Very best wishes for Christmas and for 2025 from LSA. Do you have running goals to achieve in 2025? This is a great time to join LSA and let us help you achieve those goals through the power of support. Our participation in the recent Dublin Marathon was a great experience for both runners and supporters alike.
We are an Athletics Club based in Donabate/Portrane and affiliated with Athletics Ireland. We are run entirely by volunteers, and our membership ranges from age 7 to 70 and beyond. We aim to provide coaching in all the athletics run, jump and throw events.

We have a number of different adult groups catering for a wide variety of goals and capabilities.

For example, our Fit for Life Group is essentially about being consistent and having a Fit for Life mentality in a fun and social environment. We also have advice to share on nutrition and strength training. We train on Mondays and Wednesdays at 7pm and a long slow run on Saturday.

The aim of our Developing Group is to learn to control and maintain pace for easy running. It is offered as a progression from our Fit for Life Group, but still aimed at those who want to run a Park Run in under 30 minutes and improve fitness and general health.

We also have Intermediate and Advanced groups, and adult sprint groups. Our new home, a permanent athletics track in Ballymastone, will begin to take shape very soon.In the meantime we always welcome new members. Please check out our social media channels for more up to date information
Adult memberships queries:

lambaysportsathletics@gmail.com. Little Athletics and Juvenile athletes (7-18) :lsajuvenilereg@gmail.com

Calling all Donabate and Portrane music lovers aged 18 and over! If you’re looking for a place to unleash your inner rockstar without your neighbours filing noise complaints, Music Makers is here for you. This local group is a cozy, friendly space where you can jam with fellow music enthusiasts.

No real experience? No problem. Tone-deaf? We respect your bravery. Whether you’re a virtuoso or can only manage three chords on a ukulele, Music Makers is all about keeping it real, having a laugh, and sharing the universal language of music. Whether you’re an aspiring musician, a singer / songwriter or just love music, everyone is welcome! So, grab your instrument, come hang out, and let’s make music!
The club meets once or twice a month in Donabate Parish Hall on Friday evenings at 7.45pm.

If you’re interested, please email musicmakersph@gmail.com for dates and more information.

We welcome any donations of musical instruments or equipment in reasonable condition.

Have you ever considered playing Bridge?

Why play Bridge?

Bridge is fun!

Bridge is sociable ~ meet lots of lovely people!

Bridge is cheap!

Bridge is great for your mental agility.

Omar Shariff gave up horses, women and gambling in favour of Bridge!

Donabate Bridge Club is a group that meets every Wednesday evening, all year round, in St. Patrick’s Parish Hall, to play Bridge. The club currently boasts approximately 45 members at many levels of Bridge prowess, from Beginners, or Novices, to more experienced players. However, here in Donabate, all the different levels plays together, with the emphasis on having fun!

The club is very grateful to Fr. Pat and Bernie, and the Parish Council for accommodating our weekly meetings.

The club are looking for new members to join the club and increase the membership. A 10-week term of lessons for Beginners will be starting in January 2025.

Experienced players of any level are also very welcome to join.

The club regularly holds Improver lessons.

Donabate Bridge Club is affiliated to CBAI, the Contract Bridge Association of Ireland, who provide expert support and guidance to the club.

There is a weekly competition held in the club, and some of the members also participate in Regional and National competitions, putting the name of Donabate Bridge Club firmly on the map!

If you think you would be interested in joining Donabate Bridge Club and playing learning to play Bridge, contact Emer on 0863691871, or any club member.

On Bank Holiday Monday, 28th of October, a large group of people met at Tower Bay Beach, Portrane, for the 3rd Annual Big Pink Breakfast & Swim Fundraiser for the Irish Cancer Society. Olivia Nolan, from Portrane, is a Breast Cancer Survivor & started running this event 3 years ago, while on Chemotherapy treatment. Olivia is a regular sea swimmer since she started it in 2020 during Covid.

This is the 3rd year of the event, and it was the biggest yet - the fundraiser has reached in excess of €5,500.00!

The theme of the event is Pink.. everyone wears something pink, and gathers for a swim all together, turning the sea Pink! Olivia and her husband Francis, along with all of their friends, organise a BBQ on the beach for after the swim. Many of the supporters bring along home bakes as a welcomed treat for all of the sea swimmers and supporters.

The event will continue to be held at Tower Bay Beach in Portrane on the October Bank Holiday Monday every year.

Here is a link to the fundraiser, which is still open for donations; https://www.justgiving.com/page/olivia-nolan-1727122562160?utm_source=IG

Active Age activities and classes are back in full swing following the half term and we are now preparing for Christmas activities.

As part of Inclusion Week we held a coffee and sing along morning in the Donabate/Portrane Community Centre. It was very well attended and we were royally entertained by our own AAfA singing group led by Ed Mallarky and the Willie Cahill Quartet, a talented foursome otherwise known as Willie Cahill, Brian Andrews, Maurice Buckley and Fran Ryan. Many thanks also due to the many bakers who provided the goodies, and of course all the centre staff who rowed in with the practicalities on the day.

On Tuesday 10th December we are holding our annual Christmas Carol coffee morning fund raiser for St Francis Hospice. This is in memory of our previous, and much missed, chairperson Philippa Coady, and to support the wonderful work that they do. There will be plenty of delicious goodies including mince pies and non-alcoholic mulled wine; a sing along with our own singing group plus the Willie Cahill quartet and a raffle with lots of wonderful prizes. As special guests we are delighted to include the children from the creche who will sing 1 or 2 Christmas Carols for us. Do come along and join in the fun !

Some dates for the diaries:
Classes finish for Christmas on Friday 13th December.
Mon/Tues 6th & 7th Jan ’25: Online registration for AAfA members,
Wed/Thurs 8th & 9th Jan: In person membership and registration.
Friday 17th Jan ’25: AGM
Monday 20th Jan: Spring ’25 programme of classes commences.
Wishing all the Active Age for All members and their families, and the Donabate & Portrane community a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year.

This year Santa is using Active Travel to get to Donabate - he will arrive to Dublin by Sleigh then cross over O’Connell St and take a train to Donabate & back to deliver some presents to all the children on our Peninsula. Remember you must have your letter written & wishes in by now and also that Santa has a lot of children to bring gifts to, so you cannot ask for lots, it is a wish list!
Santa will be with you soon so mind yourselves & each other ….xxxx

Our adult sections of the club have been very busy in recent times. Firstly, we are well into marathon training season and members from across all our adult groups have been busy with their long runs in preparation for the Dublin City Marathon on Sunday the 27th October. Having trained now up to and over 30km our marathoners are ready to taper off and enjoy the run up to the big day. Well done to each and every one of you!

We also have a new Couch to 5k group running on Tuesdays and Thursdays - these runners are already doing a fantastic job getting their kilometres up and it is clear they will cruise through to 5k in no time!
Our Advanced, Intermediate and Fit 4 life group have all been busy clocking up the kilometres around Donabate and Portrane - some of our members have also completed races recently such as the Frank Duffy 10 Mile and the Irish Life Dublin Half Marathon. Amazing efforts as always to all!

Our peninsula might not be associated with Mountain Running, but some LSA athletes are really putting us on the map in that regard. Back in September Iveta Mc Donell and Eimear Caulfield represented Ireland in the World Masters Mountain Running Championships in Spain. Closer to home, teenager Sinead Farrell won a Bronze medal as part of an Irish Under 20 team in the British and Irish Mountain Running Championships in Laragh, Co Wicklow.

Also in September LSA was very proud to have almost 30 athletes take part.

in a Dublin Athletics Cross Country League race held in Newbridge Park. Almost 1000 young athletes from all over Dublin participated in that event!

We are delighted to have new parent helpers and athletes at our busy Thursday night Juvenile sessions at the Portrane Hockey Club Astro pitch. We always welcome new members and volunteers. Please follow us on our social media channels for more information.

DP Crossroads submitted the petition on a multifunctional centre to FCC on 14th October 2024. Accepting the petition on behalf of the council was Mayor Brian McDonagh. DP collected over 2,000 signatures in support of their campaign for FCC to meet LAP objective 6.12 and provide a dedicated multifunctional center for the rapidly expanding population of Donabate Portrane.

Speaking at the event, Ann Hogan Chairperson of DP Crossroads said, “This center would be a base for the existing arts and cultural groups who have no performance, rehearsal or meeting space and for our youth population who have no dedicated youth space.”

The response to DP Crossroads to date by the Council has been disappointing as Ann continued, “The proposed relocation of the library and small extension is short term thinking – it is not good value for money and cannot provide the facilities required by existing residents never mind our future large population. A strategic and long-term solution is for the council to provide a site and funding for a dedicated cultural and youth groups in Donabate Portrane as part of their capital expenditure program and in liaison with housing developers on the peninsula”.

The group receives cross-party support from many Councillors and is looking forward to working with the council to achieve their objective.

As we enter the winter months, most of the work on Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed’s plots at Turvey Allotments is winding down, apart from planting a crop of winter onions. Despite this, we have a busy schedule ahead.

Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed will be hosting an event for Fingal Inclusion Week, involving all of the Men’s Sheds in Fingal, at 11am on Wednesday 13th November in Donabate Portrane Community Centre. This fun day is sponsored by Fingal County Council. There will be gentle exercise, suitable for the age of the expected participants, an inspiration speaker, light refreshments and entertainment provided by Gerry and the Plonkers, the Men’s Shed music group. Men who are not members of a Men’s Shed are welcome to join us. See the poster.

That day will be a busy one for Gerry and the Plonkers, with the group continuing their series of free concerts in Donabate Parish Hall at 12 noon. All adults are welcome and light refreshments will be served. The other dates for these concerts are 4th December, 27th January, 10th February and 10th March, all on Wednesdays at 12 noon until 2pm.

Our annual Christmas dinner is planned for Keeling’s on Friday 6th December. We expect to have the usual singsong led by Gerry and the Plonkers.

As reported last month, a group of members visited the National Ploughing Championships and we have at least one photo to prove it; the rest aren’t for publication, we told!

All of this and our usual weekly activities - exercise classes, croquet, band practice and our Thursday morning get-together for tea or coffee and a chat. If you, or someone you know would like to join us, please call or text Jim, our PRO, on 086-3694316.

Donabate Portrane Dramatic Society is delighted to announce the upcoming performances of the comedy “Sylvia” by A.R. Gurney from the 28th to the 30th of November 2024 (with two performances on the Saturday) in Donabate Parish Hall.

“Sylvia” by A.R. Gurney, directed by Lisa Buckley, is the story of Greg who brings home a sassy female dog he found in the park—or that has found him—bearing only the name “Sylvia” on her name tag.

While on the one side Sylvia offers Greg an escape from the frustrations of his job and the unknowns of middle age, on the other hand she becomes a major bone of contention between him and his wife Kate who is completely immune to Sylvia’s charms.

“Sylvia” is a smart, frisky, and occasionally salty comedy about relationships, growing older and life changes.

On stage we have a combination of familiar faces and new talent, while behind the scenes the production team are working hard to bring the play to the stage.

Performances will be on in Donabate Parish Hall on the following dates and times: Thursday 28th November at 19:30, Friday 29th November at 19:30, Saturday 30th November matinée at 14:30 and Saturday 30th November at 19:30.

Tickets cost €12 per person and can be purchased online on ticketsource.eu or at the door.

Donabate Dramatic Society is also extending an invitation to all people in the community become a patron of the society and support the local arts. The annual fee for patronage is €60 per person and it includes two tickets for to their biannual productions along with light refreshments.

If you want to become a member or a patron of DPDS do not hesitate to contact donabateportrane.drama@gmail.com. And don’t forget to follow Donabate Portrane Dramatic Society on Facebook and Instagram!