PROLOGUE: A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every challenge. Winston Churchill.

DEATHS: We offer our sympathy to the family of Siobhán Tobin, Main Street whose funeral took place on Friday. May she rest in peace. We offer our sympathy to the family of Patrick Cahill, Dromtrasna Collins who has just died. May he rest in peace.

WEST LIMERICK COMMUNITY RADIO PLAYING THEIR PART: WL102fm has provided a great service throughout West Limerick since the lockdown began with Mass broadcast every Sunday morning at 10am to all the people who are cocooning . Advertising and fundraising pay their expenses and like everyone else they need money to survive. Please buy a ticket for their weekly draw and help them stay on air – it’s as simple as that – .you’ll never miss the water ‘til the well runs dry. Tickets on sale at Ann Lyons’s, The Square for €2 each and also at Moss the Farmers’, Killarney Road.

SPEECH WRITING: Action Talks is the newly launched Action Aid National Speech Writing Competition. The competition is open to all students aged 14 to 17. The first prize is a €500 One4All voucher for the winning student and a €500 One4All voucher for their teacher. To enter, write a five-minute or 600-word speech. Entries are to be sent by email from the student’s teacher to comms.ireland by Friday, January 15.

CHURCH CLOSURE: Fr Tony Mullins 0872600414, Fr Dan Lane (Retired) 087/2533030, Fr Denis Mullane 087/26219. Due to current restrictions around Covid-19 parishioners are not allowed to attend Mass inside the Church Building but you are more than welcome to attend Mass in the Church Car Park in the comfort of your own car and listen to Mass on the Car Park Radio on 107fm. You can also receive Communion at the Grotto. Due to current restrictions only 6 people are allowed to attend weddings. Due to current restrictions only 10 mourners are allowed to attend funerals but you can go in to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel from 11-6pm for private prayer and into the Main Church to visit the crib. Masses are broadcast on line on churchservices .tv/Abbeyfeale Monday at 7pm, Tuesday to Friday 10am, Saturday 11am and 6.30pm and Sunday 10am and 12 noon. The 10am Mass on Sunday is broadcast live on WL102fm. Mass Intentions: Friday 10am Mike Hennessy, Derby and formerly Knockaderry. No Saturday morning Mass 6.30pm Joan E Leahy Anniversary. Charlie Conefrey San Franscisco Anniversary. Sunday 10am Michael & Dan McCarthy, Purt Anniversary. 12noon Pro Populo.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP: We were delighted to have Fr. Dan Lane who is officially retired helping Fr. Tony our PP over the Christmas. He blotted his copy book with the gospel on the Feast of the Holy Family when he announced that wives should obey their husbands but was forgiven when he continued by saying that husbands should honour their wives! His homily on the same day reminded us we should praise people when they are alive to hear it instead of waiting until they are dead and included the following: If with pleasure you are viewing/ Some good work that I am doing,/ And you like me, or you love me/ tell me now./ Don’t withhold your approbation/ Till ‘Father’ makes oration/ And I lie with snowy lilies o’er my brow./ For then, no matter how you shout it,/ I won’t hear too much about it / I won’t see How many teardrops you have shed./ So; If you think some praise is due me,/ ‘Now’ is the time to slip it to me, /For I cannot read my tombstone,/ When I’m dead. /If I’m worthy of some appreciation, now bestow it./ If you love me let me know it./ Let the words of encouragement NOW be said./ Do not wait till life is over and I’m underneath the clover./ For I cannot read my tombstone,/ When I’m gone.. (Letters of appreciation can be sent to the Editor, Weekly Observer, Mallow. Co. Cork.!)

NEW COURSES AT THE OLD TECH: The following free classes are starting up in January: Beginners Woodturning, Beginners Art, Craft class (Papermaking, paper crafts, felting and more!), Knitting for beginners, Experimenting with art (drawing, painting making etc), Basic cooking, Cookery for blokes, baking (Breads, pastry’s & Desserts), Healthy eating made easy, taste of Italy cookery class, Easy entertaining/summer cookery class, Machine sewing, Furniture Upholstery, Grow your own vegetables class, Beginners Sign Language, Childcare Level 5 & 6, Healthcare Level 5, Beginners Computers, intermediate computers. If you wish to register for any of the above free classes, please call Mary in the office: 06831198 or log onto www.learningandskills.ie, click on ‘our courses, and select the location as ‘Abbeyfeale’.

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS: Have you made any New Year’s resolutions? If not, there’s still time, and Pope Francis has some ideas for you. These are the ten things that he called upon Vatican employees to do: 1. “Take care of your spiritual life, your relationship with God, because this is the backbone of everything we do and everything we are.”2. “Take care of your family life, giving your children and loved ones not just money, but most of all your time, attention and love.” 3. “Take care of your relationships with others, transforming your faith into life and your words into good works, especially on behalf of the needy.” 4. “Be careful how you speak, purify your tongue of offensive words, vulgarity and worldly decadence.” 5. “Heal wounds of the heart with the oil of forgiveness, forgiving those who have hurt us and medicating the wounds we have caused others.” 6. “Look after your work, doing it with enthusiasm, humility, competence, passion and with a spirit that knows how to thank the Lord.” 7. “Be careful of envy, lust, hatred and negative feelings that devour our interior peace and transform us into destroyed and destructive people.” 8. “Watch out for anger that can lead to vengeance; for laziness that leads to existential euthanasia; for point-ing the finger at others, which leads to pride; and for complaining continually, which leads to desperation.” 9. “Take care of brothers and sisters who are weaker … the elderly, the sick, the hungry, the homeless and strangers, because we will be judged on this.”10. “Making sure your Christmas is about Jesus and not about shopping.

ABBEYFEALE COMMUNITY ALERT: If you have a panic button, check to make sure it is working by pressing it and speaking to the monitoring service – that’s why they are there 24 hours a day and why you are paying a yearly monitoring service fee. Gardai are asking people to let them know when people call selling goods or offering services on 068 30010. Try and make a note of their general description ie height, accent, hair colour, tattoos etc. Write down the vehicle reg. colour and make. When you reach the age of 65 and live alone or with a person/s aged over 65 you are entitled to receive a monitored alarm system. But if you have younger people living in the house who are out for long periods of the day then, because you are spending hours alone you are also entitled to the system provided that you are over 65. The free equipment is provided by Pobal following an application from Abbeyfeale Community Alert, there will be a monitoring fee to be paid from the second year of installation to the installing company of €72. There may be some confusion over the word free – the equipment which costs in the region of €400 is provided free of charge by Pobal as is the first year of monitoring but after that you will be charged by the installing company for the monitoring. I have not included the phone numbers of the committee in this notice but if you want to get a panic button then ring Abbeyfeale Garda Station on 068 30010 and they will contact one of us. Should you not have a landline the installing company Task provide a sim card at a rate of €7.50 per month payable from day one. Then, in year two you will also receive a bill for the monitoring fee so in year one the bill will be €90 and in year two and every other year after it will €162 approx. If you wish you can arrange a direct debit and pay this amount off monthly. Committee members are Michael O’Kelly N.T., Chairman Seamus Stack, Secretary Mossie Gleeson, Assistant Treasurer Kathleen Collins, Assistant Secretary Mary McArthur, John O’Sullivan, Billy Quirke N.T., Cllr. Francis Foley, Catherine Daly, Maurice O’Connell, Assistant Treasurer Marian Harnett.

.HELPLINES: Text 50808 to receive support from a volunteer. Hospice Bereavement Line 1800807077 Monday to Friday 10am – 1pm. Jigsaw support line is now up and running on freefone 1800 JIGSAW (544 729). It will provide free mental health support and advice to young people aged 12 to 25 years old, and parents or concerned adults who live in the Republic of Ireland. A helpline for Men suffering domestic abuse operates 36 hours a week on 1800816588. Men’s Aid (Amen) 01 5543811 Monday – Friday 9-5pm. 24 hour helplines for women suffering domestic abuse 1800 341900 or Adapt 1800 200504. Limerick Social Services: 061-314111. AA 061/311222 Al-Anon 086/8143425. Parent Support worker 068/31019. Accord NCW 069/61000. Samaritans Freephone 116123 or text 087/2609090 or email Aware (Depression & Anxiety) 1980 303 302 National Suicide Helpline (Pieta House) 1800 247 247 Irish Advocacy Network (Peer advocacy in mental health) 01 872 8684 Pieta House (Suicide & self-harm) 01 623 5606 IACP (Counselling & Psychotherapy) 01 230 3536 Shine: (Supporting people affected by mental ill health) 01 860 1620 061 – 412111 or Free phone 1850609090 A.A. 061-311222. ACCORD; are now offering over the phone counselling for couples, Individuals & family members during this time of unprecedented stress & pressure during these weeks of COVID-19. Call: 01 5313331. Al-Anon 086-8143425 Bereavement Support: 068 / 31203 068/ 31262 068/51984 St Vincent De Paul Tel 087/1213560. Counselling Appointment 061/314213. ALONE; has launched a national support line and additional supports for older people who have concerns or are facing difficulties relating to the outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Professional staff are available to answer queries and give advice and reassurance where necessary. The support line is open Monday to Friday, 8am- 8pm, by calling 0818 222 024. Hours may be extended to meet the demand.

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