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21, 2Issue 12 | October Vol 21,Vol Issue | November 20222022 Holiday Rental - Costa Del Sol Newly Refurbished 3 Bed/2 Bath Apartment (sleeps 6)

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Cor Geal raises Opera House roof Page 16

SMGS student awards

Page 18 www.muskerrynews.biz

As the invasion of Ukraine continues, and the news gets increasingly sad, the work supporting those who had no choice but to flee their country and come to Ireland continues.

Thanks to Tesco Ireland for continuing to make life as comfortable as it can be for our newest arrivals with their ongoing support.

Congratulations to the third level bursary winners Marie O’Sullivan and Sally O'Donovan pictured collecting their cheques from Blarney Credit Union.

CORK KILN DRIED FIREWOOD

Waterloo Renewal Group and Blarney Tidy Towns teamed up with Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal TY students in the Intergenerational Table Quiz at the City Hall recently coming second on the day. A fantastic result for the clever quartet of Michael O'Shea, Oisin O'Sullivan, Grace O'Brien and Sean Horgan.

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Whitechurch Foroige enjoying the Halloween experience at West Cork secrets.

Bernice Kavanagh, Club Chairman Donal Hannigan, Brendan Kavanagh, Emily Denny, Rachel Diggin, Mary Brady Friends of Marymount, Marsie Foolkes and Tom Weste presenting a cheque for €4040 to Marymount Hospice, the proceeds from their Coffee morning held at Ballincollig GAA Club.

A successful 12 hour cycle in aid of HUGG was held last month at O’Leary’s SuperValu Tower with Cathal from Anytime Fitness Ballincollig cycling the entire 12 hours joined throughout the day by staff and customers alike.

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‘Nuacht na míosa ó Ghaulscoil Mhuscraí’ A busy October was had by all at Gaelscoil Mhuscraí. We contested our first Sciath na Scol final in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. There was great excitement and atmosphere in the run up to the match and our players did themselves proud on the day. Táimid fíor bhródúil astu! All classes have been busy making Halloween-themed art with Rang 4 managing to make slime too! Garda Seán visited the school to speak about being safe at Halloween and our infant classes went on a trip to Witches Kitchen. Sin Nuacht na Míosa ó Ghaelscoil Mhuscraí!

Cllr. Sheila O’ Callaghan Clinics held last Friday of every month with Pádraig O'Sullivan TD Carrignavar 7pm - 7.30pm Whitechurch / Waterloo 7.45pm - 8.15pm

Member of Cork County Council - (MCC) Cobh Municipal District.

086 1940762 / sheila.ocallaghan@cllr.corkcoco.ie Facebook Cllr. Sheila O’ Callaghan

4 / Muskerry News

Good luck to the newly elected officers of Whitechurch Foroige club.

Huge thanks to Jeremy and Rosario from Blarney Community First Responders accompanied by Senior Branchers Grace and Nadia, who introduced Blarney Girl Guides to CPR and using a defibrillator.

These talented 6th year students from SMGS Blarney created an amazing Halloween window display for Vincents, Blarney.

Network Ireland’s Cork branch will partner with Cork Chamber for its upcoming event on November 2nd which will explore the topic of entrepreneurship. Event attendees will learn what drives entrepreneurs and explore in detail the highs and lows of entrepreneurship from two guest speakers who will discuss their own experiences including Andy Mackin, CEO of Mackin Group. Registration is free for members and will cost €25 for non-members at w w w. e x p l o r i n g e n t r e p r e n e u r ship.eventbrite.ie

Muskerry News / 5

Vicarstown National School

Well done to our 3rd and 4th class who did us proud at the football blitz held in Macroom recently.

Junior Infants enjoyed harvesting potatoes in the school garden. They dug for the buried treasure like true pirates!

We are delighted to see that our traditional Christmas Bazaar will make a return to the school on Sunday November 27th from 2.30pm. The usual treats will include a mulled wine reception, spin-the-wheel raffle with fantastic prizes, home baking sale and tea-room, and lots of activities for children. Don't miss this Great afternoon for the whole family, all welcome!

After We had great fun again for Halloween this year. The staff made a great effort to dress and our annual prize costume went to 'The Queens; Queen of Hearts, Queen Bee and Queen Elizabeth' in Rang Liath. The children were the real winners though and had a great time in school for the last day before mid-term.

Oh the excitement when the Inniscarra team came to visit us with the Cup! We were particularly proud of our three past pupils who came back to their roots as champions. Seán Sheehan, Seán Ahern and Jack O’Sullivan are pictured with Mrs. O’Shaughnessy and Ms. McCabe. We are so proud of them and the whole team!

6 / Muskerry News

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Thanks to all our pupils and parents for supporting our ‘spook-tacular’ movie night and also to our wonderful secretary, teachers and SNA’s for organising such an enjoyable evening.

Bob the scarecrow, created by pupils in first class, on duty at the front gate, keeping a watchful eye on all who enter!

Pupils really enjoyed all the various activities going on in school for Maths Week and Space Week.

Our annual Spooky Stroll to school as part of our Green Schools Initiative was a huge success again this year with many fantastic homemade costumes by children and staff. Bhí an-spóirt againn amuigh sa chlós I rith an lae.

Children in 5th class have been learning about ways in which we can live more sustainably. They constructed models of eco friendly homes and villages.

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We are incredibly proud of our kind and generous pupils who donated hundreds of shoeboxes filled with Christmas presents for the Team Hope Christmas Shoebox appeal.

8 / Muskerry News

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permanent tsb launches new pop-up branch in Mahon Point Shopping Centre to support customers moving accounts to the bank As the deadlines for customers moving accounts from Ulster Bank and KBC get closer, permanent tsb has launched a new pop-up branch in Mahon Point Shopping Centre, Cork.

The pop-up branch caters for walk-in appointments and is open Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm and from 2pm to 6pm on Sundays and public holidays.

Patrick Farrell, permanent tsb’s Retail Banking Director said, “We are welcoming thousands of new customers each week to permanent tsb and this pop-up gives us a fantastic opportunity to meet and support customers as they start their move to the bank.”

This is one of a number of recent initiatives launched by the bank, including nationwide mobile branches and a presence in Ulster Bank branches, to support customers who choose to move their banking relationship to permanent tsb.

Muskerry News / 9

Scoil Chroi Iosa

4th, 5th and 6th classes had a great time on their trip to the Reel Picture to see Róise agus Frank recently.

We are very proud of our Sciath Na Scol Finalists who played a great game in Pairc Uí Chaoimh!

We had great fun dressing up for Halloween and taking part in the annual Halloween Raffle.

Ms. Carroll and Ms. Lynch's classes have been taking part in The Picker Pals environmental programme and have been developing their environmental awareness as part of the activities.

Maths week was jam-packed with lots of fun activities!

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Ms. Burke's Rang a Cúig were busy working on individual projects during Space Week.

They combined these to make a class encyclopedia all about space.

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Muskerry News / 11

Rathpeacon National School

The Crocus Project began as an Irish initiative whereby Holocaust Education Ireland provided yellow crocus bulbs for pupils to plant in memory of the children who perished during the Holocaust. Pupils from fifth and sixth classes are taking part this year and planted yellow bulbs in a Star of David shape which will bloom around Holocaust Remembrance Day January 27th.

We will be joining over 93,000 pupils from 11 European countries taking part in the project this year.

Pupils in first and third classes have joined the national ‘Picker Pals’ initiative and there was huge excitement when a package including gloves, hi-vis jackets, litter pickers and activities to help us all learn how to care for our environment arrived. The programme is going to be an enjoyable and fun way to ensure that the environment around the school becomes litter-free.

Fourth class spent some time exploring and working with clay this month. They created some fantastical creatures which they then painted to create a wonderful display!

Just before our mid-term break, we had a fantastic celebration in the school for Halloween. There were plenty of superheroes to keep us safe from the many witches, wizards, ghosts and vampires among the pupils and staff who walked our halls and enjoyed a petrifying parade along the Mallow Road.

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As autumn draws to a close, we celebrated all of the colours of autumn and harvest time. The trees around our school yard look magnificent with their multi-coloured leaves and pupils enjoyed gathering them for nature tables and for science. An art display from pupils in Rang a 3 captures these colours perfectly!

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DNG Kevin Condon are delighted to bring to the market, this delightful 3 bedroom mid terrace property located off Blarney street, with parking for one car outside the property. This property has potential, but would make a lovely starter home for a first time buyer.

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Detached 4 bed family home occupying a generous corner site and overlooks a large green which isnot overlooked at the front or to the rear. The surrounding vista is peaceful and a 1800 stone cut church is the backdrop setting to the rear gardens. Viewing of this beautiful luxurious home must be seen in person to be fully appreciated. €520,000 BER: A3 BER No: 109265413

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Blarney & District

Person of The Year Awards 2022

Congratulations to our November Blarney & District Person of the Month!

A man more used to shining the spotlight on others than being in the spotlight is this months Blarney & District Person of the Month.

Multi award winning RTE reporter and author Brian O’Connell was nominated for his work in 2021 highlighting Adam Terry’s unacceptable wait for scoliosis surgery, which saw Brian take home the

Adam said, “It’s a huge deal. On the day I got my surgery I felt so good and I felt so grateful for speaking out. Lots of other children and parents shared their stories after me and it was a great moment and I’m so happy I did it. “ Adam’s mum Christine continued, “I’m so proud of my son for speaking out it’s not an easy thing to do and very proud of Brian O’Connell for covering our story. At the time we were worried about speaking out but we feel it came to the point where we had to. We feel that it motivated others to speak out to, especially other children. Brian helped give them a voice.”

IMRO Gold award for Irish Story of the Year 2021.

After Brian highlighted Adam’s story on the Claire Byrne show his family received phone calls from Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, and a public apology from the then head of the HSE, Paul Reid. Adam was operated on only weeks after his interview.

Do you know someone who deserves a Blarney & District Person of The Month award?

The awards aim is to recognise achievement, leadership and altruism so that others may be inspired to follow. You can nominate anyone whose contribution has singled them out as deserving of recognition,be it in community, sport, business, arts, family or indeed from any sector or activity in our community. Send your nomination with the name of your nominee and the reason you wish to nominate them to Blarney & District Person of The Month Awards,

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November August September October Brian Osborne Jacinta Yelverton Anna Minihan Brian O’Connell

November Special Offers After October 31st Polish & Colombian Coal no longer available for retail sales Peat Briquettes - €6.30 Cosyglo 20kg - €22.50 Country Blend 20kg - €18.00 Anthracite 40kg - €30.00 Ecoblaze Wood Briquettes - €7.50 Singles 40kg - €32.00 Calsea pre-calver mineral blocks in stock plus Headstart Mineral buckets.

While stocks last Scanpole and Octopost Fencepost in stock Wild Bird Seed, Nyjer Seed, Peanuts available Fitzgerald, Sweeney & Declan Barron Hurleys now in stock Fulvic, Liquid Humus available for foliar nutrition on grazing paddocks Granular Humate for Slurry AVAILABLE enhancement in stock 25kg bags.

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Cór Geal would like to thank each and every person who attended their superb concert held recently at Cork Opera House.

“We are delighted and thrilled that you enjoyed our performances.

It was truly amazing to enjoy such a sociable evening, after so long apart. As I heard one person say, “That has shortened the winter for me”, we couldn't have asked for a better compliment.”

Musical Director Betty Fitzgerald. pics Peter Pietrzak

16 / Muskerry News

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Opening hours Mon: closed for training Tues/Wed: 9 - 6 Thurs: 9 - 8 Fri: 9 - 6 Sat: 8 - 4 Muskerry News / 17

SMGS Blarney awards night was held last month and it was fantastic to be able to honour the students' achievements. The Class Awards recognised the motivation, enthusiasm, dedication, kindness and helpfulness of the students, with the many academic and sporting achievements recognised also. Congratulations to all. pics Mike English

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All smiles at the Stone Mad Half Marathon in Blarney. pics Fergal O’Callaghan

Muskerry News | 21

Monday Moments and Tuesday Toddlers in Blarney!

Time has flown very quickly since arriving in Blarney in September and taking up my new role as Associate Minister in the Carrigrohane Union of Parishes! I’m just now starting to feel settled in and I’m looking forward to getting more involved and getting to know more people in the local area.

As with so many community and church activities, we are still managing to recover from the impacts of the pandemic: re-grouping is still something of a work in progress! At the Church of the Resurrection in Blarney this has been unfolding in two ways: with the re-starting of one well-loved and in-demand activity, and with plans to experiment with something new. There has been much excitement as we have re-engaged with the Blarney Toddlers team and look ahead to re-starting that group on Tuesday November 8th from 10am - noon.

Moving with the times (and to manage numbers), pre-registration via Eventbrite will be required: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/blarney-toddlers-54748615273, with registration for each session opening on the Thursday prior.

We are looking forward to once again offering a warm welcome and friendship to young children and their carers week by week.

Our Lighthouse Messy Church has been back in full swing for a couple of months now. The Lighthouse is an informal and creative space, meeting once a month for all ages and stages to engage together around activities, music, a Bible story and a delicious meal together. It’s good fun, with an atmosphere of exploration and sharing, questions welcome!

Our next Lighthouse session will take place on November 27th from 3.30pm - 5.30 pm and all are welcome.

I’m still finding my way as a newcomer in the village, do feel free to get in touch!

We’re also going to be trying something new in the months of November and December. From Monday, 7th November, the Church of the Resurrection will be open for prayer and as a drop-in between 9am and 12.15pm. We’re calling it Monday Moments and it will include a short morning prayer from 9 9.15 am, an open time from 9.15 - 11:45am to drop-in for a quiet moment, for curious visitors, for prayer, or for a chat and a cuppa (we may even be able to manage a few biscuits!). At the conclusion of the drop-in time there will be a short mid-day noon-time service, around the themes of peace and healing.

Anyone and everyone is welcome to call in! If you are coming and going through Blarney on a Monday feel free to stop by and if you know someone in Blarney who could use a quiet moment or a bit of chat on a Monday, send them our way!

The Revd Abigail Sines Associate Minister, Carrigrohane Union of Parishes Email abigail@cupcork.ie

22 / Muskerry News

A full house at Ballyanly gathered to celebrate 50 years since Inniscarra Community Centre was formed in 1972. Many of the former officers were in attendance, along with Colm Burke TD, County Councillors Michael Looney and Eileen Lynch, Parish Priest Father Buckley and Curate Father McCarthy, and committee members John Connolly, Brendan Walshe, Margaret Horgan and Richard Murphy.

After dinner Con O’Leary, Chairman of the Management Committee, gave a short speech thanking the men and women who had given of their time and expertise over the years to bring the Ballyanly complex to its current ‘best in County Cork’ position.

Councillor Michael Looney presented Con O’Leary with a plaque in recognition of his dedication and hard work during most, if not all, of those 50 years and Con thanked everyone for their attendance on this special evening, paying tribute to the work of all those who had helped to organise the event and credited them with the great success achieved. “It is good to see all of the clubs who share the facilities at Ballyanly in attendance,” he concluded, “And I hope that you will all continue to work in harmony for the good of all.”

MARY O’CONNOR BSc. FAOI. ELAINE POOLE BSc. FAOI.

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Behind the Castle Walls October saw the start of autumn and the first hints of colour through the trees in the arboretums. The reds and yellows seem particularly good this year, and the lime avenue is a dazzling display of gold at the moment. Another cracker is our Acer rubrum ‘October Glory’ in front of the mansion with its fiery shades of red. The next few weeks will bring more colour and it’s a great time to walk around the grounds and gardens.

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Regular visitors may have discovered our new path that runs from the Winter Borders through the upper arboretum to the mansion.

I always felt that we needed a path through the arboretum to give people more chance to appreciate some of our wonderful trees.

It was great to finally get it done, and it looks like it was always there, which is a sure sign that it was the right decision.

As we prepare for the coming Winter, we are busy cutting back, mulching, digging out, dividing, and protecting where necessary.

If you look after your garden now, it will reward you in years to come. Our fruit and vegetable areas are currently undergoing their autumn tidy. We are organising our beds for next year and planning where to plant what. We have a crop rotation system in place, which helps prevent pests and disease and keeps the nutrients in the soil more balanced. We will shortly be planting out garlic and shallots and sowing sweet pea indoors for next year’s crops. We are currently keeping glasshouse vents open overnight to encourage leaf fall on our indoor fruit such as peaches and grapes. The grape vine needs to be fully dormant before we start to prune it.

Tower ICA recently enjoyed a lovely break to Galway, City of the Tribes. Great memories were made and the trip was enjoyed by all.

We have begun planting out our bulb order. We had over ten thousand this year, as well as recycled bulbs from last year’s bedding displays that we re-use elsewhere when possible. The most exciting addition for me is our new collection of Irish heritage daffodils that we are planting along our Winter borders.

There are nearly 200 varieties that all originate from Irish breeders and will form a fantastic display in the spring.

Other jobs we will be doing over the next month include lifting and dividing herbaceous perennials, wind lopping roses, spreading compost and digging over vegetable beds, leaf collection to form next year’s leaf mold, lifting dahlias, begonias to overwinter inside, fleecing tree ferns and tender plants to protect from frost, and the planting of new bare root hedging and trees.

Our teams of garden volunteers have been a huge help this year and I can honestly say we would have struggled without them.

We would welcome any new recruits. We meet at 9.00am every Wednesday and Friday (weather permitting) and finish at 1.00pm.

It’s a lovely social occasion and we try to keep it interesting and varied. Contact me at blarneygardens@blarneycastle.ie for more information.

It’s a very busy time of the year for us here in the gardens and usually, in my experience, the time when you achieve the most.

Come and see us in November!

Adam 24 / Muskerry News

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Community Matters with Cllr Damian Boylan As always if I can help in any way please contact me on 087 2244364 or by email on damianboylan@live.com.

It’s been a very few weeks as Deputy Lord Mayor with lots to do. You might forgive me if I don’t get back to you as quickly as usual. I am loving the role but I still have my own job and councillor duties as well so time flies. I do eventually get back to everyone or at least try.

I cant remember a wettest month and the number of weather warnings has been incredible. I must congratulate the Council workers from the Local Area Office who have put in in some serious work and it looks like we will have this weather for some time yet.

Following a tender process, a contract has been awarded for the upgrade of the playground at Blarney. Works comprise the installation of new swings, a new slide, a wheelchair accessible roundabout to complement the recently installed Wheelchair Swing, a 4 seat springer, a see saw, removal of the old exercise equipment creating more space (as a new Outdoor Gym adjoins), a Junior Trim Trail (a balance beam, dynamic bar, tight rope walks)and associated new safety surface. The works costing € 40,000, will be funded by a Playground Capital Grant of € 16541 from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth with the balance provided by the City Council. Work is scheduled to commence in early December and completed within a short time frame.

The Blarney Village Pedestrian and Cycling Infrastructure Scheme is now in the planning/design phase. The study area includes Blarney Village and its surrounding areas extending Northwards towards Waterloo between Station Road and Waterloo Road (east and west of River Martin), Eastwards towards Blarney Business Park and Southwards towards Blarney playground. The scheme will connect with the new Riverside Park (The Inch) adjacent the Martin River, Blarney Business Park and adjacent residential areas, local schools and shops.

The objectives of the scheme are enhanced connectivity for pedestrians and cyclists, provision of sustainable alternative routes for commuters, school and leisure users, creation of an environment that will encourage the uptake of sustainable forms of transport, reduction in traffic volumes on the local road network and improved quality of life for residents and businesses in our area.

The Minister for Transport has announced €185 million for enhanced rail across the county and the extension of urban rail. I am hopeful that we will see Blarney Station come one step closer as I am informed that logistically it is the easiest and the most cost effective of all the stations to deliver. I have also asked that the park and ride in that area also be put on the table for consideration. We can only deliver on a car free society if we provide proper public transport and these are crucial.

The next few months and years are going to see some exciting changes in the area and I would ask that if you have any ideas on how to make our area better you send them on to me and I will send them on for consideration, I have also asked local groups to email me with suggested areas for footpaths ( new and easily deliverable) as there will be funding for that coming on stream soon.

As always if I can be of help don’t hesitate to contact me,

Even though it is only November we’re busy here at Blarney Community Council planning for St. Patrick’s day 2023.

Following public consultation through our recent survey it has become apparent that the majority of people would prefer a festival to a parade. Our plan is to host a festival weekend in the village with events taking place on Friday 17th, Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th of March and we’re looking at sites where we can gather and enjoy music, and a market, and entertainment together. Within the festival we would hope to highlight some of the incredible talent we have in the village and surrounding areas.

Cllr Damian Boylan is working with us and we hope to secure funding through Cork City Council to allow us to put on a festival to be proud of, and something we can build on for many years to come.

If you have any ideas, and would like to lend a hand, you can contact us through our facebook page. We’d love to hear your thoughts and bring you on board to help us put on a St. Patrick’s weekend to remember for all our residents and visitors alike.

If you wish to bring any local issues to the Community Council please make contact with any member or through our facebook page. Thank you.

Damian

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Muskerry News / 27

News from Times Past with Brian Gabriel, Blarney & District Historical Society Killed in the Great War The Great War cast a long shadow over Blarney and the surrounding districts. Many young (and some not so young) men joined the armed services at the beginning of the war, some from a sense of duty, some from a need for adventure, but many from sheer economic necessity; to support themselves and their families and to escape the grinding poverty of unemployment and unskilled labour. They were openly encouraged to do so by politicians who supported Home Rule or the Union, by bishops and priests in response to the outrages perpetrated by the invading Germans on Belgian civilians and clergy, and by employers who offered to keep their jobs open for the duration of the conflict.

Others had already joined the forces and were serving in Ireland or in far flung corners of the British Empire. They were the ones who were rushed into battle as part of the small British Expeditionary Force sent to France on the declaration of war. They fought in the opening battles and were listed as early casualties. Few survived into the second year of the war. The early volunteers were pressed into service following training and were fed into the ranks of Kitchener’s volunteer army in time to take part in the great pitched battles and campaigns of the following years: Gallipoli, Loos, Salonica, the Somme, Ypres, the German Big Push and subsequent Allied Advance of 1918. They died in the trenches, often blasted to bits by artillery, shredded by machine gun fire or poisoned by mustard gas. Others fought in the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force or served in the Merchant Navy.

Soldiers who enlisted filled in an attestation form which gave their names, date and place of birth, details of next of kin and the regiment they joined. They were medically examined and details of height, weight, colour of eyes and hair and distinguishing marks were recorded. Service records were sometimes included in their files showing where they served, periods of leave, wounds and recuperation. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these records were destroyed in a bombing raid during the Second World War and some of the few remaining records are in very bad condition.

The Great War officially ended on November 11th, 1918. Many deaths recorded after that date occurred as a consequence of wounds sustained in the war, and so, for the official record, all deaths up to 1921 are recognised as war deaths.

The list compiled below is not a complete list of all the Blarney and District casualties who gave their lives during that terrible conflict of 1914-18 but it is an ongoing project and as new names come to light, they will be added to the listing.

An alphabetical list of those from Blarney and surrounding districts who lost their lives in the global conflict 1914 – 1918.

Callanan James: Blarney. Rifleman No 4824, King’s Royal Rifle Corps.

Casey John: Blarney. Private No 52932, 13th Batt, Cheshire Regt.

Cotter James: Rathpeacon. Private No 7311, Leinster Regt.

Crowley Timothy: Rathpeacon. Stoker No SS/117317 Royal Navy.

Cummins John: Blarney. Gunner No 42012 Royal Garrison Artillery.

Dinan Peter: Cloghroe. Private No 1703 R.M.F. Ellis Edward Charles: Blarney. Lieut.11th Batt. Gloucester Regt. + 1st Batt R.M.F. Falvey John: Dawstown. Private No 203503 The Loyal North Lancashire Regt.

Fitzgerald James: Kilnap. Private No 7082 R.M.F. Good William Henry: Carrignavar. 2nd Lieut. R.M.F. Healy William: Donoughmore. Private No G/753. 9854 R. Irish F. Hickey William: Commons Rd. Private No 9854 R.M.F.

28 / Muskerry News

Kelleher Bartholomew: Currachtnalacht. Lieut. King’s Own Royal Lancaster Regt.

Kelleher Jeremiah: Waterloo. LCpl No 27144 R. Inniskilling F. Kershaw Thomas Erskine: Blarney. Gunner No 58691 Royal Garrison Artillery.

Long Jeremiah: Rathpeacon. Fireman No SS6451 Merchant Navy.

Lynch Denis: Rathpeacon. 2nd Lieut. West Yorkshire Regt.

Lyons George: Blarney. Able seaman No 212050 Royal Navy.

McSwiney Edward: Grenagh. Private No 9777 R.M.F. Minihane William: Blarney. Acting Staff Sgt No: T/31471 R.A.S.C. Murphy William: Whitechurch. Private No 4707 Connaught Rangers.

Murphy William: Blarney. Private No 5255 R.M.F. Mulcahy Thomas Edward: Whitechurch. Private No 2278 Australian Imperial Force.

Nunan Noel Daniel: Blarney. 2nd Lieut. R.A.F. O’Brien Maurice Phádraig Michael: Blarney. Sgt No 12271 Ox & Bucks Light Infantry O’Brien William: Cloghroe. Private No 6229 Irish Guards.

O’Callaghan Cornelius: Tower. Private No 7763 R.M.F. O’Connor Joseph: Rathduff. Private No S/4877 Black Watch.

O’Doherty, Denis: Blarney. Private No 7427 Irish Guards First Batt.

O’Driscoll Gerald Francis: Clogheen. Rifleman No 2603 London Regt.

O’Driscoll, John: Blarney. Gunner No 42396 Royal Field Artillery.

O’Driscoll William: Blarney. Private No 133199 Royal Fusiliers.

O’Leary Timothy J: Killowen. Private Prov. Engineers, American Expeditionary Force.

O’Mahony John Francis: Clogheenmilcon. Private No 3131681 Canadian Expeditionary Force.

O’Sullivan Michael: Whitechurch. Rifleman No 7716 Royal Irish Rifles Reilly Denis: Garrycloyne. Private No 6678 R.M.F. Sexton Christopher: Inniscarra. Private No 6259 R.M.F. Sheehan Daniel: Blarney. Sgt No 4008 R.M.F. Spillane William: Whitechurch. Private No 23/1821 Wellington Regt. N.Z.E.F. Sullivan Daniel: Killowen. Private No 6651 R.M.F. Twohig Joseph: Blarney. Private No 1440 R.M.F. Wilson William: Blarney. Cpl No S/5280 Black Watch.

Young William Henry: Blarney. Private No 69350 Royal Army Medical Corps.

John Mulcahy has put together as much information as possible from a range of sources so that we may see these as real people, who left parents, brothers and sisters, spouses and children behind them to mourn their loss. In so far as is possible, he has given an account of the circumstances and contexts of their deaths and where they are commemorated. Only three have any form of memorial in the parish. The entire article is available in Old Blarney Issue 11 and will shortly be available on our website www.blarneyhistory.ie ‘Old Blarney’ Issue 13 is on sale locally and a limited number of back issues of ‘Old Blarney’ Journals and ‘Old Blarney’ Photo-Journals are still available by contacting 087 2153216, or www.blarneyhistory.ie. An ideal present for Christmas.

(1) Blarney and District Historical Society Presents an Illustrated Lecture Titled: ‘The South American Escapades of Clancy from Cork and Macnamara from Clare’ on Thursday 3rd December 2022 at 8.00 p.m in Scoil Mhuire Gan Smál (Blarney Secondary School). Speaker is John O’Connell. Everybody welcome.

(2) Blarney and District Historical Society Presents an Illustrated Lecture Titled: ‘Brieflets from Blarney’ on Thursday 5th January 2023 at 8.00 p.m in Scoil Mhuire Gan Smál (Blarney Secondary School). Speaker is Richard Forrest. Everybody welcome.

Muskerry News / 29

The annual congress of the Tower witches was held in the hall recently, not your usual ICA meeting but nevertheless a good time was had by all!

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Whitechurch Tennis Club had a fantastic week of superb tennis recently despite two weather warnings and thunder and lightning which required rescheduling under the watchful eye of club captain Úna Reidy.

The club had a huge entry, including that from new members playing in the novice category. New members are always welcome, for further information email whitechurchtennisclub@gmail.com

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Muskerry News / 31

Cllr. Eileen Lynch, Mayor Macroom Municipal District, Cllr.

Damian Boylan, Deputy Lord Mayor, Hilda Roche, ICA National President, Ena Howell, Grenagh, Cork Federation President and Deirdre O'Brien, Deputy County Mayor at the launch of the ICA Cork Federation 2023 calendar. pic Mike English

Oisin Dennehy Blarney, Frank Balfry Healy’s Bridge, and Mathew O’Shea Glounthaune travelled to Montreal recently to play for Team Ireland as part of the Irish Ice Hockey Team. It was a wonderful week for Team Ireland, and the three Wolfpack boys, who finished with three wins out of six games.

There’s a new star in town with talented young actress Ciara Jane O’Sullivan’s television debut in Lámhsign's Dizzy Deliveries on RTÉ junior. If you missed it you can catch it now on RTE player and it’s fabulous! Dizzy Deliveries is a vibrant and dynamic thirteen-part drama series for children. The central characters are Joe the accident-prone delivery guy with magical powers, his robot assistant Ozzy, and Aisling (Lámh tutor Deirdre Coleman) who gives Joe his daily jobs and teaches Lámh to the viewers.

Dizzy Deliveries helps audiences to add Lámh to their own vocabulary in a fun and interactive way. All the wonderful young people featured in Dizzy Deliveries either use or have used Lámh in their everyday lives and the series aims to ensure equal and inclusive on-screen representation for the nation’s children with disabilities.

32 / Muskerry News

Wonderful and well deserved news for talented local singer, songwriter and fiddler Clare Sands who has been nominated for 'Best Folk Singer' at the RTÉ Irish Folk Awards. As Clare said, “Iontach a bheith anseo. A brilliant list of musicians and singers I love, a real honour to be amongst them. Comhghairdeas ó chroí do gach éinne. Go raibh míle!”

The White Horse Gastropub, Ballincollig, and live venue is hosting the best national music and comedy throughout the months of November and December, right in the heart of Ballincollig.

Upcoming concerts include The Four of Us, Gemma Hayes, Lisa O Neill, Ye vagabonds, and the unmissable White Horse Guitar Club. Selling out shows all around the country, White Horse Guitar Club is an eleven-piece band born in The White Horse and based around music and friendship, and they return to November 26th.

If you’re in need of a laugh, and which of us isn’t, then you’re going to love the White Horse Comedy Club, a new monthly comedy club hosted by internationally renowned comedian and Cork native Chris Kent upstairs at The White Horse, featuring regular special guests including Fred Cooke and Kevin O’Sullivan on Thursday November 10th November.

Keep up to date on the White Horse web page or their social media pages for updates and to book tickets.

Muskerry News / 33

Lee Gaels

Well done to our U9 Footballers who played brilliantly in the Munster GAA Football Blitz in Mallow.

Our U5, U7 & U9 teams finished off their season with a fun morning in O'Brien's Field. Lee Gaels Chairperson, Peter Cotter, presented them with goodie bags after the matches and they got to see the U13, U15 & U17 Shields recently won by their older clubmates. Huge thanks to the committee and wonderful coaches for their time and hard work and thanks also to our parents for their support.

Our U17 hurlers who played in the recent U17 West Shield Championship final against Rossa Gabriels.

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Congratulations to Blarney GAA Junior B Footballers who have qualified for the County Final against Fr. O'Neill's after a comprehensive win over Ballygarvan. Blarney 2-13, Ballygarvan 1-4.

Don't wait until January… as we say goodbye to the warm weather and bright evenings we now look forward to the festive season but it is also the season of flu, influenza and asthma.

The cold weather has the lovely comfort of lazy evenings snuggled up by the warm fire, but is also a time of feeling lazy, unmotivated, lonely for some and stressed.

Cold weather keeps people indoors which leads to lack of exercise and sedentary habits, children spend more time on their devices and we tend to overeat. Cold weather can also increase stress on our cardiovascular systems, November is an odd month as the colour fades away to beautiful autumn shades. In our gardens we clip the flowers and trees back, getting them ready to bloom more beautifully and even stronger next year.

As the quote goes, 'How sad would November be if we had no knowledge of spring.'

Then why not do the same for ourselves?

So many people feel stressed and discontent in the new year and feel they need to make new year resolutions, clothes not fitting, unmotivated and thinking about summer body, when actually November should be a time to make sure we are strong and well to enjoy the festive fun, knowing that we have plans in place to protect from whatever bugs are around by making sure we exercise, we keep active and we feel we can enjoy all that extra food and drink over the holidays without any guilt as we already have our goals and commitment in place.

So this November, take time to plan for the coming year for you and your loved ones.

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Muskerry News / 35

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Muskerry News / 39

The team at Blarney Post Office Leanne, Daniel, Daniel, Tara and Niamh.

We at the Blarney post office would like to thank everyone for their support since we took over the post office. Like all new businesses we have had some issues and we appreciate your patience.

We have recently increased our staff to help deal with the volume of business coming into us and have changed our opening hours to facilitate you, we are now closed for lunch from 2pm to 2.30pm Final Christmas mailing dates and office closures over the Christmas period are below and, YES, we will have tape to help you with your parcels over the coming weeks. Whilst we cannot completely wrap it for you, we will help where we can. New customs rules have made things a little more complicated when sending parcels outside the EU too so please bear with us over the coming busy period.

To thank you, for the month of November, we are running a competition through our social media pages with a prize of a free parcel to be sent overseas to friend, family member or loved one up to the value of €50. Check our facebook for updates on this.

We’d like to tell you about the new An Post green survey which is now available to home owners and can be used to help get your home upgraded and maybe aid with the current cost of living and energy price crisis. More information is available in store and we will help where we can.

Thanks to more than 50 local businesses who supported us on our community business coffee morning, the feedback we got was amazing.

Thank you all again for your support and we are really looking forward to seeing you over the next couple of festive weeks.

Daniel and the team at Blarney Post Office.

Daniel at Apple’s, green vendor day

Standing room only at the community business coffee morning Christmas 2022 Last Posting dates Ireland December 22nd Northern Ireland December 20th Great Britain December 19th Rest of the world December 7th Letters and parcels Europe December 19th (letters) 13th (parcels) USA December 12th (letters) 7th (parcels)

Post Office Christmas Opening Hours Christmas Eve close at 1pm Christmas Day - December 28th inclusive CLOSED Thursday 29th - December 31st inclusive Normal hours New Years Day - January 2nd inclusive CLOSED January 3rd onwards Normal hours