There were two events over the last month to celebrate Swords Tidy Towns Gold Medal win and to recognise the enormity of us achieving it.

The first celebration event was hosted by the Old Schoolhouse in the Whiskey Room where food was provided free of charge for which we are very grateful. A thank you must go to Willie and his hard-working team for looking after us on the night. It was a very special evening spent with fellow volunteers who share the same community passion and love of Swords.

The second celebratory event was a Civic Reception with our local Councillors, the Mayor and the CEO of Fingal County Council. We were first seated in the main council chambers where the business of Fingal takes place. The Mayor gave a very complimentary speech as did our local councillors and our Chairperson. Afterwards we adjourned to the Atrium where we were treated to a sandwiches, wraps, cakes, coffee and tea provided by The Gourmet Food Parlour where we mingled.

A big thank you to Ann Marie Farrelly CEO who chatted with our members listening intently to their wants and needs for retaining the Gold Medal in 2025. Those in attendance were in complete agreement of the prestige that Swords has now being a national Gold Medal winner.

A special mention must go to our invited sponsors for their unwavering support over many years, we would not be gold medal winners today if wasn’t for their generosity.

By Mike Power

With longer days and (hopefully) sunnier skies, this time of the year is ideal for giving you and your family the ‘walking habit’. Beginning walkers prefer to have definite starting and ending points, while making the walk a ‘heritage hunt’ gives the kids something to collect and examine later. They can collect ‘magic’ stones to examine at home. Walking and exploring is healthy, interesting and ‘bonds’ a family together.

he whole Swords area is rich in interesting heritage walks. I’ve chosen these particular strolls both for their enjoyment, and to safely avoid the ever-present danger of the traffic that swirls everywhere around our village nowadays.

Walk 1. The Ward Heritage Park Walk
Most Swords folk are familiar with the ‘Jacko’ but have you ever continued your walk past the children’s playground and into the park ahead? If you do, you will be rewarded by the discovery of an area full of interest for all family members to explore, especially your dog !

This fabulous but little-known park lies to the west of Swords. If driving there, Park at the Brackenstown roundabout down from the Manor. The entrance to this park lies on your right, past some iron railings and down the hill to begin your walk. Continue to explore the area, walking around a pond which locals call ‘Ushers’ but which was actually dug out by a local nobleman Viscount Robert Molesworth in the 1710s.

You can do short, (3/4 hr) medium, (1 hr), and long ( 2hr) walks in this park.

Walk 2: The Brackenstown Road/Swords Village Heritage Walk
Again, drive to the Brackenstown roundabout, park and walk straight ahead. This small track was the original road into Swords! Emerge onto the Brackenstown road proper and walk ahead until you see on your right a set of wooden stairs leading back down to the park. The kids will love this! Descend into the ‘Jacko’ and walk back along the path to your right. Let the kids play in the playground, before ascending the path opposite. When up this path, walk ahead to your left to rejoin your car at the Brackenstown roundabout.

Happy Walking!
Look out for Mike’s book on Swords: Swords History and Mysteries. A Community Guide, to be published in August.

St Colmcille’s will host their annual GAA Summer camp the week of 22-25th July.

Fun and laughter will be at the heart of this year’s Summer Camp. We have a schedule that will keep your kids entertained to the max! Join us for Gaelic Football Summer Camp – the ultimate experience for young athletes eager to learn, grow, and play the fast-paced game of Gaelic football! Whether you’re a beginner or have played before, our camp is designed to improve skills, foster teamwork, and most importantly, have a blast!

Children will experience
Expert Coaching by certified coaches with years of experience in Gaelic Football

Skill Development sessions: Master the fundamentals or elevate your game to the next level!

Team Building Activities: Meet new friends and create lasting memories while working as a team
Fun & Fitness: Improve fitness levels through drills, friendly competition, and games

Spaces are limited! Register online at https://colmcillesgfc.clubforce.com/pages/summer-camp-2025 or text 0876819540 for more information.

Rush is stepping up for a cleaner future with the Fingal Reusable Cup Campaign, launching in local cafés on Saturday, 17th May. In partnership with Vytal and supported by Fingal County Council, the scheme offers free-to-borrow reusable cups—just return them within 14 days.

We were delighted with the warm response from the community during our information morning on Saturday, 10th May! Huge thanks to all the volunteers, and to VOICE, Vytal, and Fingal County Council representatives for making it possible.

Look out for posters in local businesses and join us in making Rush a compostable cup-free town. Bring your own cup, sit in, or borrow a Vytal cup—simple, free, and better for the planet.

Love your Dog, Love Rush, Bag it, Bin it! : Tackling Dog Fouling in Rush
Dog fouling is one of the most common concerns raised by residents in Rush. While most dog owners clean up after their pets, a small minority are leaving a mess on our footpaths—and it’s affecting everyone.

To help raise awareness and offer a simple solution, Rush Tidy Towns recently took to Main Street, handing out free dog poop bag dispensers and bags to local dog walkers. A big thanks to Fingal County Council for supporting this initiative.

Dog waste isn’t just unpleasant—it’s a health risk, particularly for children. It can spread harmful parasites and bacteria, and pollutes our shared spaces.
Let’s all work together for a cleaner, safer Rush.
Love your Dog. Love Rush. Bag it. Bin it.
Rush Tidy Towns Needs You!

Rush is looking fantastic thanks to the hard work of Rush Tidy Towns volunteers, and there’s always more to be done. We need YOU to help keep it shining!

From repainting bollards and cleaning road signs to planting flowers and tackling weeds, volunteers have been busy across different areas of Rush. We invite all residents and businesses to get involved, take pride in our town, and help us impress the judges for both the Best Kept Town and Tidy Towns competitions.
Whether it’s picking up litter, clearing a mess, hanging flower baskets, or ensuring your area stays tidy, every action counts. Let’s work together to make Rush a place we’re all proud of.

Rush Tidy Towns needs you—let’s make our town shine!
Courtesy of Rush Tidy Towns

Portmarnock Community School had its annual Sports awards Ceremony on Thursday 8th May. Our guest speaker was David Gillick who is an Olympian, author and sports commentator. He spoke to our students of the importance of writing down a plan, talking and asking for help if you feel like you need it.

The sports awards ceremony is an annual event and it is to recognise the positive impact that sports can have on a young person’s life, which we all value and wish to acknowledge here in PCS. The awards ceremony is a celebration for all our students who participate in sports throughout the year - not just the athletes receiving awards.

Fingal County Council is taking a stand against disposable culture by launching the Fingal Reusable Cup Project in two of its most vibrant communities. This will see residents in the coastal towns of Malahide and Rush being asked to go disposable cup free by November 2025 and to join a bold new chapter in sustainable, waste-free living.

The Fingal Reusable Cup Project is more than just a council-led plan; it’s a cross-sector collaboration that’s bringing together public and private players, local volunteers, environmental advocates, community groups and retailers. Think: baristas, tidy towns volunteers, parish councils, sports clubs, schools, chambers of commerce, all working side-by-side toward one shared goal: no more disposable cups.
Fingal is kicking off the six-month pilot powered by reusable cup tech experts and not-for-profit social enterprise VYTAL. Participating cafés in Rush and Malahide will offer free reusable takeaway cups for those who don’t already own one of their own. Customers can simply borrow a VYTAL cup to enjoy their drink and then return it at any participating location within 14 days, for free.

Launching the initiative, the Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Brian McDonagh said: “We’re incredibly proud to launch this in Fingal. By working directly with local communities, volunteers and retailers, we’re building something sustainable and scalable. This is climate action that feels good — and tastes like good coffee.”
Welcoming the approach, Minister for Climate, Environment and Energy, Darragh O’ Brien TD, said: “Changing the culture of disposables in Ireland will take time and effort, but initiatives like this demonstrate a strong appetite for climate action from local government, retailers, communities, and customers alike. This project is a leading example of circularity in action, and I commend Fingal County Council for its leadership and commitment to reducing unnecessary waste.”

“We have been looking for a feasible solution that works for us as a business and for our customers to reduce our carbon footprint. We are delighted to take part in this project and encourage all businesses to get on board”, said Alan Purcell, owner of Seomra Tae in Malahide.

“As a local tidy town representative, I am proud of Rush and how enthusiastic our retailers have been. We are very excided to get started and will continue to promote this project over the pilot period to local businesses and customers”, said Vanessa Hetherington.

We have a fabulous line-up of music, with The Redeemed Christian Church of God, The Tenter Quartet, Doppler Effect, Ebanz and Guests, Ella Clarke, Max Turner and Friends, Medlife Crises, Eva Campbell, and, of course, Lusk’s own DJ Joe! So, bring your picnic blankets and enjoy the vibe!

We have a massive market this year again, so you will be sure to pick up something to suit you, from jewellery to clothes, to crafts of all sorts. The kids will be well entertained this year again, with loads of activities, and we will have Lusk Ravens doing hoop shoots, the GAA with a pop-up ball wall, and Lusk United doing penalty shoot-outs. Lusk Scouting Group will be with us this year with activities too! And we have Zumba and yoga classes too!

For those with children who need some quiet time, Lusk Autism Friendly Town are there with their beautiful calm space for the day.

We are excited to have Fingal Mobile Library at the festival this year, and they will be providing even more entertainment with a magic show during the day!

We have a plenty of food vans, with a tasty range of food available for the day, and you can have a wander and see what vintage cars are on view.

We always need volunteers for the day, so get in touch at volunteers@lusksummerfestival.ie You only have to give three hours of your time, and you still get to enjoy the atmosphere!

Of course, none of this would be possible without the continued support of Progressive Credit Union and Fingal County Council, for which we are hugely grateful. We are also so grateful to our business donators, and this year we also have support from IMRO, for our musicians.

We can’t wait! Lusk Summer Festival is what community is all about. See you there!

Under the guidance of Kieran Troy from Myriam Tours, seven of us joined the excursion of 7 nights to northern Italy to the 4 star Spa International Terme Hotel in the Abano near the province of Padua.

First day we went by coach to the port and took a boat, in glorious sunshine to the picturesque Island of Burano. This is the most colourful island in the Venetian lagoon and is famous for lace making and pretty, colourful houses

Next day we visited the province of Treviso, a medieval city with beautiful palaces and squares and historical churches.

Then back to our hotel in Abano to enjoy lovely spa waters of the hot swimming pools and jacuzzi. Nearby there was a beautiful pedestrian walkway with lots of art, jewellery leather and dress shops.

On Sunday we travelled to Padua, St. Anthony’s Basilica, it is one of the most important pilgrimage destinations in Italy to visit, where the Franciscan St. Anthony from Lisbon, is buried.

On Monday we went on a trip to the magnificent city of Venice, and saw St Mark’s square and basilica, the Rialto bridge, the Bridge of Sighs, and enjoyed hilariously trips on the Gondolas.

Monthly meetings are held on the first Thursday of every month in the Lusk Scouts Den at 8:15 PM. New members are welcome.

Freedom FM, the online radio station dedicated to the music of the 90s and noughties, is thrilled to announce its launch on the DAB+ digital radio platform. This expansion allows listeners in Lusk, Rush and surrounding areas of north county Dublin to enjoy the station’s nostalgic mix of chart-toppers, dance anthems, R&B classics, and rock favourites in crystal-clear digital quality.

Reestablished as an online station in August 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdowns, a former Dublin based pirate radio station from the 1990s Freedom FM quickly gained a dedicated following. The station’s online success led to temporary licensed FM broadcasts across major Irish cities, including Dublin, Cork, Limerick, and Galway each year since 2021. Now, with its transition to DAB+, Freedom FM is set to reach Lusk and Rush for the first time.

Freedom FM recently secured a content licence from the broadcast regulator Coimisiún na Meán which allowed it join the new DAB+ digital radio platform, as part of a trail service operated by Fáilte DAB and licensed by the communications regulator COMREG.

From humble beginnings as a pirate station in suburbs of Dublin in 1995, the station has evolved to reflect its geographical reach with presenters hailing from across the island, yet retaining that fun and youthful presentation style.

Freedom FM will be reliving the 90s and noughties with a mixture of Pop, R‘nB, Dance and Rock music as well as specialist music shows around the clock during it’s time on the DAB+ digital radio network. The station will continue its online broadcasts too via www.freedomfm.ie , on smart speakers, and through it’s free online app available on the App Store or the Google Play Store.