Active Age for All Donabate/Portrane committee members manned an information table in Donabate Mall on Friday 30th August to remind present members about registration the following week and to inform others who may not know of us of the activities that we offer in our programme. As always it was great to catch up with people after the summer break and the interest shown by possible new members was very encouraging.

Online registration for members was on 2nd & 3rd September and walk-in 4th & 5th in the Community Centre. This was the first time where online and walk-in was working together since our website was launched. Unfortunately, the internet in the centre decided not to play ball which slowed things down quite a bit, especially on Wednesday, but we got there in the end and would like to thank everybody for their patience and forebearance. There are still a few issues to be resolved with the website, as usual in these cases it’s a matter of learn as you go. We are very pleased that our membership has shown a net growth this term and we now have 266 members.

We will always be looking for any need to expand our programme and would be happy to consider suggestions from people for courses they would be interested in. We take an active part in the Memory Cafe (last Wednesday of the month from 11am to 1pm) and are involved with the Positive Ageing week September 30th to October 6th this year.

Leithinis Donabate Portrane CCE’s new term of lessons in Fiddle, Tin Whistle, Concertina, Bodhran, Banjo and Flute resumed in September. We wish to extend a warm welcome to all our new students. In addition to our lessons we have slow sessions twice a month so our students can practice the tunes they have learned in class with fellow members. We also meet with other Comhaltas branches to play a few tunes a few times a year. We still have a few places left in some classes so if you are interested in learning a traditional Irish Music in a relaxed environment email us at leithinis@comhaltas.net and we will get back to you. We cater for adults and children at both beginner and intermediate levels. Lessons are €115 for 12 lessons and annual family Comhaltas membership is €20

We were delighted to be asked to play a few tunes at the launch of the Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival in the Brook Pub. As usual it was a great evening. Thanks to The Bleeding Pig Committee for giving us the opportunity to play. It was a great way for us to highlight our branch.

Further information about our branch can be found on our webpage www.leithinis.com and on our Facebook page.

There is something for everyone in LSA and we always welcome new members. We have a wide variety of adult groups ranging from social runners, to 5k, marathon, Masters track and Field and beyond. We now have over 420 members, more than half of whom are adults.

We had a fabulous summer camp in July, thanks to our volunteers. Our adult groups and older juveniles continued training and competing throughout the summer; our younger juveniles and Little Athletics will return to training in September.

A record number of LSA athletes qualified for the National Juvenile Championships in Tullamore in July. They gained valuable experience and won two medals, with Under 19 athletes Suzie Linkiewicz and Michelle Branigan winning bronze in the100m sprint and Javelin, respectively.

Our women’s Track and Field team had a great National League: first of all they qualified for the Division One final at the start of July, and then went on to place fourth in the final in late July.

There was more track and field action in August with Sinead Farrell winning bronze in the 5000m and Anna Gavigan winning gold in Discus at the National U20 and U23 Championships. James Keegan had some great track races in the Dublin Graded race series whilst Reuben Capocci notched up his first mountain race win. Credit is due to the athletes, their parents and all the volunteers who work hard to support them, with special thanks to Gerry Ronan for his expert coaching.

Our Masters women had wonderful performances in the National Masters Championships in August with a Gold in the 4 x 100m relay and Silver in the 4 x 400m relay, both the over 40s age category.

After the excitement of watching Team Ireland in Paris we hope to welcome new members (and their parents) to our Little Athletics and Juvenile sections. Our club is run entirely by volunteers, and we aim to be a club for all the community. To find out more please visit our social pages.

Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed has had a busy Summer. Their “inaugural golf classic” was held at Bellewstown Golf Club in early August. Work at their plots at Turvey Allotments has kept several members very busy, with new screen doors being fitted to the polytunnel in addition to the usual seasonal activity. Their music group, Gerry & the Plonkers played at Fingal County Council Vintage Picnic at the end of July and at the Turvey Allotment’s family day in late August.

Autumn promises to be just as busy. Gerry and the Plonkers will play free concerts at Donabate Parish Hall from 12:30 to 14:00 on Wednesdays 16th October, 13th November and 4th December, with light refreshments provided. An outings to the Croke Park Museum and Skyline Walk is being arranged for September. The Men’s Shed will also be partaking in the Boules Launch on Monday 9th September at Newbridge House.

All of this is in addition to our weekly exercise classes, our croquet on Tuesday at Newbridge, our music jam sessions on Wednesday and our tea-and-chat get-together on Thursdays.
So if you’d like to join us, please call Jim on 086-3694316.

Recently the Parish Hall has had some work done to upgrade the facility. The old Kitchenette has been mostly removed to upgrade it to a more modern and safer standard and new fire emergency doors have also been installed. This building work has been supported by FCC and been ably done by Michael Wogan of M W Elite Construction Ltd of Ballyboughal, North County Dublin.

Routine maintenance has been done on the electrics by Garvan Harte of CP Electrical & Security. This work was done in between some very successful Summer Camps in Lego, Art and Steam having been run.
The Parish Hall will be fully open and up and running again towards the end of August. In order to keep the hall in good repair and to do renovation work it is necessary to limit use on occasions for this to take place. The Parish Hall Committee apologise for any inconvenience but trust its users will be more than happy with the improvements.

There is still some limited use available in the Parish Hall; for any queries in this regard please contact the Parish Office on 01-8434574.

David and Emma Mills, originally from Swords but now living in Donabate have issued an urgent appeal for support for their baby girl Zoe who is being treated for stage 4 high-risk neuroblastoma, an extremely aggressive childhood cancer. All funds raised will support Zoe’s participation in a US-based clinical trial.
A happy baby who was meeting all her milestones, little Zoe suddenly became unwell in August 2023. Scans showed that a tumour attached to her kidney, and taking up 50% of her abdomen, had spread throughout her tiny body and fully into her bone marrow. The severity of her prognosis meant that Zoe had to start an intense 18-month treatment plan immediately.

Since then, Zoe has bravely battled through chemotherapy and intricate abdominal surgery to remove as much of the main tumour as possible. She has also undergone additional high dose chemo and a stem cell transplant requiring 6 weeks of isolation in a dedicated transplant unit; 14 sessions of radiotherapy, each one carried out under general anaesthetic; and countless blood transfusions, injections and medical procedures.

Zoe is currently undergoing the immunotherapy phase of her treatment, 5 cycles over 6 months, with the first 2 cycles requiring a morphine pump to manage her pain. Immunotherapy will hopefully be the final stage of Zoe’s frontline treatment, and it’s hoped that her post treatment PET scan will show “No evidence of disease”.

David and Emma are committed to doing all they can to give Zoe the best chance of a long and healthy life. They are aware that the outlook for neuroblastoma can be bleak, with a very high relapse rate, and limited treatment options if relapse occurs. This makes the longer-term survival statistics unthinkable.
On the anniversary of Zoe’s devastating diagnosis, David and Emma, together with family and friends, have launched a fundraising campaign called “Hope for Zoe” to try and raise as much money as possible to access a clinical trial in the USA.

Today, Zoe is doing her best to stand up and take a few steps, say a few words, and even ‘sing’ along to her favourite movie, Frozen! She is getting used to her hearing aids, which were necessary after the hearing loss caused by chemo and communicating better every day. Her feeding tube is still required for her nutrition and daily medication. She is full of personality and fun, and extremely determined! It is the hope of all who love her that she can gain access to a clinical trial and thrive, just like every other child.
For further information please contact Philip Farrell (087-7562450) or (hopeforzoe2024@gmail.com)

On Saturday 14th September the Annual Peninsula Walk from the Parish Hall to the Brook Pub by the Cliff Walk stopping at Wayne’s Cafe at Tower Bay will take place (the long route walkers can add The Burrow loop).

The walk will depart at 13:00hrs -people can use public transport for to arrive at the start of walk and to return back later. This annual walk coincides with the Bleeding Pig Trad & Pizza at the Brook Pub in the late afternoon. Carolyn will lead this walk.

Then the Greystones to Bray walk is on Saturday October 19th this is a challenging new route of 10km. Breda & Carolyn will both lead this walk.

Lastly, a Greenway or Canal flat easy Walk will hopefully take place on Saturday 9th November - all subject to the weather. Breda will lead this walk.

Further info Carolyn on 087-9284307 or Breda on 086-8693243.

The countdown is on to the Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival 2024 and in just a couple of short weeks, the peninsula will be a hive of cultural activity for audiences of all cultural tastes and all ages.

From Thursday 12th until Sunday 22nd September, there will be a full timetable of cultural events in lots of venues around Donabate and Portrane.

On Thursday 12th the festivities kick-off with a launch in the Brook Pub in Portrane, featuring renowned Uileann Piper Eamonn Galldubh agus a chairde, with a little help from members of Ceomhaltas Leithinis. The launch promises an evening full of Craic agus Ceol. We are very grateful to Mick & Bríd Moynihan at the Brook for generously hosting the event.

Then from Friday 13th, each day will see a selection of activities, with something of interest to everyone.
There will be Craft Workshops for adults and children, Art Exhibitions, Concerts for performers of all age groups, Guided Talks and Walks, Sing-Songs, Gala Concerts, open-air Céilí dancing, Short Films, Historic Tours, Planetary Exploration Dome, Tango & Fiesta extravaganza, Scavenger Hunt, and lots more besides.
All the usual festival favourites feature this year, along with some new and exciting events.

Most of the events of the Bleeding Pig festival are free of charge. However, some events do require booking in advance to secure a place. Full details are available on the Bleeding Pig website, in the festival brochure and on Facebook and Instagram.

Registration for our classes – all 21 of them! – is happening on Wednesday and Thursday 4th and 5th September between 11.00 – 14.00. If you are interested in joining Active Age for All as a new member, come along on one of these days, we would love to see you. You must be over 55. Many of our existing members will be signing up for the Autumn classes on those days too. AAfA is a great opportunity to meet new people or just even get to know your neighbours! We look forward to seeing you all then.
The “Raising the Voice of Fingal Women Pioneers Exhibition,” happened on Thursday 11th July at Kettle’s Country House Hotel.

Active Age members, Carolyn, Margaret, Valerie, Mary and Jennifer took part in an initiative to introduce the local talent and skills available to make positive changes in the community. Some attended the Fingal Pioneer Community Conversation workshops and others the finished exhibition. The exhibition was part of a creative community leadership programme led by Fingal County Council’s Community Development Office. The programme highlighted the contributions of women to their communities through local groups, clubs, and services, while also supporting and enhancing their leadership skills.

The programme brought together 13 diverse and dynamic women, providing them with a platform to improve their skills, understand local government, and strengthen community connections. Through leadership training and creative engagement methodologies, these women explored how to influence local government and hosted a series of community conversations across the county.

The information, stories, and concerns gathered during these conversations were presented at the exhibition through an immersive art installation. This event offered an opportunity for these women to meet and inform newly elected public representatives about important issues affecting women in Fingal and to present their collective vision for positive change in their communities.

Thanks to all for representing AAfA Donabate/Portrane at this.

Just a reminder that the launch of the 2nd Boules Court will take place at 1pm on Monday 9th September in the mainly ADULT RECREATION HUB in Newbridge Park - full details in the last edition. There will be give it a go & coaching on both courts of basic rules, skills and best practice! Wear runners please on the day. Give a call if you want further information or are interested in coming along - all welcome!