We’re excited to announce that ‘Cilles Cubs’ along with all GAA teams, autumn schedule returns at St Colmcille’s, Balheary, Swords (K67H996)

Nursery is open to boys and girls aged 4 -6 of all skill levels – whether you’re brand new to Gaelic games or already a budding star, there’s fun, fitness, and skill-building for everyone.

Let’s get the kids active, having fun, and enjoying our great games. Spread the word and we’ll see you on the pitch!

Contact Cora, for more information 0833741305.

Along with our Nursery, we also offer GAA too all age groups- if you are looking to get involved, joining up is easily done! Just contact the relevant person.

Adult Men’s Football: Call Patsy 0857362992
Gaelic for Mothers and Others : Call Deirdre 0879309962
Juvenile Football: (All Ages): Call Marian 0876819540
or email secretary.stcolmcilles.dublin@gaa.ie

Gaelic Football is a great way for you to get involved with the community, team building, learning new skills, all the while keeping fit and healthy. Come along, get involved and get behind your local club

Local girl Manassanan Chanhiran known to her many friends as Manny has entered the Mrs. Ireland 2026 pageant as Mrs Swords. The competition’s chosen charity this year is Temple Street Children’s Hospital. All donations are very welcome and much needed and can be made using Revolut. When doing so please mention the name of our Swords contestant Manassanan (Mrs Swords).

Writing to her supporters on her gofundme page Manny wrote, “I’m a proud mother of two. This year I’m so honoured to be participating in Ireland Pageants as Mrs. Ireland 2026 finalist official Mrs. Swords proudly representing Swords Dublin Ireland.

he competition will be held on Saturday 3rd of October 2026 at Canal court hotel Newry and it’s not so long to go. It would mean so much to me to have your support and guidance as I continue my pageant journey. Your help with the preparation costs would be incredibly valuable to me, and I would be truly grateful for your kindness and support. Lastly, I look forward to embracing this Pageants journey with confidence, kindness, creativity and purpose to proudly representing as Mrs. Swords!”

To donate to Manny’s bid to become Mrs. Ireland she has set up a gofundme page to help with the costs, locals can visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/to-preparation-for-ireland-pageants-competition-2026?attribution_id=sl%3A1fc99fc2-a23c-457f-9136-f948d37d8a2c&ts=1787302086347&utm_campaign=natman_sharesheet_dash&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link
To keep up to date with Manny view her Instagram account by visiting https://www.instagram.com/manassananchanhiran_official?igsh=aHpucHhhMDhiNWc0

The Best Business Frontage Competition for 2026 was a collaboration between the Fingal Horticultural Society (FHS) and Swords Tidy Towns (STT). This year it was decided to have two categories; one for the Best Business Front Window and the other for the Best Public House Frontage. The judging and organising was carried out from beginning to end by our own Georgy Hughes (STT) and Matt Cullen (STT) they put in a trojan amount of work from beginning to end.

The businesses that were awarded by the judging panel are as follows: Perpectual Cup - Old Schoolhouse; Silver Cert - The Pound; Bronze Cert - The 44; Best Business Front Window Perpetual Cup - McNamara’s Pharmacy (Dublin Rd.); Silver Cert for BFF Cake Boutique; Bronze Cert – Greenstraw.

Many congratulations to this year’s winners. Georgy and Matt said the judging this year was hard as the standard this year was very high which was wonderful to see. A big thank you to all who entered, we look forward to seeing you all entering again next year.

Meanwhile the Swords Tidy Towns Best Presented Estates awards 2026, generously sponsored by Member First Credit Union saw the following estates taking home awards. 1st prize Carlton Court; 2nd prize Rivervalley; 3rd prize Brackenstown Road & Park Ave ; Best Small Estate: Seatown Terrace; Most Improved Estate: Castlegrange; Best Biodiversity Enhancements: The Nurseries
A big thank you to our member Grace Dunne who put in a trojan effort to bring it all together. And not forgetting Mary Maxwell, George Mongey and Michael Connolly for all their input and support.

Congratulations to all the winners. A wonderful community effort by all who entered was evident as our judges travelled all around Swords. Hope we will see you all entering again next year.

Swords Tidy Towns

When Catherine Bacik made a chance encounter with Swords Castle several years ago little did she know it would lead to something completely unexpected, it became her first published children’s book.

The Castle by the Stop Light: The Shepherd Boy and His Flute focuses on Michael who steps inside an ancient castle and discovers a remarkable tale that brings together two lives separated by time. Through Sean, a young shepherd boy from long ago, and the castle itself, the storyteller that binds their worlds, Michael learns that the most ordinary places can become extraordinary when viewed through the eyes of imagination.

“I first saw the castle while standing at a bus stop on a cold, rainy night in Swords,” said Catherine who is a children’s author and photographer from Virginia in the United States. “Across the road was an illuminated stone wall sitting right beside an ordinary modern stop light. As an American who certainly wasn’t accustomed to finding castles beside traffic lights, I was completely captivated. I returned to Ireland the following year and made Swords Castle one of my first stops. I spent time photographing and exploring it, wondering about all the stories those old stone walls might hold”, she explained further.

Written for children ages 4–10 and the families who read with them, it invites readers to look beyond the ordinary and discover the stories waiting all around them.

“Since publishing the book, one of my goals has been to bring the story back to the community where it began. I thought the journey from a rainy Swords bus stop to a published children’s book might be a story of interest to your readers. In November 2025, I also had the wonderful opportunity to share my story with Kieran Carrick in a featured segment on Mornings with Kieran on Spirit Radio Ireland,” Catherine added. Whether writing stories, capturing photographs, or speaking about the creative process, Catherine hopes to remind others that there are remarkable stories waiting to be found all around us—if we simply take the time to look.

The Castle by the Stop Light: The Shepherd Boy and His Flute, is currently available on Amazon.com.

Mental Health Ireland in association with Malahide Lions Club are launching a Malahide Connect Café. It will give the community an opportunity to connect, support your mental health and wellbeing and chat over a cup of tea/coffee. It will be run every two weeks covering various topics and commencing on Wednesday 9th September until the end of December 2026. The Connect Café will be taking place upstairs in Malahide Library (lift available).
Everyone is welcome and bring a friend. For further information:
malahidelions@gmail.com
www.mentalhealthireland.ie
malahidelibrary@fingal.ie

The 3rd annual Fingal Sports Festival welcomed thousands of Fingal residents to Malahide Castle & Gardens on 9 August. Attendees partook in a variety of sports and activities ranging from rugby and basketball to weightlifting, disc golf, and GAA handball. A total of 25 Sport Ireland National Governing Bodies represented their sport at the festival, which provided the Fingal community with endless free sporting opportunities at none other than Dublin’s biggest sports activity day.

The Fingal Sports Festival transformed Malahide Castle into a place of sport, wellness, and fun. This free, inclusive event was open to all ages and abilities, with something for all children, parents, and athletes.

Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Tony Murphy, attended the event and engaged with many of the festival goers and NGB representatives. “It’s fantastic to see Malahide Castle and gardens come alive with sport, energy and community spirit. The Fingal Sports Festival gives people of all ages and abilities the chance to try something new, get active and have fun together. It’s a wonderful example of how sport can bring communities together, and I want to congratulate the Fingal Sports Office for making it such a successful event.”

As well as many sporting activities, the festival offered a Pedal Parade which started at New Street, courtesy of the Fingal Active Travel Department. Throughout the day, live classes took place including; a ParkFit demonstration, Yoga as Gaeilge, Family Fitness, and Dance Fit.

For the third consecutive year, the Fingal Sports Festival was a huge success, Fingal Active Cities Coordinator Nuala Casey said: “This is now the Fingal Sports Office flagship event and gives us a chance to showcase the activities Fingal has to offer and what better way to conclude our outdoor Summer Series of programmes for 2026 with this fantastic event!”

Lusk AC is delighted to inform our members that work on the new all-weather facilities at the Hub, Rathmore Park will commence shortly. After many years of collaboration, works are scheduled for completion by July 2027. The project will include:

An 8-lane athletics track, long jump, high jump, pole vault, shot put, extended car parking, teen space, landscaping, storage and bicycle parking. Thanks to our committee, Fingal County Council, the local sports clubs and the wider community for their support and patience throughout the development of this much-needed facility.

Marathon training is now in full swing with many club members following a programme. We have plans to suit all abilities designed to achieve a range of target times. Well done to everyone who has participated in races so far this year and a big thanks to those who have volunteered at events.

Some of our club members were at Dublin Airport to welcome Rhasidat Adeleke back from the European Championships in Birmingham. Rhasidat was part of the successful Irish team and came home with a Silver medal.

The club organised a successful Man O War Round 7k race on a balmy August evening. This has now become a regular event in the race calendar.

Return to training for all juvenile groups is Tuesday 1st Sept. Please keep an eye on our Socials for locations.

The Top Shop Golf Society had our Captains Day at Royal Tara. Our Captain, Padraig Lehany organised a fantastic day out, on a fabulous course. Sponsored by Conrad Murray of The Top Shop, and Peak Windows and Doors, thanks to them.

The winner of the Captains Cup was Darren Campbell, Category 1, Ray Kelly, Category 2, Stephen Grogan, Ladies winner, Denise McDermott, front 9, David Grimes, back 9, Robbie Moore. Nearest to the pin, Graham Sandford, we had visitors and members of the GAA golf society joined us for the day, winner of the visitors prize, Gerry O Connor.

The rich, fertile soils around Lusk have supported farming since prehistoric times, earning the area the title of the market gardening capital of Ireland. We have a rich growing heritage of which we should be proud, so we are delighted to have finally launched our pilot Farmer’s Market!

Over the past couple of weeks, the new Farmer’s Market began its three-week trial in Lusk. This has been wonderful for our town, and we hope to be able to bring the market to our community on a regular basis.

Since December last year, the community has taken charge of Lusk Town Team. The role of the town team is to bring to life Lusk’s Town Centre First plan, “Lusk for Life”. There are 28 projects in the plan, one of which is the development of this new Lusk Farmer’s Market. This is an exciting way to showcase our rich food heritage, while also giving local food producers, crafters and artists room to grow.

The Farmer’s Market pilot is run by a volunteer sub-group of Lusk Town Team, with the support of Fingal County Council, Lusk Action Group and Murray’s Pub. It has one more day left in the trial, Saturday September 5th in Murray’s Pub Carpark from 9.30am-1pm. Parking is made available in the Cottage Community Centre by Lusk Community Council.

So, if you haven’t managed to go along yet, this is your opportunity to get your fresh produce, local honey, cakes and crafts, grab a coffee and soak up the atmosphere.

If you are a local food grower, baker or indeed have local arts & crafts please get in touch by email luskfarmersmarket@gmail.com

Jamie Bermingham, a plumber from Co. Dublin has earned a place in the semi-finals of this year’s Screwfix Top Tradesperson competition, beating more than 900 entries across the UK and Ireland.

Jamie is putting Lusk on the map as one of only 26 tradespeople still in the running for the national title. His application stood out for numerous reasons, not least his tireless work as an industry advocate in Ireland as well as his impressive volunteer work.

Based in Lusk, Jamie, who owns EcoHeat Home Energy Solutions, has worked as a plumber and heating engineer for several years. It was his combination of skill, resilience, and determination that helped Jamie stand out among hundreds of entries.

Jamie got his start as a plumbing and heating apprentice, picking up several accolades along the way, including Rising Star of the Year award at the Plumbing & Heating Awards in 2023. He later continued his education, achieving a Level 7 BSc in Energy Management (Buildings) and developing skills in gas, heating and renewable technologies. More recently, he established his own business, EcoHeat Home Systems, which he has said he wants to be at the forefront of the transition to energy-efficient heating systems and renewable technologies.

Elsewhere, Jamie is a strong advocate for apprentices and has addressed an Oireachtas committee about the future of STEM education and apprenticeships in Ireland. He has also put his skills to good use as a volunteer with IWSH, a global nonprofit that works to provide clean drinking water for under-resourced communities. He travelled to Germany to take part in a charity plumbing initiative, working alongside other tradespeople from other countries and using their skills to make a positive difference to a community.

He is also the founder of TradeKonnect, a community built to connect tradespeople, encourage knowledge sharing, provide support and create a space where apprentices and experienced professionals can learn from one another.

The semi-final stage will see Jamie compete against 25 other tradespeople for a place in the final 10 ahead of the national final at Screwfix LIVE in September.

Jamie says: “Making the semi-finals means a huge amount to me. I’m incredibly proud to represent Lusk and show the quality of tradespeople we have here. I’ve worked hard to build my career, so being recognised at this level is really special. I’m looking forward to sharing my story and hopefully doing Dublin proud in the final.”