Congratulations to all who completed one of the Autumn marathons in the last few weeks. The club were well represented in Berlin, Chicago and Dublin. The recent Rathfarnham 5k was the culmination of a very focused block of training and produced some fantastic results on the day. Well done to our athletics and club coaches. Fit & Fab is our new sociable, no pressure running group for teenagers. Bring a friend and try it out. Our Christmas party is on Friday 13th December. Have you purchased your ticket yet? All club members and family are welcome.

October 16th was International Restart a Heart Day, Lusk Community First Responders got out and about raising awareness on what to do if you witness a person collapsing with a sudden cardiac arrest. The Lusk CFR team met the community at their stand at Skinny Batch Bakery and Supervalu, to talk about how anyone can save a life and explain the key steps to save a life: Check, Call, Compress and Shock.

In other news, Round Towers GAA installed a brand-new AED outside their clubhouse. They also registered it with the National Ambulance Service so that it an be used by the community in the event of an emergency. Call 999/112 and give the Eircode that is visible on the AED cabinet and the call taken will given you the access code. Thank you, Round Towers Lusk. That brings Lusk to 4 public access AEDs available 24/7.

We look forward to working with the community to increase the number of public access AEDs in Lusk and the surrounding areas. If you are a member of a club or organisation that already has an AED, please get in touch with us to find out how to register it with the National Ambulance Service. The best AED is the nearest AED, every second counts.

If you would like to learn more about Lusk CFR, please check out our website www.LuskCFR.ie or find us on Facebook and Instagram. We look forward to welcoming new volunteers.

Lusk ICA ran their annual fundraising coffee morning and Raffel organized by Antoinette Doran in aid of the hospice. Our thanks to all the people who baked their wonderful cakes, also our thanks to Senator Lorraine Clifford Lee and Joe O’Brien TD for their support. The final total was €2,355, which is very good as it was such a bad morning.

The ICA all Ireland P&P competition took place in Seapoint, Co. Louth the weather was dry but with a very strong wind. The result was 1st Roscommon 2nd Meath 3rd Clare. Dublin was not successful, but Mary Shorthall & Teresa Kilmurray enjoyed the day and were looked after very well.

A Big Thanks also to all who baked and volunteered at the recent fundraiser in Lusk United Soccer FC it was a great success.

Fantastic “Rambling House” night of nostalgic singing and stories in Murray’s Pub organized by Anne Smithers Lusk ICA with musicians on guitars by Don Duggan, Paul Redmond and Mick Mullin and Catherine Hagan. Don’t miss the next Rambling House session to be held again on Tuesday, 12th November.

The ladies travelled with the Lusk senior citizens for a great day out to Birr Castle and Clonmacnoise with dinner in the lovely Grenville Arms Hotel Mullingar.

Ten of our ladies attended a sewing session with the Project Fashions in Swords using our lovely new sewing machines which were kindly sponsored by Fingal Co Co. They are busy making crafts in preparation for Lusk ICA Christmas Market on Sunday, 1st December in the Scout Den.

The Lusk guild meeting is on the first Thursday every month in the Scouts Den (after the beavers) at 8:15 PM and we would be delighted for new members to come along.

Foróige are looking for volunteers to help run our volunteer led Foróige clubs in Rush, Lusk and Skerries. We engage young people from the ages of 10 to 18, enabling them to make friends, have fun, become independent and positively involved in their communities. Our youth clubs meet on a weekday evening for 1-2 hours. If interested, please contact our club development worker: Cillian Purser - cillian.purser@foroige.ie or 086-0123078.

Two new housing developments have been officially opened in Fingal, as Mayor of Fingal, Cllr. Brian McDonagh welcomed Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien TD to Lusk to celebrate the delivery of new homes in the area.

Kilhedge Gardens is an age-friendly scheme providing 31 new single-story homes. The development – delivered through direct build by Tuath on land owned by Fingal County Council – consists of 18 two-bedroom and 13 one-bedroom homes, with an additional communal facility area for residents. The new homes were funded by the Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage via the Capital Assistance Scheme, a funding mechanism for the delivery of homes for priority groups such as older persons. The architects for the project were Walsh Associates and the main contractor was M.L Quinn Construction.

In 2010, Tuath delivered its first homes in partnership with Fingal County Council at Garristown, Northwest Fingal and has since delivered over 1000 homes in the County.

Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Brian McDonagh said: “It gives me great pleasure to see this top-notch development from Tuath being opened to help deliver much needed age-appropriate homes for older people in our community. This is a superb new build in the heart of Lusk and I wish the residents all the very best in their new homes.”

Minister for Housing, Local Government & Heritage Darragh O’Brien, who turned the sod on the development in February 2023 commented: ‘’Today’s launch of 31 safe and secure homes for older persons is most welcome here in Fingal. Kilhedge Gardens includes both a communal facility for residents and close proximity to Lusk town centre – this scheme lives up to the ambition of Housing for All by successfully delivering high-quality, well-located homes that prioritise not only the safety and comfort of older persons but also economic, social, and environmental sustainability.’’

Alongside the Kilhedge Gardens opening, the ribbon was also cut on a new social housing development in Monastery Court. This comprises five high-quality apartments with a communal landscaped courtyard and close to all local amenities. As part of its commitment to encourage sustainable construction and minimise environmental impact, this is Fingal’s first Passive House development. Passive House standards ensure these homes are low-energy, leading to reduced energy bills for residents whilst providing significant environmental advantages.

Michelle Lacey of Fingal Physiotherapy was delighted when she was told the clinic had been nominated for an Irish Enterprise Award.

Michelle tells us that following this she had to provide some lengthy paper work. Following assessment from a panel of judges it was announced that Fingal Physiotherapy won Physiotherapy Clinic of the year 2024 – County Dublin.

The Irish Enterprise Awards reported there were several factors that led to this achievement, including exceptional commitment to the highest standards in patient care by providing a huge selection of treatment and assessment serices and fast onward referral and links with local GPs or consultants when needed.

Michelle Lacey, the clinic’s founder has extensive experience and is highly-qualified, having studied a postgraduate professional diploma in Clinical Leadership, a MSc in Sports Medicine, BSc in Physiotherapy, BSc in Sports Science and she is awaiting her certification as a National Strength and Conditioning Coach. Her publications and presentation at the Faculty of Sports Medicine Conference demonstrates the clinic’s dedication to evidenced based practice. Of particular note, Fingal Physiotherapy has shown community commitment by supporting and sponsoring local sports teams and clubs and providing support at local charity events.

Fingal Physiotherapy was first established with Michelle Lacey offering services in the Fingal area in peoples’ homes while she continued to work in the Beacon Hospital Physiotherapy and Sports Medicine department in Sandyford. In September 2022 this grew to having a stable base inside Fingal Medical Centre, two days a week. Fingal Physiotherapy now operates full time and continues to grow.

“It’s so great to be here as part of Lusk s growing facilities base. We can’t wait for the next few years and what lies ahead,” Michelle said.

Our adult sections of the club have been very busy in recent times. Firstly, we are well into marathon training season and members from across all our adult groups have been busy with their long runs in preparation for the Dublin City Marathon on Sunday the 27th October. Having trained now up to and over 30km our marathoners are ready to taper off and enjoy the run up to the big day. Well done to each and every one of you!

We also have a new Couch to 5k group running on Tuesdays and Thursdays - these runners are already doing a fantastic job getting their kilometres up and it is clear they will cruise through to 5k in no time!
Our Advanced, Intermediate and Fit 4 life group have all been busy clocking up the kilometres around Donabate and Portrane - some of our members have also completed races recently such as the Frank Duffy 10 Mile and the Irish Life Dublin Half Marathon. Amazing efforts as always to all!

Our peninsula might not be associated with Mountain Running, but some LSA athletes are really putting us on the map in that regard. Back in September Iveta Mc Donell and Eimear Caulfield represented Ireland in the World Masters Mountain Running Championships in Spain. Closer to home, teenager Sinead Farrell won a Bronze medal as part of an Irish Under 20 team in the British and Irish Mountain Running Championships in Laragh, Co Wicklow.

Also in September LSA was very proud to have almost 30 athletes take part.

in a Dublin Athletics Cross Country League race held in Newbridge Park. Almost 1000 young athletes from all over Dublin participated in that event!

We are delighted to have new parent helpers and athletes at our busy Thursday night Juvenile sessions at the Portrane Hockey Club Astro pitch. We always welcome new members and volunteers. Please follow us on our social media channels for more information.

DP Crossroads submitted the petition on a multifunctional centre to FCC on 14th October 2024. Accepting the petition on behalf of the council was Mayor Brian McDonagh. DP collected over 2,000 signatures in support of their campaign for FCC to meet LAP objective 6.12 and provide a dedicated multifunctional center for the rapidly expanding population of Donabate Portrane.

Speaking at the event, Ann Hogan Chairperson of DP Crossroads said, “This center would be a base for the existing arts and cultural groups who have no performance, rehearsal or meeting space and for our youth population who have no dedicated youth space.”

The response to DP Crossroads to date by the Council has been disappointing as Ann continued, “The proposed relocation of the library and small extension is short term thinking – it is not good value for money and cannot provide the facilities required by existing residents never mind our future large population. A strategic and long-term solution is for the council to provide a site and funding for a dedicated cultural and youth groups in Donabate Portrane as part of their capital expenditure program and in liaison with housing developers on the peninsula”.

The group receives cross-party support from many Councillors and is looking forward to working with the council to achieve their objective.

As we enter the winter months, most of the work on Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed’s plots at Turvey Allotments is winding down, apart from planting a crop of winter onions. Despite this, we have a busy schedule ahead.

Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed will be hosting an event for Fingal Inclusion Week, involving all of the Men’s Sheds in Fingal, at 11am on Wednesday 13th November in Donabate Portrane Community Centre. This fun day is sponsored by Fingal County Council. There will be gentle exercise, suitable for the age of the expected participants, an inspiration speaker, light refreshments and entertainment provided by Gerry and the Plonkers, the Men’s Shed music group. Men who are not members of a Men’s Shed are welcome to join us. See the poster.

That day will be a busy one for Gerry and the Plonkers, with the group continuing their series of free concerts in Donabate Parish Hall at 12 noon. All adults are welcome and light refreshments will be served. The other dates for these concerts are 4th December, 27th January, 10th February and 10th March, all on Wednesdays at 12 noon until 2pm.

Our annual Christmas dinner is planned for Keeling’s on Friday 6th December. We expect to have the usual singsong led by Gerry and the Plonkers.

As reported last month, a group of members visited the National Ploughing Championships and we have at least one photo to prove it; the rest aren’t for publication, we told!

All of this and our usual weekly activities - exercise classes, croquet, band practice and our Thursday morning get-together for tea or coffee and a chat. If you, or someone you know would like to join us, please call or text Jim, our PRO, on 086-3694316.

Donabate Portrane Dramatic Society is delighted to announce the upcoming performances of the comedy “Sylvia” by A.R. Gurney from the 28th to the 30th of November 2024 (with two performances on the Saturday) in Donabate Parish Hall.

“Sylvia” by A.R. Gurney, directed by Lisa Buckley, is the story of Greg who brings home a sassy female dog he found in the park—or that has found him—bearing only the name “Sylvia” on her name tag.

While on the one side Sylvia offers Greg an escape from the frustrations of his job and the unknowns of middle age, on the other hand she becomes a major bone of contention between him and his wife Kate who is completely immune to Sylvia’s charms.

“Sylvia” is a smart, frisky, and occasionally salty comedy about relationships, growing older and life changes.

On stage we have a combination of familiar faces and new talent, while behind the scenes the production team are working hard to bring the play to the stage.

Performances will be on in Donabate Parish Hall on the following dates and times: Thursday 28th November at 19:30, Friday 29th November at 19:30, Saturday 30th November matinée at 14:30 and Saturday 30th November at 19:30.

Tickets cost €12 per person and can be purchased online on ticketsource.eu or at the door.

Donabate Dramatic Society is also extending an invitation to all people in the community become a patron of the society and support the local arts. The annual fee for patronage is €60 per person and it includes two tickets for to their biannual productions along with light refreshments.

If you want to become a member or a patron of DPDS do not hesitate to contact donabateportrane.drama@gmail.com. And don’t forget to follow Donabate Portrane Dramatic Society on Facebook and Instagram!