By John Moore Deputy Principal.

We were delighted to be the first school to be featured on RTE’s Operation Transformation which aired on Wednesday. Ms. Rachel Flynn and her Transition Year Home Economics students featured and cooked a healthy and delicious Tofu Pad Thai dish. The girls spoke really well and did a fantastic job cooking the dish. Our new Home Economics kitchen, recently opened by celebrity chef, Donal Skehan, looked great as did the new St. Mary’s aprons. Everyone did St. Mary’s proud! Attached are behind-the-scenes photos of the filming process which took place in December. Also, we would like to remind you that our Transition Year students are continuing to run Free Log On Learn classes for Senior Citizens on Tuesdays from 11 am to 12.10 pm. Senior Citizens are welcome to drop in for a tea/coffee and then brush up or learn new IT skills whether on your phone, computer or tablet. Absolute beginners welcome. Learn about emails, social media, buying online, booking flights, WhatsApp etc.For further details, contact Joey Ryan at 01 832 5591 or email him at j.ryan@stmarysbaldoyle.org

Malahide is a coastal town situated on the east of Fingal County. It is a busy town that is a sought-after residential location due to its beach location, Malahide Marina, Malahide Castle Demesne and views overlooking Broadmeadow Estuary. Natural biodiversity features in Malahide include the Gaybrook Stream which is bordered by woodland habitat, Caves Marsh wetland and Dublin Bay. Man made biodiversity features include Malahide Demesne which has important woodland and semi natural grassland habitats. Embryonic sand dunes are forming along Malahide beach and Robswall Park supports hedgerows and meadows. Internationally protected Light bellied Brent Geese (Branta bernicla hrota) feed on grasslands in Robswalls Park each year. The Tidy Towns group in Malahide is very active and involved in biodiversity initiatives locally. It has already implemented many useful biodiversity actions and identified a number of locations that should to be conserved and interpreted. The primary aim of Tidy Towns Malahide is of course to enhance the appearance of Malahide making the town a more attractive place to live work and do business in. Currently the Tidy Towns volunteers meet every Saturday morning at 10.30am in the car park at Malahide Train Station.

Based on the cult classic John Water’s film of the same name, Cry-Baby the Musical is a rebellious teen comedy musical that, as book writer Mark O’Donnell said, is “edgier than Grease, funnier than West Side Story” and full of rockabilly tunes that keep the audience dancing in their seats. The delinquent Drapes and the squeaky-clean Squares can’t see eye to eye on anything. But when Drapes leader Cry-Baby and Square member Allison meet at the Anti-Polio Picnic, their star-crossed love story begins to blossom. Allison longs to shake off her Square identity and join Cry-Baby’s rock n’ roll lifestyle. With rock rhythms and dancing delinquents, Cry-Baby the Musical brings the 1950’s to life with a rockabilly good time. This fantastic musical will be on stage at Malahide Community School from the 13th until the 17th of February. Tickets are on sale now so don’t miss it.

Get ready for an unforgettable weekend at the many ParkRun Ireland locations in Fingal County Council! Lace up your running shoes or take a leisurely stroll with our amazing Walk at Parkrun participants. No matter your pace, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

Register now at //parkrun.ie and be part of the action-packed fitness event supported by Sport Ireland. Join our vibrant community and connect with like-minded individuals who share your passion for an active lifestyle. Get inspired, make new friends, and conquer personal milestones together. Don’t miss out on the excitement!

Our volunteer Scouters make an incredible and incalculable commitment to youth development and the outdoor activity programme, supporting our young people to learn lifelong skills, make new friends, overcome challenge and positively contribute to the community. Once a year Malahide Sea Scouts get an opportunity to recognise their contribution with; Meritorious awards - for outstanding commitment to Scouting.

Service Awards – recognising their commitment and many years of service to Scouting.
Malahide Sea Scouts is lucky to have so many passionate and talented volunteers with decades of scouting experience to best serve the programme and safe activities in the outdoors. Recently, the Group Leader was delighted to present some notable service awards to some exceptional Malahide Sea Scout stalwarts, a few f whom are pictured here, those were - 25 years of service - Alan Johns, Pat Moyne & Ivan Barrett. - 40 years of service - Stephen Taylor - 50 years of service - Kevin Rowan - The Group Leader also took the opportunity to present the ‘Bosuns Whistle’ to some of the new Section Leaders. A nautical symbolism as they prepare to ‘pass commands to the crew’ and deliver an exciting Sea Scouting youth development programme. Thank you to all the volunteers.

After a short Christmas and New Year’s break Junsa Taekwondo are back in action and are preparing for the new Taekwondo season ahead. Even though we train experienced athletes our main goal is to nurture the young students that are up and coming, while sparring competition is not for everyone Taekwondo has so many components to it that there’s nearly something for everyone in Olympic Taekwondo. If it’s to build confidence, get fit, become a black belt, become a poomsae expert, International athlete, Olympic Champion or just have fun doing a great sport we can do it at Junsa Taekwondo

It’s been a hectic start to the New Year with Round 1 and 2 of the National Indoor League as well as the Master’s Cross-Country event in Raheny all taking place in the first two weeks of January. Welcome to our latest Fit4Life group and if you’re thinking about it there’s still time to sign up. Our 6am 5k runs will start from 14th February so watch our social media for details. The annual Lusk 4 mile event takes place on Sunday 3rd March so why not sign up to run or walk. Well done to Conor McGuirk who competed at the Celtic Cross Country Championships in Scotland finishing in 10th place to help secure a bronze medal for Ireland. Congratulations to Conor and his coaches.

Our Nursery, LGFA, AMFC, GAA Boys and Girls at Lusk Round Towers GAA Club would like to invite new members to play GAA – Please Get in Touch! Great Fun to be had. Check our website for non-player/player membership of the Round Towers roundtowerslusk.ie Parents and Mentors – We need your help and support! Round Towers are progressing through our Club Development Programme with many different initiatives and wider projects to upgrade our facilities for all ages to enjoy the GAA game. We welcome your comments, ideas and or support that you can offer. Please get in touch through our online networks, club website and or Facebook. Community Facilities: ManO’War and Round Towers Lusk GAA clubs are calling on all members and friends in our communities to support our campaign for the inclusion of an all-weather floodlit facility incorporating a full-sized GAA pitch in the development of community facilities by Fingal County Council. This is an essential community facility to help our teams play, train and develop throughout the year. Round Towers Minor Boys Great achievement by the team and coaching staff on reaching the championships Final this year. [pic] Round Towers Girls U13 Congratulations to the girls and management on their hard work in their championship efforts for Round Towers. It was a hard-fought battle right the very end and it was not to be. Thanks to everyone from the team, coaches, parents and all who are involved. The Adult Men’s Football: The Round Towers Adult men’s fist team won their final game against Fingallians Football team on the 3rd December in an epic game. They have achieved promotion to the top in division for the first time in Round Towers history. Well done to all the team, coaching staff and Management. A special thanks to our sponsors Local Solicitor, Mr Liam Fitzgerald. We also have a Traditional Music Night - The Traditional Music on the last Tuesday of the months has been a huge success and would like to continue these nights and enjoy a musical evening with Friends and new members of the Round Towers Club. Lotto – Our Weekly Lotto is in excess of €12,500. This is a crucial fundraiser for the club and you can play here at klubfunder.com/Clubs/Round_Towers_Lusk/lotto Draw in Club Thursday @9pm.

There was a wonderful turnout for the launch of ‘Lusk Faces and Places’ local history publication by Lusk natives Dermot, Patsy and Christy Russell. The formal launch at Lusk Community, Cultural Centre by local man Mr. Jim Finnegan was a huge success, with Mayor of Fingal Mr. Adrian Henchy in attendance and a great gathering of local people and original Lusk people returning to renew acquaintances, and many more from local towns and villages and from further afield, all enjoyed a lovely afternoon at the launch of what has become a very popular publication. Books are available in Howley’s Butchers Lusk, Boylan’s Butchers Rush and Skerries Mills Gift Shop or by contacting us on line at: dpr.dub@gmail.com patsyrussell3@gmail.com or russmcken@gmail.com.

Rush Tidy Towns committee launched their 2024 calendar on Friday the 17th of November in the Strand Bar Rush. Minister Joe O’Brien did the honours and Councillor Rob O’Donohue was also present on the night. The calendar is in its third year now, was put together through a photography competition and depicts scenes from many aspects of Rush from coastal views to agriculture. There were 10 winning photographers each receiving a calendar as a prize. Project manager Diana O’Donohue tells us that the calendar is now available for sale in several shops around the town and also the Community Centre. Diana added that this is an important fundraiser for Rush Tidy Towns and every cent of profit goes back into the community through our projects in the town. Please buy one and maybe one also for friends or family who are abroad as a reminder of the beauty of this part if Fingal,