritans on Free phone: 116 123 Email: [email protected]
AWARE (Depression & Anxiety) Free phone: 1800 80 48 48 Mon – Sunday 10am – 10pm.

HEALTHY LIVING: Athea is promoting the My Mind Matters Initiative which runs from October 10th to October 30th. You are invited to download the MyLife App on your phone and give 30 mins five days a week for walking, running, cycling, yoga etc. and record this activity on the App. If participants collectively record 30,000 days of activity on the MyLife App, Irish Life will donate €10,000 to the Samaritans.

COMMUNITY ALERT: Parents are being warned over the latest scam on WhatsApp where the scammer pretends to be your child. The cunning scam starts with the words “hey mum, it’s me” and is targeting parents by pretending to be from your child.  One scammer pretended to be one woman’s daughter, begging her for cash because of a “problem with the banking app due to fraud”.The mum shared the WhatsApp exchange with a Bedford Facebook group to warn others of the scam. According to the Irish Sun, the woman posted about the impersonation, describing it as a “new scam”. An Garda Síochána is advising the public to be alert to a recent text message scam.The text is disguised to look like a missed call text alert.  Do not click on the link of any suspicious text and delete them if they are sent to you#ThinkB4UClick on messages or attachments.   Gardai also have issued a warning over bogus callers targeting people by offering to carry out odd jobs at their homes. Only answer the phone if you recognise the number, according to my service provider they are copying numbers that answer and using them to make calls and it will be you footing the bill.  Click on no links either.  If you are 65, you live alone or with a person/s aged over 65 you are entitled to receive a monitored alarm system. But if you have younger people living in the house who are out or if you spend long periods of the day on your own then,  because you are spending hours alone you are also entitled to the system provided that you are over 65.  The free equipment is provided by Pobal following an application from Abbeyfeale Community Alert, there will be a monitoring fee to be paid from the second year of installation to the installing company of €72.  There may be some confusion over the word free -  the equipment which costs in the region of €400 is provided free of charge by Pobal as is the first year of monitoring but after that you will be charged by the installing company for the monitoring.  I have not included the phone numbers of the committee in this notice but if you want to get a panic button then ring Abbeyfeale Garda Station on 068 30010 and they will contact one of us. Should you not have a landline the installing company Task provide a sim card at a rate of €7.50 per month payable from day one with a deposit of 6 months payable on the day of installation.  Then, in year two you will also receive a bill for the monitoring fee so in year one the bill will be €90 and in year two and every other year after it will €162 approx. If you wish you can arrange a direct debit and pay this amount off monthly.    Committee members are Michael O’Kelly N.T., Chairman Seamus Stack, Secretary Mossie Gleeson, Assistant Treasurer Kathleen Collins, Assistant Secretary Mary McArthur, John O’Sullivan, Billy Quirke N.T., Cllr. Francis Foley, Catherine Daly, Maurice O’Connell, Assistant Treasurer Marian Harnett.

JOB OPPORTUNITY:  CENSUS 2022:  A Census of Population will be held on April 3, 2022. The Central Statistics Office requires persons to fill various roles for the duration of the Census. censusrecruitment.cso.ie] https://censusrecruitment.cso.ie

.HELPLINES:  If you are experiencing domestic abuse, #CoerciveControl reach out and talk to someone you trust. Call or Text our support team on 0579351886/0860419154.  COVID-19 Support Line for Older People: The support line is open every day, 8am-8pm, by calling 081 822 2024.  Hospice Bereavement Line 1800807077 Monday to Friday 10am – 1pm. Jigsaw support line is now up and running on freefone 1800 JIGSAW (544 729). It will provide free mental health support and advice to young people aged 12 to 25 years old, and parents or concerned adults who live in the Republic of Ireland.  Text 50808 to receive support from a volunteer.  A helpline for Men suffering domestic abuse operates 36 hours a week on 1800816588.    Men’s Aid (Amen) 01 5543811 Monday – Friday 9-5pm.   24 hour helplines for women suffering domestic abuse 1800 341900 or Adapt 1800 200504.  Limerick Social Services:  061-314111.    AA    061/311222 Al-Anon 086/8143425. Parent Support worker 068/31019.  Accord NCW 069/61000.   Samaritans Freephone 116123 or text 087/2609090 or email [email protected] Aware (Depression & Anxiety 016617211.  National Suicide Helpline (Pieta House) 1800 247 247or text HELP to 51444.   Irish Advocacy Network (Peer advocacy in mental health) 01 872 8684 Pieta House (Suicide & self-harm) 01 623 5606 IACP (Counselling & Psychotherapy) 01 230 3536 Shine: (Supporting people affected by mental ill health) 01 860 1620 061 – 412111 or Free phone 1850609090 A.A. 061-311222. ACCORD; are now offering over the phone counselling for couples, Individuals & family members during this time of unprecedented stress & pressure during these weeks of COVID-19. Call: 01 5313331.   Al-Anon 086-8143425 Bereavement Support: 068 / 31203    068/ 31262    068/51984    St Vincent De Paul    Tel 087/1213560.  Counselling Appointment    061/314213. .

DO YOU HAVE NEWS:  If there is something you’d like covered in the Abbeyfeale notes please contact me on 087 6866450 or email me on [email protected]