The Micko Sculpture
Unveiled on Saturday 23rd June 2012 @ 17:30
 In spite of the inclement weather in the earlier part of the day, a large crowd turned out to honour Mick O'Dwyer, who is widely acknowledged as a legend in his own time. Jimmy Deenihan, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, who was a regular on Micko's great teams unveiled the bronze sculpture of Micko on Saturday 23rd of June at 5:30 pm.
Eugene Dennehy did the initial introduction and then the inimitable Micheál O' Muircheartaigh took over as master of ceremonies. Micheál recounted past times and travels, which he and Micko shared.
Speakers included Patsy Cronin, chairman of the South Kerry Partnership, which provided financial assistance for the project. Others to speak were Paddy Fogarty, a lifelong friend of Micko. He recounted Micko's early years and his rise to the great heights with which we all are now familiar. Darby Clifford, current chairman of the club, spoke warmly of Micko's contribution to the club through the years.
Minister Deenihan was the penultimate speaker and again his praise was fulsome. He paid Micko a huge compliment when he said that what he learned from the maestro during his years as a member of the Kerry team influenced him in his later life as a politician. He learned patience, perseverance and determination among many other skills.
Micko thanked everyone who contributed to the event. He paid a very special tribute to Mary Carmel who supported him all through his sporting life and oversaw the business, while he travelled widely to fulfill his footballing ambitions.
The project was guided by chairman, Gerard Cronin and his industrious committee who organised the logistics that led to the sculpture being commissioned, financed and placed in its location in the village for future generations to admire and be inspired by. A special thanks to sculptor Alan Hall for his fine piece of work.
For all who were present it will be a day to remember forever. This is a long overdue honour to our own Mick O'Dwyer.
As one speaker rightly said, there should be a similar sculpture at Jones' Rd in Dublin in appreciation for what O'Dwyer has done for Gaelic football.
    
    
St. Patrick's Day in Waterville
  The inaugral St. Patrick's Day Parade took place in Waterville on Saturday last and was a resounding success. There was a perceived buzz about the village which lasted well into the late hours. Full credit must go to the IRD for the foresight and courage to undertake organising the event. Mick O'Dwyer was the chief guest on the reviewing platform and St. Patrick made an appearance as well.
Members of the Valentia Pipe Band led the parade, which was a colourful one, with numerous floats and marching groups taking part. Afterwards Paddy and Rose provided the music for dancing on a temporary platform in the Butler Arms car park at the back of the monument. Thanks to Aisling for the pics.
    
    
St. Finian's National School
St. Finian's N.S. will be celebrating its Centenary in 2013. We are currently looking for old school photos. If you have any Class/Group photos, we would be very grateful if you could pass them on to us at the school.
All photos will be handled with care and returned.
Can you please assist us in naming the pupils in the attached (St. Finian's NS Circa 1930) photo.
Contact the school directly.
Click the picture to get a larger image.
More images soon.
Club Planning Workshop
 
On Friday 24th of February Waterville GAA club hosted a Planning Workshop at the clubhouse. Martin Murphy (Desmonds) and Tom Kennedy (Finuge) were the facilitators, representing the County Board. The purpose of the workshop was to discuss ideas and objectives for the future development of the club, its young people, club facilities and other matters pertaining to the future strategic plan.
There was a very good turnout and some interesting ideas were put forward. The focus areas were: Coaching and Games, Structures and Administration, Finance and Fund Raising, Facilities and Development, Communication, PR and Cultural. As a result of the workshop the club will take all ideas into consideration and formalise a five year plan.
    
Australia Bound
 Best wishes to Fergal Cronin and Claire Donnelly who have left for Australia this week.
We hope to see them both wearing the red and white in the near future again.
Club AGM
Congratulations to new Club Chairman Darby Clifford who replaces Dan Fitzpatrick, also to Timothy O'Shea who takes over the vice chair. Gary Galvin is the assistant secretary. The remaining members of the previous committee remain in place.
John Dwyer is the new senior team manager and replaces Brendy Donnelly, who left no stone unturned in his time as manager. The club thanks Brendy and his selectors for their committment and dedication. Haulie O'Dwyer and Paul Galvin will assist John Dwyer in selecting the team for the coming season. We wish them well.
 Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival 2012 Needs You!
The committee will be gratefully accepting applications to become a volunteer for the 2012 festival from January 2012.
Volunteering for the Festival offers a unique opportunity to be part of an exciting cultural event. You will make new friends, experience a broad range of cultural activities and gain an insight into the organisation and running of a major Festival in our community. The smallest amount of help is welcome.
Volunteers may be asked to work in one or several areas including front of house (collecting tickets in venues and dealing with customers), stewarding at outdoor performances including the opening parade, administration, stewarding at visual art exhibitions, audience research, brochure distribution and other areas.
Please e-mail , phone or call into our festival office where you can register your interest in becoming a much needed volunteer.
e-mail: admin@chaplinfilmfestival.com phone: 0669478818
Office: Our new office is located near the Village market and An Corcán Restaurant
Mark Murphy Wins Big Break Ireland
Big Break Ireland was the 16th edition of the Golf Channel reality show, The Big Break. It was contested in the K club in Straffan, County Kildare The eventual winner of the show was Waterville's Mark Murphy (Go to Local News for more) |
