Fire tragedy funerals exposed the divide between Travellers and settled community
The full horror of the fire in Carrickmines last month came home to people in Wexford town when the funerals of five of the victims took place locally. It is one thing watching events on television and think you realise the enormity of what has taken place but it is another thing entirely to witness at first hand the grief of those left behind when virtually an entire family has been wiped out.
To see the five caskets, including three small white ones, lined up on the altar at Bride Street’s Church of the Assumption, was really heartbreaking. No one who visited the church in the hours that the Remains of the five members of the Connors family rested there could have been unmoved by what they witnessed.
No surprisingly the grief of the family was overwhelming but they were greatly comforted by the solidarity shown by the local and national civic leaders who joined them for the prayer service.
In particular they appreciated the personal attendance of the Taoiseach who walked in the cortege with Wexford’s Mayor Ger Carthy, Ministers Brendan Howlin, James Reilly and Paul Kehoe.
The funeral of the Carrickmines victims brought a number of things to the fore not least the living conditions in which many members of the Travelling Community live. But it also illustrated in pretty stark terms the huge divide there is between the settled and travelling communities.
That sense of divide was very evident in Wexford at the time of the funerals. While the Connors family were saying a final farewell to their family members following the greatest fire tragedy to hit the country in over three decades, much of the rest of the town went about its business as usual.
It is difficult to believe that this would have been the case if the victims had not been members of the Travelling Community but that is the reality of 2015 Ireland.
It was striking too that the fire victims went to their place of rest in Crosstown in spectacular caskets transported in a combination of horse drawn and traditional hearses
It seemed somewhat ironic that in death these young parents and children lay in highly elaborate caskets which most Wexford families simply could not afford, while in life they were forced to live for years in ‘temporary’ wooden huts.
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Keep Off the (All-Weather) Grass
There has been a row simmering for some time in Gorey about the fundraising efforts of the local Bunscoil Loreto to pay for an all-weather hockey pitch.
There have been rumblings and grumblings about the fundraising for ages but it has now burst into the open mainly because councillors feel they have been given the two fingers by the school which is absolute in its view that the pitch should be for school use and school use alone.
The problem for most councillors is that they think raising funds for such a facility is a bit of a waste if it is not going to be available to the wider community and for a good while they have been concerned that many of those who are being asked to contribute are not aware that the pitch would be solely for use by the pupils of the school.
Well I don’t think they need worry about that any longer because the issue has now been given a pretty big public airing and no one can any longer be in any doubt that this will not be a public facility
The other problem for councillors is, of course, the fact that the school’s fundraising for the pitch comes at the very time that the Council wants to develop an all-weather facility in the Town Park, but is finding it difficult to raise the cash.
If the school can raise the money for their own facility then good luck to them but it does seem a shame that a facility which could be open to the entire community cannot be developed in Gorey. And I’d say the school would not want to arrive knocking on the doors of councillors looking for support for other projects any time soon, because they just might be disappointed by the response.
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Preparing for life after the election?
This is the picture we used on the front page of the last edition of The Chronicle. It shows three men who sit around the cabinet table each with shovel in hand digging the earth in a field just outside Enniscorthy.
Shovelling clay is of course not their normal job and the suits are a bit of a giveaway. Ministers Howlin, Kehoe and Donohoe took up the shovels for a photo call to mark the start of work on the Enniscorthy by-pass.
But did the photo generate the warm welcome that the ministers might have expected. Were people grateful that after years of neglect something big was about to happen in Enniscorthy—–not at all? Barely had the photo been published than the wags were suggesting that the experience would be good for the Ministers when they were looking for something to do after the election. Oh you ungrateful lot, that’s all I can say.
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Think before you get a dog
With Christmas just around the corner many people will be thinking of getting a little dog as a present for a little boy or girl. Well whatever you do think very carefully before you act because these little dogs have a way of growing into rather large animals and very soon they are not wanted by the child and are considered a nuisance in the household.
Wexford has a shocking record when it comes to unwanted dogs and more of them end up being euthanized in this county than in any other county in the country.
Dogs make great and loyal pets and can really become a central part of any family, but they do take looking after and the bigger the dog the greater amount of looking after they require. So remember if you are thinking of buying that dog look beyond the thrill of Christmas morning and don’t add to those dreadful statistics for the county in 2016.
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The strange world of Tidy Towns
The Tidy Towns inspectors have come, gone and reported their findings. Generally this year there was good news across the county, but all our towns and villages have some way to go before they challenge for the top spots in the country.
Nevertheless well done to all those who have been out over the last few months helping to make their local environment look more attractive.
And while I am on the subject of Tidy Towns I have to agree with the comments of Wexford Councillor Jim Moore when he questioned some of the headings under which marks are awarded. For example ‘wildlife, habitats and natural amenities’ and ‘sustainable waste and resource management’ Jim wondered what these had to do with Tidy Town and I think many will agree with him.
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Enniscorthy’s clean sweep
They obviously take care to have their chimneys well swept in Enniscorthy. I noticed in the detailed reports on the activities of the Fire Brigade, regularly presented to councillors, that Enniscorthy had the lowest number of call outs for Chimney Fires in the county in the eight months to August.
There were eighteen chimney fires in Enniscorthy, a fraction of the forty nine recorded in Wexford, while New Ross had thirty nine in Gorey twenty three.
Just thought you’d like to know.
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Not as ‘well known’ s he thinks
I see where a man described as a ‘well known’ footballer in the UK has successfully applied to the High Court to reduce the level of maintenance he has to pay for his two children. .
The footballer, who was not named, was ordered to pay £30,000 in maintenance for each of his two children but argued on appeal to the High Court that it was excessive. The children aged five and ten each have different mothers, and the ‘well known’ footballer said the £60,000 annual payments represented one third of his gross income.
The family court judge didn’t think much of his argument saying he was more interested in his own lifestyle than the welfare of his children.
But what intrigued me were his gross earnings. If he is a ‘well known’ footballer as the court report suggested then he would be earning £180,00 in half a week, not a full year——–so something doesn’t add up.
I’d suggest that he is not as ‘well known’ as he imagines.
by Ger Walsh