Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD was briefed on the Our Balbriggan Regeneration Plan when he visited the town recently for the official launch of the Irish Institute of Music and Song. During a walk from the Our Balbriggan Hub in St George’s Square to Balbriggan Harbour, the Taoiseach, who was accompanied by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD, was shown the sites for several major regeneration projects which have received funding from the Urban Regeneration Development Fund (URDF). Among the projects the Taoiseach was shown was the Heart of Main Street, the one hectare area of natural green space along the Bracken River which, with the help of almost €7m in Urban Regeneration Development funding, is going to be transformed into a Green Corridor linking Millpond Park with the centre of Balbriggan and leading to the Beach and Harbour. The Taoiseach was also taken to Quay Street, the Harbour and the Beach where over €11m of URDF support will transform the area on both sides of the Railway Viaduct. Following the short tour, the Taoiseach said that he was very impressed with the Council’s plans for the town: “I’ve been in Balbriggan before and I must say that I am impressed with the development that is underway here. The Our Balbriggan Regeneration Programme is really exciting and I think will open up the wonderful natural beauty of this area and coastline and the public realm to enhance that.” The Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Seána Ó Rodaigh, said she was delighted to show the Taoiseach around Balbriggan and talk to him about what is planned: “The town is set to be transformed through more than €50 million investment with an ambitious new vision, which will, with the support of all of our stakeholders, realise the town’s full potential.“The Irish Institute of Music and Song will be at the heart of this I have no doubt. The construction of a 400 seat Concert Hall in Balbriggan is significant locally, regionally and nationally..“

First Time author Balbriggan Woman Linda Murray recently launched a children’s book called ‘Dragon Fire and Fairy Dust’ with all the proceeds of it going to Temple St Childrens Hospital.
Linda said, ‘I am a Balbriggan local and started writing during the first Lockdown as I was not an essential worker. I found myself very isolated, being alone all day and missing my working life and social outlet. So I started writing poems and moved onto verse stories which are great fun, because you can really let your imagination run. I post my stories on a public Facebook page- Linda Murray Poetry for Life and I got a lot of encouragement so I decided to get a children’s book together. ‘ Well done Linda !

Balbriggan Cricket Club is a Senior Cricket club located in Balbriggan Town Park , Balbriggan. New playing members of all ages and abilities and pavilion members always welcome. The Club is based in the heart of Balbriggan and has 5 Senior Men’s teams , 2 Senior Women’s Teams , 2 Social cricket teams and a big underage section of boys and girls teams for all ages. The Men’s and Women’s Adult Senior teams range from Premier league level down to the lowest league so if you are interested in joining you can be sure we will have a team that suits your playing level. We have excellent facilities with top class wickets and nets and you will find people practising most days of the week.The underage set up in Balbriggan is thriving , our ground and nets is a hive of activity every day from April to Sept in Balbriggan Town Park when underage coaching and Practice takes place.Kids from 5 years up can come along and experience cricket and will learn how to play the game with our experienced coaches. We also go to the local schools to teach kids the basics of the game during Jan, Feb and March To enquire about membership or training call or text 0860644238 or via balbriggancricketclub.com/contact/. Happy 2022 to all of you.

Can anyone provide a workspace for Akvile to complete a 2nd community mosaic? There may be a vacant shop or shed which someone local has and would allow her to use for just for 3 or 4 months. If you know of somewhere you can pm us or email balbriggantidytowns@gmail.com.

Just look at what she has achieved with her first mosaic! The amazing mosaic pictred below was, created by local artist, Akvile Simanskiene and has recently been installed at the end of Convent Lane. Akvile and her team have managed to create this stunning piece by making each individual tile from broken crockery and other reclaimed pieces. The intricacy of the workmanship and the precision needed is impressive. A really creative upcycling project. Thank you Akvile and all your team for this lovely gift and to #ourbalbriggan for the funding and support. The response to Akvile’s art work has been phenomenal so let’s help her get the next one done.

2021 was another difficult year, however through your help and support your local branch has raised €25,620.98 (end November). Facebook fundraiser by Balbriggan Feis organisers, members, dancers and supporters raised €966.25. Other Facebook fundraisers brought in €449. The #100K challenge for Guide Dog Day raised €6,520. Thankfully in November, we were able to get out into the community. SuperValu Balbriggan, on the 5th & 6th November was our first event. We had our new SumUp machine which allowed payments through credit cards and laser. Through your generosity €1,763 was raised. Next it was Millfield Shopping Centre, on the 12th & 13th November, when €1,693 was raised. We were nominated in the Tesco Community fund and received a cheque for €343. Thank you, Tesco and Lisa. Santa’s Grotto returned to Millfield Shopping Centre, in association with Specsavers. Donations from everyone who visited Santa are still coming in. On the 5th and 12th December, we participated in the Bremore Castle Food and Craft Village Christmas event. Money raised will be advised in next month’s piece. A massive ‘Thank you’ to all our volunteers and to everyone who supported us. Our counter boxes and large collection dogs located around Balbriggan, Skerries, Rush, Lusk and other North Co Dublin towns brought in €8,636.88. In February the new Tap to Donate €3 machine arrived in Specsavers and has raised €1,167. Thanks to Brian Brodigan, Specsavers Balbriggan, the Tap to Donate €3 machines have been rolled out through other Specsavers locations and all are doing well. Puppy in training Adel will celebrate her 1st birthday on the 29th January. Guide Dog owner Andy, who’s guide dog Nico retired during 2021, has qualified with a new guide dog Yorkie. Yorkie is a brother of Yarrow who Anne Mulligan puppy raised. We look forward to hearing more about this new partnership during the year. Everyone in your local branch wishes you all a safe and happy 2022 and we hope to see you throughout the year. Events will be posted online at facebook.com/Balbriggan.Branch.of.Guide.Dogs

Training at St. Mary’s Baton Twirlers returned in mid September and ran for approximately 10 weeks and we welcomed back many of our athletes and some new ones too.The focus for this period was primarily on improving personal fitness and worked on solo dance and freestyle routines.It was great to see everyone and get back to some normality.However, it was with heavy hearts that the coaches made a decision to have our last session for 2021 on Wed 24th Nov. We wanted our athletes to have a joyful end to their year, and so everyone wore their Christmas jumpers or pjs and we had our annual Christmas raffle. Many thanks to all the parents for their support.Each athlete got a selection box before they went home.We wish all our members and their families a very Happy and Safe Christmas and New Year. All going well we will return to training in January 2022. For more information about St. Marys Baton Twirlers please message our Facebook page or text 086 3270636.

Episode 5 Louise Mulcahy

Fingal County Council’s Arts Office presents ‘Once Upon A Sound at THE HIDE SCULPTURE’ Episode 5 featuring Louise Mulcahy.‘Once Upon A Sound at THE HIDE SCULPTURE’ sees acclaimed broadcaster Donal Dineen take us on a deep exploration of music in the company of some of the finest music makers in the land. Together they will tell the story of their sound, the songs, the instruments and their connection to them. In each series they will perform at THE HIDE SCULPTURE, a sculpture by artist Garrett Phelan that invites contemplation and deep listening. It is located along the Rogerstown Estuary, North County Dublin and home to a diverse population of resident and migrating birds that have chosen this place as their home. Once Upon a Sound at THE HIDE SCULPTURE is delighted to present Episode 5 – Louise Mulcahy. Donal Dineen describes the series and introduces Louise saying “The whole intention behind the Once Upon A Sound series is to get a look inside that special space which exists between a musician and their instrument. This is where the magic happens and each instalment thus far has brought us closer to the alchemy.In Episode Five we finally get to examine in detail the singular magic of the Uilleann Pipes with master piper Louise Mulcahy who was born into a musical family in Abbeyfeale, County Limerick.A veteran of several highly acclaimed albums and a multi award-winner, Louise’s repertoire is as broad and discerning as her instrumental virtuosity.The Council are delighted to present these episodes of ‘Once Upon A Sound at THE HIDE SCULPTURE’ with Donal Dineen who represents integrity and seriousness to his core audience, many of whom have developed their musical knowledge with him over many years. Donal is a consistent in his commitment to connect, understand and introduce to new perspectives on music to audiences for over two decades. ‘Once Upon a Sound at THE HIDE SCULPTURE’ featuring Louise Mulcahy can be viewed at vimeo.com/652500500 and will be available to view on Fingal Arts Vimeo and thehideproject.com where you can also catch up on the series so far with stunning performances by Liam Ó Maonlaí Anna Mieke, Niwel Tsumbu & Cormac Begley.

Significant investment has been secured for Fingal projects at the most recent Dublin Rural LEADER Approvals Meeting. The Dublin Rural LEADER Local Action Group, which oversees the Programme in Dublin, approved €230,748.76 in funding for 5 new projects in Rural Dublin at its November Online Meeting. This brings the total number of projects approved during the LEADER Transition Programme to 15 since it began on April 1st, 2021, with a total value of €543,984.52. The approved projects are in the areas of Economic Development, Rural Environment and Social Inclusion. Fingal LEADER Partnership CEO, Eilish Harrington, welcomed the approval of the 5 projects. “All were excellent projects enhancing services in the rural towns and villages of Fingal. It’s great to see communities benefiting from LEADER funding to help develop and grow their amenities, especially during the difficult times we are all currently in. I would encourage more rural communities and businesses to contact LEADER to avail of the remaining funds during the next 14 months.” Amongst the projects approved for funding are: Balbriggan Meals on Wheels which is approved for €24,063.75 for an outdoor dining area which will be of enormous help to facilitate the provision of meals to their clients in a safe outdoor setting. Donabate Portrane Community Centre CLG which is approved for €24,354.00 for a feasibility study to capture the needs of existing groups that use the facilities to assist and guide them in expanding in line with community needs.Also St Maur’s GAA Club Rush which is approved for €89,154.58 to install rainwater harvesting and irrigation in St Maur’s GAA Club premises and for use on the pitches. The Project will reduce the demand on the public water supply and reduce the volume of water going into the public drainage system. Welcoming the latest funding announcement, the Mayor of Fingal, Cllr. Seána Ó Rodaigh said “I would like to thank the Local Action Group for its support of these Fingal Projects which will enable the continued development of sustainable communities in our rural areas’’.

Ten local social enterprises in Fingal including two from Balbriggan have been awarded over €37,000 in funding by the Department of Rural and Community Development to help them with their capital costs.The small grants were announced by Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD as part of a €1 million fund to support 247 Social Enterprises across Ireland. The Fingal Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) will be distributing the funding to the ten Fingal social enterprises on behalf of the Department.Social enterprises are businesses that work primarily to improve the lives of people. Their core objective is to achieve a social, societal, or environmental impact. Like other businesses, social enterprises pursue their objectives by trading in goods and services on an ongoing basis. Welcoming the announcement, Chief Executive of Fingal County Council AnnMarie Farrelly said: “Social Enterprises have a positive effect on society and play an important role within the local community. They are helping to develop solutions to some of Fingal’s most pressing social issues by creating jobs, tackling disadvantage and supporting community development “ The grants under this scheme will particularly benefit smaller or start-up social enterprises who do not have ready access to essential funding that can help them to upgrade or purchase additional equipment in order for them to help deliver services to those most in need.” Minister Humphreys said: “This funding will assist almost 250 Social Enterprises with specific costs in relation to their facilities. In some cases, it will cover the cost of fixing a leaky roof or putting in a new kitchen. The grants may be small in nature, but I know they will greatly assist Social Enterprises the length and breadth of the country who have continued to serve their communities through the Pandemic.”Balbriggan Community Childcare received €825 and Balbriggan Men’s Shed received €2,746.

Sunday the 7th of November was a fantastic example of how far our club has come and what we as a club are all about. We ran no less than 5 Winter Training sessions with well over a 125 players of all ages taking part , 5 and a half hours of training , Coaching and fun in 2 different venues and supervised by our experienced team of Qualified coaches. The day began in Castlelands Community centre at 10am with our 2 Ultimate Softball Sessions , the boys at 10am and the Girls at 11am under the supervision of Tess , Lara , Connor and Druhan. Then at 5pm in North County our Minor , Junior and Colt Hardball squads had their weekly session run by coaches , Adrian , Gary , Dylan and Lara. At 6:30pm we had our first ever Women’s Social Cricket session and there was a brilliant turnout and plenty of fun and craic was had , and now a Xmas Party is already planned ! At 7:30pm it was the turn of our new Women’s Team who dusted off the kit bags and got stuck into it , an excellent turn out and lots of positives from what was an excellent session. We provide cricket for Boys , Girls , Women and Men of all ages , ability and experience , Top class coaching and a club that makes everyone welcome. If you or your child would like to join our club, Get in touch via WhatsApp or balbriggancricketclub.com/contact/