volunteers – Listowel Connection

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Running Repairs

Helen Dunlea took this great photograph of my brother holding someone’s horse while the farrier, Mr. Palmer reattaches a shoe. Horses need to wear shoes to protect their hooves from the hard road. It’s handy to have the farrier among the riders at the meet.

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The Dandy Lodge

The late Tom O’Halloran of Bridge Road realised that he was witnessing history when he saw the careful relocation of The Dandy Lodge from Bridge Road to Childers’ Park. He also realised that he was in a unique position to chronicle the event in photographs. The O’Halloran family have shared his great photographs of that piece of Listowel history with us.

This view from the back shows how the cottage had fallen into disrepair.

This is the view as work commenced. The old phone box was demolished at the same time.

This closeup shows detail of the eaves. You can see the numbers clearly on the bricks. Every brick was numbered and then reconstructed like a paint by numbers job.

This is one of the old windows. The new ones replicated them to the T.

(more of this story tomorrow)

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A Weekend on the Sidelines

My granddaughters play soccer so I spent a pleasant Saturday supporting their teams on my visit to Cork.

Spare a thought for the mentors and match officials. Our young people owe so much to these individuals who give up so much of their time to them.

I feel sad to hear of all the abuse and ill-treatment meted on to this cohort of civic spirited and underappreciated individuals.

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Horror of Horrors

It’s over 70 years ago now but still within living memory!

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Listowel Parish Mass on RTE 1 on St. Patrick’s Day

Note the time change from 11.30 to 11.00

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A Treasure from The Kerry Museum

This brooch was found in Tullahennel near Ballylongford, Co.Kerry by Mrs Sheila Edgeworth whilst clearing out her ashes from the range at her home. It had been unwittingly thrown into the fire the night before concealed in a sod of turf. It miraclously surived. c.600AD

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Detroit Parade 2018

I had a relative on the ground in Detroit last Sunday, March 11 2018, when they were celebrating St. Patrick and Irishness. Here in pictures is his report;

I googled him and here is what I learned.

Blessed Solanus Casey (November 25, 1870 – July 31, 1957) – born Bernard Francis Casey^[1] – was an American Roman Catholic priest and a professed member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin.^[2]^[3] He was known during his lifetime as a wonderworker, for his great faith, and for his abilities as a spiritual counselor – but especially, for his great attention to the sick, for whom he celebrated special Masses. The friar was much sought-after and came to be revered in Detroit where he resided. He was also a noted lover of the violin, a trait he shared with his eponym, Saint Francis Solanus.^[4]^[5]

His cause for beatification commenced over a decade after his death, and he received the title of Venerable in mid-1995. As a miraculous healing attributed to him was approved by Pope Francis in mid-2017, he was beatified in Detroit at Ford Field on November 18, 2017.^{[ Wikipedia}