By Ciaran Buckley, Secretary, Ratoath Community Centre Committee
The Ratoath Community Centre opened in September, 2006 and every week there are more than 40 activities in the centre, for people of all ages. In this feature we speak to a few of the people who are involved in community centre activities.
Just like everybody else in the village, the community centre has had to tighten its belt. In order to keep the community centre open for as many hours as possible in 2009, we’re forming a panel of volunteers to run the front desk for a few hours, one evening per week. It’s a great way to meet new people, learn new skills and to find out what’s going on in the community. And remember, volunteering is even more fun when you bring along a friend!
If you’d like to get out of the house for a few hours, then call 01-6895600 and ask for Nick Killian General Manager for more details, or e-mail info@ratoathcc.ie.
Betty Pennington on People for People (P4P)
The mission of the Ratoath organisation of ‘People for People’ is to
identify the needs of the community of Ratoath and to develop,
organise and channel the community’s local resources to meet these
needs.
We already have ten volunteers, people who are hoping to lend a hand
or do a good turn. They’ll be providing lifts to hospital, pick up
groceries and perscriptions. They’ll also be trying to alleviate the
loneliness and provide a few hours respite care for carers.
Gillian Toole and I contacted all of the key people, including the
GPs, pharmacists and priests, people who would have the inside track
on where people could help most. Then we approached Nick Killian at
the community centre, who offered us a room for our first meeting.
We’re not looking to fundraise, but we would love to have more
volunteers, people who could give one hour per week, some who could
give three or four hours per week.
If you’d like to volunteer, contact Betty Pennington on 087 2897803 or
e-mail her on liz.pennington@casacarers.ie
Eileen Kavanagh on Four Forks Drama Group
Ratoath has a very fine musical society but there was no drama group. My friend, Mary Mahon and I decided to form such a group. We went to the Venue theatre and discussed our ideas with Nick Killian, the Venue manager. Nick was very encouraging and supportive and I’m sure will continue to be.
We called the group the Four Forks Drama Group. The name comes from when I was growing up in Finglas with my two sisters and my brother. We loved going to the pictures in the Casino cinema and were fascinated by American teenagers going into the drugstores and ordering milk shakes and burgers. When a chipper finally opened in Finglas, our version of ordering a milk shake and a burger was to order one plate of chips and four forks between us.
I wrote ‘Lorraine Bailey’ the first play that the group produced. We staged it in The Venue at the end of January and the feedback was terrific, we got standing ovations both nights. Building on our experience here, we will be in the Draoicht Theatre from September 10 – 12 and the
It’s expensive to put on shows, in terms of paying for lighting professional and other expenses. We had a fundraising event in the GAA club and local businesses gave us spot prizes. We are looking for a sponsor for our group and would be delighted to hear from anyone who thinks they would be in a position to help.
Our vision for the future is to perform original work and to encourage writers to showcase their work with Four Forks. The Venue theatre is a wonderful amenity for us all to enjoy and I would encourage people to come out in support and to love their area which really is a very delightful place to live.
Any experienced or aspiring actors or playwrights should contact Eileen Kavanagh on 086-3195291 or e-mail Ekavanagh10@gmail.com.
Derek Dawson on Lau Gar Kung Fu and Kick Boxing
Lau Gar Kung Fu and Lau Gar Kick Boxing is taught in the community centre every Monday night. Lau Gar is one of the five original Kung Fu systems.
Everybody is welcome to come along and the group is split into youth and adult classes. The youth classes are comprised of an equal number of boys and girls. The adult classes have more men, but there are a lot of women too. I have students from age 5 up to age 60.
Participants have the opportunity to progress through the grading system, earning the various sashes, or participating in tournaments. Others participate to stay fit, learn self-discipline or to get out of the house for a few hours.
The community centre is a great location for the group, because it’s a landmark in the village and we sometimes get new recruits who might come to The Venue theatre and see our posters in the foyer.
If you’d like to join Lau Gar Kung Fu or Lau Gar Kick Boxing, contact
Doreen Quirke on the Ratoath Support Group
The Ratoath Community Support Group was set up to support the parents
of children with special needs. It meets at
of each month in the Community Centre. We promote the meetings through
the schools and in the parish newsletter.
We organise guest speakers to speak to the group about any topic that
is on the mind of the parents. For example, last month the principal
and vice-principal of
might affect children of secondary school age. If we know about an
issue then we share the information. If we don’t, then we research it.
We also organise activities for the children. For example, many
conventional swimming groups don’t have an adequate teacher-pupil
ratio for children with special needs. That’s why we organised a
swimming class in the pool of the Marriott Hotel, with a reduced
pupil-teacher ratio. We’d like to specifically acknowledge the
Marriott, which has been particularly supportive towards our group and
sponsored the fashion show.
We have also organised yoga and a socialising network for the families
of special needs children. We are also planning a socialising network
for the special needs children themselves.
Overall, our activities depend on the parents, their children and
their respective needs.
We started the group two years ago, in March 2006 and have always met
in the Community Centre. At the moment there are around 15 people who
come regularly and we are in contact with around 24 people.
We wanted the meetings to take place in the Community Centre, because
it’s an open space, a community space. We were worried that if it was
held somebody’s home then it might be seen as a private clique.
Initially we didn’t have any funding, but the centre’s General Manager
Nick Killian made us feel very welcome. We’ve had funding since we
organised our first Fashion Show in April 2007 and since then we’ve
been able to pay for space in the community centre. All we really
need is a private room in a neutral space.
Some families with special needs children have fantastic support and
have everything they need. Some people struggle, or mightn’t feel
comfortable admitting that there’s a problem. We advertise regularly
to find new people, because we want to let people know that there is a
support group out there. New members are always welcome and our
details can be obtained from the community centre.
Amanda Hogan on Foroige
The Foroige group has been using the community centre since it opened in 2006. Recently it split into two groups, one for older teenagers and another for 12 – 13 year olds. Both groups meet on Tuesday evenings between 800pm and 930pm.
The teenagers are the officers of the club and they decide on the activities and outings. The adult volunteers are there to provide structure for the group and to facilitate the things that the members want to do. It’s a mixed group, evenly split between boys and girls.
The outings include things like cookery lessons, first aid and bowling evenings. There’s a Talent Competition among district Foroige groups in March and an Achievements Awards ceremony in May. On the evenings when we’re based in Ratoath, we might watch videos, get pizza, or play tag football. Sometimes people bring and play their own music. One club charges €3 per meeting, the other charges €4 per meeting, which is to cover the running costs of the group. There is also a community aspect to it, the members take on a local environmental or social project, such as maintaining a public space.
We always need new volunteers to help the teenagers to run the club and we particularly need male volunteers. Anybody who is interested in participating should call Amanda Hogan on 087-6325730, Amandahogan001@gmail.com, or Mary Redmond on 01-8254760.
