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.

An upcoming soccer training camp is being held in the home of Malahide United, Gannon Park for two days on January 4th and 5th 2024.This camp is for boys and girls aged 8-14. The Camp will run 10am-1pm daily and all coaches are FAI accredited and have Garda vetting, If you wish to book a place for your child contact 086 247 7076 , The cost per child is €55.

St Sylvester’s GAA are and were delighted to continue to support GAA games in our local schools with a visit to one local school on December. The club and Executive really appreciate the partnership and were delighted to supply new hurleys, helmets and footballs to St Oliver Plunkett’s School for its football and camogie games! The presentation was held in early December at the school.

At the end of each boating year, the Scouts and Ventures host a ‘Laying Up Supper’, sharing stories of the adventures they got up to, remarking over the safe and successful year, saying thanks to those who have supported and enjoying some good grub with the leaders!

Well done to the Scouts and Ventures for preparing presentations and being part of the nearly 3,000 bums we had on the water in 2023! Heres to calm seas and fair winds in 2024!

Malahide Lions Club were delighted to host a Christmas party for over 100 of our Seniors Citizens in the Grand Hotel Malahide at the weekend. What a fabulous day was had by all. Many thanks to the following: Grand Hotel Malahide for top class service and food. Musician Peter Finnigan who had our guests singing and dancing all afternoon. Mary Grimes Irish Dancers for outstanding performances. Shiel family Londis Yellow Walls Road for donation of the wine. To all local businesses, family and friends who donated raffle prizes. A special thanks to the main sponsors of our guests tables whose support and generosity ensured a successful event: Mc Cabes Pharmacy Yellow Walls Road - Cathrina Murphy Fingal Community Development Office - Irish College of English - Deirdre Rochford- Supervalu Malahide - David Kennedy - Councillor Jimmy Guerin - Mischief Malahide - Trish Murtagh- Malahide Credit Union .Of course, the event would not have been possible without the sterling work carried out by Mrs .Jo Morris, who has been serving the community in many ways for “more years the we care to remember! Community spirit at its best.

We’re finding a lot of people are deciding not to replace their cars these days and are going to experiment with Go Cars, public transport and cycling. It can suit some people and it saves a great deal of money. See below - message from Minister O’Brien, for some good news on Cycle routes, I believe the Malahide Active Travel can be congratulated for the idea.

Dear Resident,
I hope that this finds you well. Cllr Eoghan O’Brien and I have been actively engaging with Malahide Portmarnock Educate Together Secondary school, Gaelscoil an Duinnínigh and local residents for over year now to secure safer pedestrian and cycle access to our local schools. You will have seen recently significant improvements to the entrance to the schools from the Feltrim Road which is very welcome and I’d like to commend Fingal for their work on this and in particular the students who worked with us to secure these improvements.

Recently Eoghan and I have received the very significant news that planning permission has been granted for a new path from Waterside to the schools. We have both met with the Minister for Education Norma Foley about this and I’m pleased to tell you that they will commence work on this really important link in the near future.

This path from Waterside will greatly improve safety for students and residents from the Swords Road area, linking them not only to the schools but onwards to the shops and commercial centre in Kinsealy.
Kind Regards,
Darragh

Courtesy of Malahide Historical Society

The current movie blockbuster on the life of Napoleon Bonaparte reminds us of Malahide’s (slight) Napoleonic connections.

On Church Road, Manor Books is housed in Manor House, which dates from the late 1700s and was the one-time office in the village for handling the affairs of the Lord of the Manor, Lord Talbot de Malahide, who owned the ground rent and much of the properties. Lord Talbot’s agent or bailiff would manage village affairs such as collection of rents and meetings with tenants. Up to the early 1800s it was the site of the Manor Court which dates from a time when the local landowner held a degree of legal jurisdiction over his properties and tenants and was the lowest level in the courts system. In here, minor legal and petty crime cases would be heard and when the building was being refurbished in the 1990s the remains of a holding cell were found.

For a time in the early 1800s Manor House was home to an adventurer and United Irishman grandly named Herve Morres de Montmorency who fled to France after the failed 1798 rebellion and achieved a commission in the French Army under Napoleon Bonaparte who is said to have been an admirer of Napper Tandy and Montmorency and interviewed him personally. Up to his death in France in 1839 he remained wanted by the British forces.

At The Diamond, the house, which up to recently was the Ulster Bank, was in the 1780s the home of John Fortescue who was married to the sister of Arthur Wellesley, an officer in the British Army who later became the Duke of Wellington and defeated Napoleon at Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Wellesley is believed to have been a regular visitor to his sister in Malahide.

On the Coast Road, Hick’s Tower, with its ‘witches’ hat’ roof added in 1911, was a Martello Tower, one of around 50 such watchtowers around the Irish coast built by the British to watch out for French invasion forces during the Napoleonic wars.

By Malahide resident Gerard Morgan

Malahide resident Gerard Morgan is the author of the recently published book “Becoming Your Best Possible Self”. The book was initially written as a legacy for his two sons and provides a timely transformative personal growth strategy for all readers. Please note all profits from the sale of the book will go to the charity Samaritans Ireland. Based on the evidence-based science of Positive Psychology and insights from experts in their respective fields, this journey to personal transformation outlines the essential beliefs, values, mindsets, and attitudes that can lead you towards happy and successful living. Each of these aspects are examined in detail to understand their influence on behaviour so you can take control and implement what you have learned into your daily life. Becoming Your Best Possible Self is for you if you are ready to make the following changes: (1) Take charge of your life now - A powerful guidebook on the journey to unlock your inner strength with practical steps for creating lasting change that can last a lifetime! (2) Clear steps to success - Guidance on how to choose meaningful goals, as well as goal-setting techniques based on research-backed principles. (3) Know what matters most - Develop greater self-awareness of your values, beliefs, and attitudes and how they shape your behaviour.(4) Enjoy a happy, successful life - Harness this knowledge to make better decisions in line with what truly matters to you, stay connected with yourself, find purposeful living that brings joy, success, productivity and fulfilment. (5) Unlock your true potential - Follow a scientifically proven approach to Positive Psychology and shift from external validation to internal validation, empowering you to live your best life. For the past 35 years, Gerard has devoted his life to teaching, learning and service. His passion for personal development has led him to specialize in the evidence-based science of Positive Psychology and its application to better society - a strong testament to his commitment to helping others. For details of where to purchase it contact Gerard Morgan - gerardmorgan192@gmail.com and at £14.99 it is great value. Also the book is available to purchase in Waterstones book shop in Dublin (Hodges and Fidges) and online at Amazon.com amazon.co.uk/Becoming-Your-Best-Possible-Self/dp/1915502365 or at becomingyourbestpossibleself@gmail.com or Facebook becomingyourbestpossibleself and remember all proceeds for the Samaritans.

In an exciting development for inclusive education, St Mary’s Secondary School Baldoyle is delighted to announce its transformation to a Co-Educational School. After consultation with students, parents, staff, local primary schools and in response to demand from the wider community, St Mary’s Secondary School will extend its expertise in outstanding education to boys in the local area, on a phased basis. For the first time in its history, the school will be accepting applications from 2 October for boys starting First Year in September 2024, ushering in a new chapter of opportunity and growth. St Mary’s Secondary School Baldoyle is committed to maintaining high academic standards with 90% of the Class of 2022 who are progressing to third level. We offer a broad range of subjects to students at Junior and Senior cycle including the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme. A new digital media room with Apple iMacs is soon to be completed to allow for an additional focus in coding and computer studies. Expertise is drawn from our established and experienced teaching staff, with a view to further diversifying subject options in line with demand such as Agricultural Science, Computer Science and Politics and Society. Capacity and facilities in St Mary’s have been expanded in recent years with extensive renovations and upgrades to the existing building. Significant further work is also in the pipeline. A period of consultation with parents of incoming First Years has already begun. Ms. Kate O’Regan, Co-Educational Liaison Officer, is looking forward to working closely with these students and parents. Her aim is to ensure the smooth transition to a fully inclusive and diverse school. She will listen to any needs or concerns of our future students in order to create a safe and a truly supportive learning environment. As the school embarks on this transformative journey, it remains focused and committed to nurturing, not only the academic excellence and the learning environment of students, but also their character, compassion and community spirit.
A promising future awaits!!!