Donabate Library Opening hours: Monday & Wednesday 1.15pm – 8.00pmTuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday 9.45am – 1.00pm & 1.45pm – 5.00pm
Yoga for Health & Wellbeing w/Erica via Zoom (6 weeks): - Fridays @ 9:30am starting Jan 14/21/28th & Feb 4/11/18th. Please Join us and you can register in advance for this course by contacting us at the library on:
.us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0qcOqhpjwvGNwq_TGDHThrt_tNHJnQiFUr

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. or Personal Growth & Goal Setting w/ Life Coach, Michelle O’Flaherty via Zoom (4Weeks): Tuesdays @7pm 1st,8,15,22nd of Feb. )Give yourself the time and space to pause, reflect, reset and relaunch in 2022.This course was created by certified Life Coach, Michelle O’Flaherty, to enable you to discover what’s truly important to you, set exciting goals, overcome the limiting beliefs that stand in your way and take action to begin living the life you desire and deserve. During the course, you will: (1.) Gain more clarity: Reflect on where you are now. Discover what is truly important to you. Get clear on your values.(2.) Grow in confidence: If nothing was standing in your way, who would you want to become? Uncover and eliminate the limiting beliefs that have been holding you back. (3.) Set goals that excite you: Set goals in all areas of your life and break them into achievable steps.(4.) Reconfigure your habits: Learn strategies to integrate new, positive habits into your daily routine and make them stick.(5.) Create a vision board for 2022: Design your ideal year and stay focused on achieving your goals.You have one life. You owe it to yourself to make it the best that it can be.Each participant will receive a printable workbook to support and guide them through the course.Link for participants to register for the course: http://ow.ly/IP4850HqGcE.

Very recently we hosted yet another memorable night at Balbriggan RFC as the U18 North East girls played in their first ever competitive match. Their opponents were the Metro U18s, in the Sarah Robinson Cup and the North East girls came out on top 40 v 14. Well done to both teams, who provided superb entertainment to a large crowd of supporters on a cold and crisp night.

Well done to our AB girls, Alma, Shannon, Cliodhna, Molly, Naoise, Skye and their North East team-mates.

Our Sunday morning Softball Cricket returns on the 23rd of January in Castlelands Community Centre at 10am These Sessions are ideal for a child to try a new sport , are open to boys and girls aged 5-11 will be run by our team of qualified and experienced coaches. The sessions will run for 8 weeks in 2 blocks of 4 weeks and will be €20 for each block of 4 weeks. Block 1 will be on Feb 6th and Feb 13th Text 0860644238 to reserve a place or places for Block 1. Places are limited to 30 and will fill up quick !!!

Advance works for a new €8.5m Pedestrian and Cycle Route along the Harry Reynolds Road in Balbriggan began recently. Fingal County Council had appointed a contractor to carry out advance works along the 2km route. The advance works contract includes tree planting and tree clearing work along the length of the intended Cycle Route.These works are being carried out at this time to optimise the growth potential of new trees planted and to also ensure that tree removal works are completed before the start of the bird nesting season on March 1.The completion of the advance works will also ensure a quicker start to the main construction phase once the contract is awarded.The main works contract is due to commence in August 2022 with an estimated 12 month duration and further consultation will be undertaken with the community for those works in due course.After consultation with local Councillors, Balbriggan Community Council, Balbriggan Tidy Towns, and other stakeholders, Fingal County Council revised its advanced works plan. It has agreed that 304 new trees and additional hedgerow will be planted along and adjacent to the route in order to compensate for the 130 trees which will be removed to accommodate construction of the new cycle lanes. During the advance works phase, 174 new trees and hedgerow are being planted in several areas along the route including the R132 intersection on southern end of the route, Moylaragh and Ashfield.The remainder of the trees will be planted alongside the new cycle lanes during the main construction phase.These cycle lanes will facilitate safe travel by bike and scooter to schools, shops and businesses in the local area.

Maria Butterly will launch her new song ‘HERO’ produced by Bill Shanley and recorded in the world famous Windmill Lane Recording Studios in Naul this month. This song touches on an important and hot topic hitting young teens today-bullying. There is an interesting Story behind Maria’s new single ‘HERO’.It is a story of a young teen being called names in school, who dreams up a fictional hero character that represents the inner strength within us all, which allows us to confront and overcome the challenges presented to us whether internal or external. And addresses anti-social behaviour, bullying, and the challenges young students can be faced with in their world! Music has the power to connect with people and this new single from Maria ‘HERO’ is another example of that. A lot of my songs are inspired from true stories, some my own and some of others like this one. It’s radio friendly and the story is a good talking point!…. Not so long ago, I received a handwritten letter from an LMFM listener who was on the verge of taking his own life at 1am in the morning, until he heard my song ‘ANGEL’ being played on LMFM radio, he said the words of the song lifted him and brought him comfort and most of all ‘Hope’ that night and stopped him from doing the unthinkable. He is still with us today!

LAUNCH GIG: Friday 11th February, 2022.
Venue: Seamus Ennis Arts Centre,
Naul, Co Dublin.
Tickets are limited! €16 Available from TSEAC.i or mariabutterly.com

Community and voluntary groups in Fingal are invited to apply for funding under the 2022 Community Activities Fund.The Community Activities Fund (CAF) is a once-off fund that provides grants to assist community and voluntary groups with facilities upgrades, equipment purchase and running costs. The CAF is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development with Fingal allocated €301,042 in funding for groups across the county. The CAF is administered by Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) in each Local Authority area. It is part of the wider Community Enhancement Programme, which has funded over 8,000 projects in urban and rural communities throughout Ireland since first being launched in 2018. Applications are now being sought from community and voluntary groups in Fingal for grants up to a maximum of €15,000 with a closing date for applications of Friday, February 18, 2022 at 6:00 pm. Commenting on the announcement, AnnMarie Farrelly, Chief Executive of Fingal County Council said: “The work of the community and voluntary sector is highly valued by Fingal County Council.The Community Activities Fund will assist community groups with the valuable work they do within our communities. I would advise community groups to examine the CAF and avail of the opportunity to apply for funding if it is relevant to their activities.” Declan Ryan, Chief Officer of the Fingal Local Community Development Committee added: “The Community Activities Fund comes from within the Community Enhancement Programme group of funds. These funds have been availed of widely by community groups in Fingal in recent years, which has resulted in valuable funding being distributed to groups in disadvantaged areas in particular. The new CAF has the added benefit of allowing applications for both capital costs and operating costs. This added flexibility is very welcome. The Fingal LCDC looks forward to supporting the delivery of this scheme.” Full details on the 2022 Community Activities Fund and how to apply online can be accessed at submit.link/Ch.

Balbriggan Adult Education are providing a free Irish beginners class in their centre for anyone interested. The class will begin on Wednesday February 2nd at 2pm – 4pm and will run each Wednesday thereafter for 8 weeks. Places are limited due to social distancing in the classroom so please email BalbrigganLibrary@fingal.ie as soon as possible to reserve your place.

There is a phrase I’ve heard which says, ‘There is money in rubbish’. All of us in the Balbriggan\North County Dublin branch of Guide Dogs have proved this over several years, especially over the past two years. Annually our branch puts out this request, ‘If you have any used postage stamps, stamp albums, or coins which are no longer in circulation, please give them to us. We will turn them into Euros and lodge them to the guide dogs account.’ We receive coins from all over the world and old postage stamps. In our guide dog boxes and large collection dogs we find coins from all over the world and from Europe that are no longer legal currency since the Euro came into place. We get paper notes of all sorts of denominations, coins and used stamps from our branch volunteers and friends. The stamps go into a box and over the past two years a total of 41 kgs were accumulated. We also received 13 kgs of old foreign coin and 18 foreign notes. A stamp and coin collector from the UK bought them. We received €610 for 41 kgs of stamps, 13 kgs of old coin and old notes. We actually collected 12 kgs of old Irish coin and 22 different old Irish notes. There were some part or torn euro notes, these and the old Irish notes were brought to the Central Bank of Ireland for converting to Euros. The old Irish coin was sold to a local coin collector for €100. The Central Bank needs old Irish coin sorted in a particular way before they will convert them into Euros for us.We also received sterling coin which came to £165. A branch volunteer took them up North and converted them into sterling notes. These were then converted into €187.93. All money was lodged to the guide dogs’ account.If you have any used postage stamps or old Irish coins or notes or foreign coins or notes, please contact us at 085 7663107 or email GuideDogsBalbriggan@gmail.com Thank you, Tom O’Neill, Guide Dog Owner.

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 !