LSA (Lambay Sports & Athletics), is an athletic club in North County Dublin with juvenile and adult members, founded in 2011.This is our first club race and we would love if you could join us in our celebrations.Unfortunately due to restrictions this year we can only be with you in spirit and hope from next year to continue with an annual road race around the beautiful coastline of Donabate and Portrane.For now we are celebrating everything 10 with a 10k and 10 mile. We’ve also added a 5k and juvenile races so everyone has a race to suit them. So get the family out and run, jog, walk or roll your distance between 12th to 18th July 2021. We will have spot prizes which will be announced over the next couple of weeks too for winning club teams (it doesn’t have to be an athletic club) and age category. Our nominated charity is Donabate & Portrane Special Olympics Club, a new club with a big heart, catering for kids with disabilities from all over North Dublin and beyond. If you would like to train for this event, join the club and share in the celebrations, please email Heather on lambaysportsathletics@gmail.com. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook - Search “LSA”.

Active Age for All recently acquired two sets of croquet equipment and asked Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed to assist by assembling the two flat-packed trolleys included with the sets. So, with engineering know-how and carpentry skills, not to mention a code-cracker’s ability to decipher the unintelligible assembly directions, a few of our members proved themselves up to the task. We managed to produce two fully functioning trolleys in time for Active Age for All’s socially distanced return to croquet. With the easing of Covid-19 restrictions to permit outdoor gatherings of 15, the Men’s Shed has arranged a few outdoor get-togethers over the coming weeks. Work at our allotments also continues. If you wish to join us, please contact Jim on 086-3694316.

Councillor Adrian Henchy has welcomed news of a Skate park for the area. He said I was very pleased at a recent area committee meeting to receive confirmation that as part of the Ballymastone Sporting and recreational campus, Fingal County Council have agreed to install a skate park as part of this project. This has been one of my key objectives since my election in 2014 from my visits to our local primary schools and engagement with students of our local secondary school as well as many youth organisations and indeed local residents calling for the installation of a skate park local to Donabate given the nearest one is currently in Swords. The first step was getting this stitched in as a local objective for Donabate within the Fingal Development Plan and its very positive to now see Fingal County Council follow through on its commitment. Donabate is a growing community with a very young population and its critically important that we provide a wide range of facilities and amenities to appeal to as many young people as possible. I am also very pleased to see this amenity co- existing with the proposed eight lane Olympic standard athletics facility and the full size flood lite all weather facilities to accommodate Gaelic Games and Soccer.

On Monday 10th May, the croquet players were all ready to celebrate the start of the 2021 season using their new equipment. This was purchased, at the end of last summer, using a grant from Fingal County Council Community, Culture and Sports Division. Prior to this we had a loan from Croquet Ireland, and we thank them very much for that.
Thanks too to some of the Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed, Jim O’Donohoe, Gerry Kirwan and Oliver McDonald, who volunteered to put together the trolleys that arrived in kit form. (see photos). The existing AAfA members who play croquet regularly were really pleased to see this arrival. At the time of writing, we have more members wishing to join and we will be at trying to extend our playing time, or additional time, to try to accommodate this.

We will continue to monitor the changes in opening-up from Covid and how it might impact on our activities. Keep checking on our weekly emails to see what else may be happening from time to time. All we need now is a summer of glorious weather.

A Labour Party delegation consisting of Duncan Smith TD, Cllr James Humphreys and Corina Johnston Area Representative met with senior officials of the Gardai including Assistant Garda Commissioner Anne Marie Cagney, Superintendents Brian Woods and Ronan Barry to discuss the need for additional Garda resources on the peninsula. Corina Johnston said;“in their response the Garda informed us of their intention to provide two additional Gardai for foot patrol duties on the Donabate peninsula on each weekend commencing on Friday 30th April. This forms part of their good weather initiative which will continue during the summer period. “Johnston continued; “ While I welcome the much needed additional resources for Donabate, I stressed the need for community Gardai to be assigned to Donabate on a permanent basis given the projected growth in the population.”Johnston continued; “ Duncan Smith TD and I have been advocating for the introduction of the See Something Say Something Garda text initiative on the peninsula. Superintendent Barry gave his continued support to the introduction of this text alert initiative which has proved successful in a pilot scheme in Swords. The extension of this scheme will be decided in conjunction with Fingal County Council and the Chamber of Commerce in the near future.“ Johnston added; “the following issues were raised by our delegation:- the need for a community based policing forum- the need for a domestic abuse officer for the Swords and Donabate district- an online post primary school programme initiative in advance of the school summer recess.The Gardai committed to giving serious consideration to these proposals.”Johnston concluded;”Duncan Smith TD and I also raised the need for a permanent Garda station on the peninsula.We suggested that in the event of the Progressive Credit Union proceeding with their intention to sell the Credit Union building, as seems likely from responses received to date, that this could well be an ideal location for a Garda station. In their response the Gardai said that while they have no objection in principle to a Garda Station on the peninsula, this however would be a political decision“

Thanks to Fingal County Council for giving us nearly a full grant aid for two fantastic gazebos, and our particular thanks to Rafe Costigan Senior Community Officer for his assistance with this project, who took on board our vision of the best way to be outdoors in Ireland in our changeable weather! We are told to get outdoors, it is safer & healthier so that is what we intend doing, practicing our music & song in the wide open spaces. Erin McGahan our Gaeilge Officer & Fintan O Reilly our Youth Officer, came along recently for a mini work party to fill our sandbags to secure our gazebos when in use! You will hear us around the peninsula over the summer and as always feel free to contact us at leithinis@comhaltas.net. We are really looking forward to getting together again to play and enjoy our music once more as can be seen on our pictures .

In case you think that the selection of wild birds on the Donabate Portrane peninsula is limited to robins, starlings, crows and seagulls,have a look at this selection of photographs taken in Portrane by Swords man James (Chick) McNally. A much wider selection of photographs can be seen on The Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival’s facebook page bleedingpig.ie James (Chick) McNally has spent many wonderful hours capturing these images for us. He has a lifelong passionate interest in nature and conservation.Chick is a member of Bird Watch Ireland and is currently involved with the little tern project which is being conducted on Portrane Beach for the past twenty five years.This involves a team of volunteers who erect a fence and patrol the beach to protect the little ternsThe little terns lay their eggs in the sand and are vulnerable to predators – both animal and human – while they are sitting on their eggs waiting for them to hatch.There is great rejoicing when the babies are ready to fly back to Africa.

Our Senior team manager Adam Foley has regretfully stepped away from his position with the club with immediate effect. Adam has taken this decision as he cannot give the position his full attention as he is pursuing a very successful playing career in the LOI Premier Division. We are sad to see Adam go but Glebe North wish him every success as he continues to shine on the playing field. We thank Adam for his tireless work with the club and look forward to welcoming him back to the club in the future whether it is as a player or coach or in any capacity (His blood still flows green). The club have appointed Darius Kierans as the new manager of our senior team. Darius comes to the club as a highly recommended and experienced coach. We look forward to working with Darius and wish him the very best as he takes over the reigns from Adam.

A variety of challenges have faced the hotel sector over the past fifteen months, but the CityNorth team took it in their stride and throughout all phases of restrictions.
Looking forward to opening again, Suzanne Mulvey, Director of Sales and Marketing at CityNorth said, “We are delighted to open our doors to the public once again on June 2nd. We have been working behind the scenes to make improvements on our outside Delvin Terrace and we expanded our gym for residents”. Currently recruiting for food and beverage, accommodation, chefs de partie and kitchen porters, CItyNorth Hotel was recently awarded the Trip Advisor Traveler’s Choice Award 2021 for outstanding reviews over the last 12 months which is a testament to the dedication and customer service shown by the staff during this difficult year.“We are delighted with the award which places us amongst Trip Advisors’ top 10% of hospitality providers worldwide.” said Ms Mulvey. “To celebrate we have launched a number of new overnight packages such as our Dine, Drink, Stay Package which includes Dinner, Bed and Breakfast, a welcome glass of prosecco and a pre-dinner cocktail for two people from only €159. Many couples and families, work colleagues and friends are booking in on this great value deal to reunite in the spacious surroundings of our hotel.” The hotel is unusually busy with early bookings for family summer staycations. CityNorth has been in the family market for many years, and offers overnight deals including dinner for a family of four from only €159. Last year in anticipation of limited international travel, CityNorth Hotel promoted Family Seaside Breaks which include picnics to take away to our great local beaches.“We are encouraging families to get outside and enjoy all the amenities our coastal beaches and Boyne Valley heritage sites have to offer” commented Ms Mulvey. ”We have a new appreciation this year of our local area, and this will become a long term strategy for foreign tourists once they return”.To apply to join the CityNorth Team email CVs to jodie@citynorthhotel.com and for all other information and bookings email info@citynorthhotel.com or see www.citynorthhotel.com (NB: Neither the webste nor the emails are accessible through this medium.)

The following Zoom activities were delivered over the past two months and continue to be delivered by Nora and Paul who have kept the Remember Us participants entertained throughout the lockdown.Amongst the activities which took place over the past 43 days were:
a Disco, the wonderful Paul & Nora show ( make a video ) x 8 times, A Quiz x 5 times, Yoga x 2 times, Bingo x 8 times, 2 x Dance sessions, a Virtual trip to the Zoo, Crafts: DIY Key Wind Chimes, Play Your Cards Right/Mini disco, Lantern making, 2 x Exercise sessions,Crafts: Stress Ball making,Night at the movies, a Virtual tour of Ripley’s Aquarium,Body Percussion, a Cookery session, a Treasure Hunt,an Art n Crafts session,a Magic Show, and a Treasure Hunt. Nora Roban said , “I open the zooms at about 6.45 so members can come in and have a chat with us and activity starts at 7.30. when it finishes we have another chat. Weekly Webt exts to all members & their families /volunteers to see how they are getting on and to say we are at end of phone if they want to call for a chat etc.,Daily posts on Facebook/Instagram since we broke up of photos sent to me via e-mail from our members. Each day if there is a member’s birthday, we post it on Facebook.- Emails/phone manned everyday /weekend.” She added.“ Regarding the Paul n Nora show many of our members and their families say it’s the highlight of the week for them as we dress up and act a little silly!! We also announce the theme for the following weeks Facebook photos. Zoom activities for our younger members before they went back to school some were one to one sessions and others were small group sessions.Tuesday afternoons - Chat exercise or music time Thursday morning afternoon - Chat Puppets and story time-And whatever else will work for them. - Approximately. 7 members took it up, two one to ones and a small group.” This has poven highly successful so well done to Nora and Paul on their hard work.