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Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 1 August 2017
Carlingford Community Newsletter August 2017 Edition
Carlingford Community Forum News
Apart from some background work for the Bank of Ireland’s Enterprising Towns Awards, Forum
members have been extremely busy with their individual organisations and so the Forum has taken
a summer break. More next time.
Heritage News
We are delighted to tell you that the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather
Humpreys TD, has recently approved a grant of €20,000 towards an upgrade of our beloved
Carlingford Heritage Centre.
Application for the funding was made under the Arts and Culture Capital Scheme, Stream 3, which
focuses on upgrading facilities at smaller cultural and heritage centres and arts venues, where the
facilities are a focal point within their communities. The amount awarded is the maximum single
amount to any organisation under the scheme and the only maximum award made in County Louth.
This funding is earmarked for an upgrade of the building's safety systems, lighting, stage and sound
systems, improved accessibility, landscaping and a timely redecoration.
The application made reference to the Centre’s place as a renowned space for arts and budding talent
in addition to being a community hub - hosting receptions for visiting delegations, community
information sessions and providing training opportunities.
Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust is required to make matching funding available, an example of the
Trust’s commitment to maintaining and improving community facilities and the built heritage of the
town. In addition to recent funding successes through LEADER and Better Energy Communities, the
award confirms that the Trust is continuing to seize available opportunities for investment which will
bring community benefit going forward.
This newsletter is jointly produced by the
four bodies representing the Carlingford
community, namely:
Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust CLHT
Carlingford & Cooley Tourism Assoc. CCTA
Carlingford Tidy Towns CTT
Carlingford Community Development CCD
(The Foy Centre)
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 2 August 2017
Thomas D'Arcy McGee 150th Canadian celebrations
August has been a busy time front-of-house in the Heritage Centre. From August 21st to August 23rd
we hosted the annual D'Arcy McGee Summer School. As we previously mentioned, this was a special
year for the summer school as it marks 150th Anniversary of the founding of the Canadian
Confederation, in which D'Arcy McGee himself played an important role.
This year's Summer School was well attended, concluding with a very lively debate about Brexit. This
was followed by a march, led by our own and visiting piped bands, to an open-air concert at the
Sailing Club.
Carlingford hosted internationally known celebrities, including Gen. John De Chastelain, Bertie
Ahern, Colum Eastwood and Finbar Furey, as well as a host of Canada and Ireland’s leading
academics and historians, led by Eastwood, Prof. David Wilson (McGee’s award-winning
biographer). The three-day event from 21st to 23rd of August was based at the Heritage Centre, but
the programme worked hard to ensure participation throughout the town.
The ever-popular ‘Trials in the Courthouse’ this year featured the world premiere of Trial of the
Orange Order, by Anthony Russell, to a packed audience (the Order was found guilty of treason
against Ireland and Britain!). The Folk ‘n Irish traditional night in the Carlingford Arms had a
mouth-watering line of Ireland’s best singers and musicians, including Finbar Furey, Gerry and
Finnan O’Connor, Column Sands, and Manus Maguire.
But for many, the Party on the Green on Wednesday afternoon was a special moment. Attendees from
all over the world, including Australia, Canada, Poland, USA and Ireland, north and south, were
piped from the Heritage Centre through the village and across to the sailing club for a huge outdoor
birthday party and cutting of the cake, to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 3 August 2017
The local Carlingford pipe band joined with the Altnaveigh pipe band from Newry to lead a colourful
parade of locals and visitors on a sun-drenched afternoon to the spectacular, scenic setting of the
sailing club.
The summer school is indebted to Pat O’Callaghan, Louth County Council, the County Librarian and
staff, the Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust, the Carlingford Lough Sailing Club, Carlingford
Adventure Centre, Newpoint Players, Newry, and the Pipe Maj David Hannah and the Altnaveigh
Pipe Band, Pipe Major, Paddy McShane and the Carlingford Pipe Band. Many other individuals
and volunteers, too numerous to mention, came together in a huge, community led effort to celebrate
Carlingford’s premier position as one of Ireland’s key contributors to the establishment of the
Canadian nation 150 years ago. Thomas D’Arcy McGee asked, in one of his poems, “Will I be
remembered in Ireland?” This year’s summer school was a resounding YES to that question.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 4 August 2017
This was the best Thomas D’Arcy McGee Summer School ever! A bit of a cliché, but in this instance
undoubtedly true.
The only darker moment was the announcement that the popular and efficient Tommy Fagan will be
stepping down as the summer school’s director. After six years given the success of this, and previous
years, Tommy will be a very hard act to follow.
Lots more photographs will be available shortly on the photo Gallery, 2017,
www.thomasdarcymcgee.com
Also in July and August we have enjoyed the five concerts in our annual Summer Series, led by Zoe
Conway and John McIntyre. This series included a delightful surprise when a group of middle-eastern
musicians joined Zoe and John at short notice.
The pleasure is set to continue on 10th September when our old friends, Le Quatuor de Luxembourg,
return to Carlingford with a concert to include Mendelssohn and six Irish Melodies.
The concert takes place in the Heritage Centre, Old Holy Trinity Church, from 16.00. Concert
tickets, costing €15 (or €10 for concessions), can be purchased online at:
www.carlingfordheritagecentre.com
or e-mail: [email protected]
or phone +353 42 9373454 or +353 42 9373888.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 5 August 2017
In a previous edition of the Newsletter we mentioned that we would shortly announce another special
event.
For some months now we have been toiling away on a pilot son et lumière presentation telling the
story of Carlingford through the ages.
A preview of this was held at the Heritage Centre on Saturday 19th August when we screened a video
entitled “The Ages of Carlingford”. This tells the story of Carlingford and Cooley - in words,
pictures and music - from the Ice Age and the first human settlement through the Viking and Norman
invasions and on to the Age of Steam. Along the way we meet Cuchulainn, Queen Maeve and the
Great O'Neill and marvel at original drone footage - shot especially for the piece - clearly showing
cultivation ridges still left behind on our uplands by the first farmers.
The video is set to a stirring original sound track by our own Zoe Conway and concludes with a
tribute to the crew of Rescue 116.
If you missed the première then fear not. On Saturday 9th September, there will be a second free
performance, outdoors this time, at the Fair Green in Carlingford (otherwise known as the car park
outside the Tholsel Gate) from around 8.00 pm. On this occasion the beautiful stained-glass window
of the Heritage Centre, overlooking the Fair Green, will be backlit. We also plan to light up
surrounding trees and structures to create an immersive effect.
Please come along and enjoy the show. If you like it, we hope that it may become an annual
event.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 6 August 2017
Preview of ‘The Ages of Carlingford’ event
Carlingford & Cooley Tourism Association News
CARLINGFORD OYSTER FESTIVAL 2017
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 7 August 2017
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 8 August 2017
The main annual event organised by the CCTA is the Carlingford Oyster Festival which was held on
the weekend of the 10th August and ran until the Monday of 14th August. This year’s Festival proved
to be an outstanding success with events and activities for both visitors and locals of all ages.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 9 August 2017
As usual, the highlight of the Festival was the crowning of the Oyster Queen at the Four Seasons Hotel
at a special evening on Sunday 13th. The well-deserved winner was Mary Rose McCarragher (pictured
above) from Cooley, who was crowned in front of a large crowd who attended the event in the ballroom
of the hotel.
Mary excelled at all the challenges faced by the contestants over the previous days, but that is not to
take from all the other contestants, who also rose to the many tasks they were required to do.
The presence of Cassily’s Fun Fair over the period of the Oyster Festival and the previous August
Holiday weekend provided much enjoyment for the many family groups and young people who visited
Carlingford over the period. This year we were blessed with generally good weather and this lifted
everybody’s spirits and added to the sense of wellbeing throughout the Festival.
As always, the serving of oysters, complemented by a glass of Guinness or wine in the Market Square
was a main feature on the Saturday and Sunday. The efforts of all the volunteers at the Festival tent
ensured a ready supply of oysters which were consumed as fast as the oysters were opened. Many other
people participated in the Festival with stalls offering a diverse range of products and services from
jewellery and wood carvings, to cheese, fish products and ice creams as well as many other related food
products. St.Brigid’s marching band were a welcome addition to the Festival as was the dancing and
music in the Market Square.
On the Monday, which concluded the Festival, much fun was held throughout the village with the
annual tug of war, won by the Foy Centre. The last day is geared towards local children and their
parents with relay races for different ages, egg and spoon, and three-legged races. All who participated
received a medal. Unfortunately, Cassily’s, who normally offer special concessions to all family groups
on this family day, were obliged to close for safety reasons, due to the thunder and lightning.
The Festival is a great tribute to all who organised, sponsored, participated and visited the Festival and
shows what can be achieved when the whole Community in Carlingford and Cooley comes together to
achieve a successful event such as the Carlingford Oyster Festival for the benefit for all who live and
work in Carlingford.
To all who helped and supported the Festival – a big “ THANK YOU ALL”
The Foy Centre
Drainage of pitch
The drainage and the path around the pitch have been
completed. The grass has been sown but it will take
another couple of months to reach maturity and readiness
for playing on.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 10 August 2017
The lighting will be fully functional by the time that the grass is ready. We look forward to the months ahead
and having a busy pitch. Should you wish to use the pitch for your sporting events please contact us on the
number below.
Thriller Race
The Annual ‘Da Cooley Thriller XC Mountain Bike Marathon’ (54km) took place on Saturday 12th August. The
Foy Centre was the venue for registration, the start/finish line, food and drinks station and the presentation
ceremony. There was a great turn out at the event and all attending had a brilliant day.
The overall winner was David Montgomery.
Pictured here is Johnny McCabe presenting him with the
Gerry McCabe ‘Da Cooley Thriller’ Trophy.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 11 August 2017
Irish Dance Festival
The Foy Centre was delighted to accommodate the Irish Dance Festival. Children from all over the world got
the chance to spend a week with the best team of teachers, including former World Champions, to transform
them into stronger, more powerful and confident Irish Dancers. They held a concert on the Saturday evening
in the Foy Centre and performed what they had learnt from the week. A great week was had by everyone.
Street Sports Day
The Foy Centre entered a team for the annual ‘tug o’ war’ street sports day. Staff from PJs went head to
head with the previous winners of the trophy, The Carlingford Arms. The Carlingford Arms won following
three rounds against PJs.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 12 August 2017
They then had to go against the Foy Centre team, which was represented by members of the community
resulting in the Foy Centre winning this year’s trophy.
Well done to all of those who joined in.
The winning team!
The Des Savage Cup being presented by Marie Savage.
If there’s anything you would like to see happening in the center or on the pitch please contact Debbie
Hamilton on 083 8013777.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 13 August 2017
Carlingford Tidy Towns
You can be so proud of your local coffee shops. All of these Carlingford cafés have agreed to offer
their customers discount if they takeaway a coffee in their own reusable travel mug. This means less
waste to landfill and savings for you and the environment. It is all part of ‘The Conscious Cup
Campaign’. The campaign rewards customers and also Geo-tags participating cafes. #cccampaign
#consciouscup #wasteprevention.
Since being the first in County Louth to sign up to the Conscious Cup Campaign, Carlingford’s Cafes
have been mentioned on the radio when Joanne Redpath was interviewed by Gerry Kelly on LMFM.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 14 August 2017
Hats off to Setanta Triathlon Club for using our Reusable beakers for their Carlingford Land of
Legends Triathlon. Carlingford Tidy Towns beakers are available for anyone to loan out free of
charge for their community event. Please ring 0429373686 if you want to make your event greener
and more sustainable by using reusable instead of disposable cups and bottles.
Congratulations also to the organisers of the Carlingford Wilderness Festival 10k running and walking
trail. We were so proud to see our reusable beakers used for the water station. 500 cups were
borrowed from Carlingford Tidy Towns in a great effort to reduce or minimise waste. Takeaway food
such as burgers were also served in napkins keeping waste sent to landfill to a minimum.
CTT volunteers have been cleaning and repainting lamppost bases all around the town in recent
weeks. It all contributes to a well-cared for look to our town.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 15 August 2017
One thing we would like to ask people to refrain from doing is the practice of emptying their car
ashtrays and individual cigarette butts into the gutter. These are not bio-degradable and would stay
there for months if we didn’t sweep the streets regularly!
Our thanks to all 12 volunteers who helped in our tidy up event last Saturday. We concentrated efforts on weeding and sweeping the tennis courts which are now much improved and some tennis enthusiasts helped too! Then we turned our attention to weeding and enhancing the flower beds around King John's Castle. We also made a start on weeding and removing overgrown briars at the
pier. Thank you to The Carlingford Arms for the sandwiches and our own Denise for home baked apple pie and rock cakes that made a mornings hard labour all worth it.
There were oodles of enthusiasm for the task today, so we will probably be undertaking another event in September - keep an eye out on Facebook and the community newsletter for details.
We have been working with the waste
collection companies to obtain a brown
bin collection for Carlingford in order to
recycle food waste.
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Page 16 August 2017
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Tribute to the crew of Rescue Helicopter R116
A fitting tribute to the crew of downed helicopter R116 was held in and around Carlingford Lough on Sunday 30th July.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 17 August 2017
The memorial event commenced with a dinghy race in Rostrevor Bay where the Coast Guard and RNLI had stalls on the beach and gave demonstrations whilst a Silver Band played. Then a lone Piper played a lament on the Shore Road Green as the first of 110 boats came up the Lough in single file.
The flotilla made up of all types of vessels including the Kilkeel and Clogherhead Lifeboats, departed from Warrenpoint to hold a memorial service on the Lough with wreaths laid in memory of each of the crew, Ciaran, Mark, Paul and Dara.
One thing that really stood out was the cross-border co-operation between the Irish Coastguard, HM Coastguard, the Garda, PSNI, and search and rescue teams from either side of the boarder.
Boats returned to Carlingford Marina to the strains of the Lone Piper at 6pm, followed by a dinner in the Sitar restaurant.
Each boat had laid either a white or red rose in the water as another rescue helicopter flew past. Red roses symbolise love, white roses valour and the two together stand for unity. This demonstrated that we stand united as a Marine community in love and respect for our valiant heroes. May their souls rest in peace.
Carlingford Community Newsletter Newsletter No 43
Page 18 August 2017
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Find us on Facebook.com/CarlingfordTidyTowns
Thank you for supporting your community
If you have any ideas or comments please Email them to [email protected]
and I will ensure they are brought to the attention of the appropriate committee.