Still not a lot of news, but here is a few snippets for you

 Unfortunately the news is very scarce at the moment, therefore not much to relate, I am sure there is more out there, but can’t find it.

It would be helpful if anybody has some snippets to put out please let Ann or I now about it, the news is the one thing that does go on the website, to keep various relations, and friends of Roundstone across the water to keep them informed on the well being within the Roundstone community/ Connemara.

 Its been a rather sad week within the surrounding parishes, therefore, I would like to express on behalf of Roundstone offering our condolences to the immediate family’s of the passing of Mary Conroy, mother to Padraic Conroy who was only buried a week ago of (Lehenagh,Cashel) also John O’Donnell (Cashel), Mrs Mary McDonagh (Cashel), Michael McDara Joyce (Recess)brother of Martin Joyce (Cushatrower), and Festy Mitchell (Calla) who is J.J.Mitchell’s father. So as I say our condolences to all the family’s from Roundstone. May they all rest in Peace.

 All most at the end of January, time is really marching on to be prepared for the summer with all the events, and of course the tidy towns competition etc, a lot of good things are starting to come in to play,

Just to keep every body out there informed re the www.roundstone.ie website, there will be over the next few months the odd disruption, due to the fact that the site will be going through a few changes, to make it more informative and to change some of the present photographs with a few updated ones.

Well Christmas & New Year is all behind us and 2011 is looming with the help of god we will all get through it without too much hardship. Roundstone was busy, busy for the New Year with lots of the regulars returning to ring in the New Year with us and to enjoy the wonderful weather we experienced, calm, mild, and spectacular views to be seen all around.

 I hope every body had a good Christmas, despite the freeze up. Our Christmas celebrations i.e. mid night mass and Christmas day with Fr Jarleth was very appropriately celebrated enhanced by the fact that the church was wonderfully lit up the like of which I have never seen before with Fairy lights on a magnificent Christmas tree, in fact the extra lighting in the church was also in preparation for Paula de Courcey’s wedding which came about to day. The family have donated all the lights and the Tree with its decorations to the parish for future Christmas’s, and we certainly thank them for this gesture.

Ten days to Christmas. I must say so far the village is looking really bright and cheerful what with the best decorated window competition, sponsored my Michael Reynolds, Christmas lights have appeared, the village tree is now up in its full glory by the flag poles, talking about the tree, Father Jarleth will come to bless it, on this Sunday coming at 4.30pm as this year we will have the red ribbons placed on the tree in memory of our departed relatives and to officially put on the lights.

Roundstone News Monday 21^st November 2010

Things have now gone very quite in the village, apart from the weekends, with various events this weekend, such as The Huston School of film (NUIG) and Folding Landscapes presented “A boatload of Wild Irishmen”, this was a film about Robert Flaherty, who was the director of Man of Arran, this was shown in the Community Hall and was very well attended. Then congratulations to David McDonagh who celebrated his 21^st Birthday in the Shamrock Bar on Saturday, also to Joseph Conneelly, Ann’s Son who celebrated his birthday yesterday Sunday. Also on the Sunday there was a Dressage Competition up on the Roundstone Show ground which was organized by Judy Casbure from Cleggan, with her class, its nice to see the show grounds being made use of more different events. I don’t have the results I am sure Ann next Monday will give them out.

Well, thank goodness, last nights storm was not so bad as was feared, apart from the rain, however Michael Reynolds, Pious and Paul Delapp got well prepared with sand bags placed along the old quay in case of flooding, with the filling of the gap in the wall opposite Martina Conneelly’s house, which is always a bad spot and liable to flood on to the Road and sometimes into her House.

Well that’s the last Bank holiday over for this year; hope everybody made the most of it in one form or another there were certainly a lot of visitors around to keep the village active, helped of course to the good weather, we now start to really settle in for the winter, which just reminds me next weekend the clocks go back.

Monty Halls “Great Escape” On Saturday Monty gave a farewell B/Q party down on the old quay in Roundstone, open to everybody, with the BBC film crew, with lots of food cooked in a wheel barrow, cunningly provided by Ronan Crane, who indecently was the chef for the evening, it was quite sad to think that it is all over, but having said that I have a feeling that this 3^rd series of Monty’s great escape will have a huge impact for our area and Connemara on the whole,

His Grace the Most Rev, Michael Neary , Archbishop of Tuam:

Welcome Speech to Roundstone

On behalf of the Roundstone Parish, and the Roundstone Pastoral Committee I would like to welcome, you your Grace as our Archbishop, we thank you for taking the time to come here this morning from your busy life, to be with us to Celebrate Mass in our own parish church and to officially cement the Appointment of Father Jarleth Heraty as our new Parish Priest.

 Tidy Towns Results:

Well, we now have the Roundstone 2010 Tidy Town results, a little disappointing in some ways; we only came up three more points this year. For example in the overall Development approach, 0ne point, the built environment, one point, and surprisingly in the Landscaping section we were only given one point, litter control the adjudicator took away a point and there was another point for the residential area’s, therefore we earned 245 points out of 400, oh well at least we are still climbing.

Things are getting very quite here in Roundstone, but there seems to be at least a good few visitors milling around to keep the village alive. But a great crowd for the : Champions of Champions:

Golly where has the time gone, already coming in to September, mind you whose complaining with this great weather, already Christmas is being discussed on the Radio, scary, anyway, our season is not quite finished yet, in fact I was just thinking Roundstone still attracts all sorts of people, Nial McDonagh is here with his family you know, the actor from Big Brother, Paddy the yanks cousin, as well as Brian Cohen who was spotted today on Innishnee perhaps to meet up the the Senator for a game of golf, who knows.

It’s been quite a week with a great deal of visitors circulating and the good weather apart from today of course.

Well, that’s another bank holiday over with out a doubt the numbers were way down but there still seemed all the same a great Buzz, helped by the various celebrations around the area.

Its certainly has been a week of activities and entertainment in Roundstone with the two day rowing regatta, traditional music, also last night in the community Hall a group of 70 American gospel singers from California who are staying in the village for two days, in fact its their third time to be in Roundstone, anyway the group sang in the Community Hall introduced by our Christina Lowry and joining her with our own traditional music with 8 young lads from Carna who are part of the Colltas under the eye of Marcus Hernon, they gave an incredible performance, I gather their opening piece that they played, was part of a competition of which they came second also some Sanós dancing, young Maeve O’Neil did the brush dance, who is only 11 years of age, the elegance and confidence of this young lady, was really something to behold, we also had our local ladies giving a demonstration of some reels and again our own Joe McDonagh who by the way has just reached his 80 birthday rendered a couple of Sanós songs.

Father John McCarthy PP 1996-- 2010

After 14 years as our parish Priest Fr John is retiring for good to knock on the Friday of the I6th July. This is, his last Sunday mass which is being recorded as we speak with the Connemara community Radio.

Roundstone News 1st March 2010 (Ann Conneely)
Keep scrolling down for the news of the 15th March 2010

Mary King:
Congratulations to Mary King from Kings bar on her 70th Birthday last Wednesday.

Father Breen:
Sadly we report on the death of Fr Breen who passed away after over a week ago in Galway Hospital.  Fr Breen who was the curate of Recess for the past 17 years was a very special man.

News has been a little slim within the last few weeks hence the reason for not keeping you up to date with Roundstone however we are now getting back on track, Ann’s news is further down the page, just keep scrolling.

Ann mentioned last week that it was Nice to see the first 2010 car in Roundstone owned by two local owners. So as she said let’s hope that the RSA gets around to filling in all the pot holes that have sprung up since the frosty weather and making driving safe for them in fact for all of us. At the moment I dread a trip anywhere in Connemara with the state of the roads.

One might say that it has been a tough few weeks re the water problems, lack of pressure, burst pipes etc, but now it seems we are slowly getting back to normal, but as the icy weather is an act of god, the area has gone through a learning curve in so many ways perhaps the powers that be will be better prepared, if god forbid these acts of god, should happen again

What an adventurous week it has been in Roundstone through the Christmas and into the New Year, what with no water for a time, power and very high winds last Wednesday evening causing a bit of damage around the surrounding area of Roundstone, slates, a boat sank fortunately, all is well with the said boat. On a slightly humorous side, a lit up Santee climbing up the wall of the Shamrock, santee lost his head, however the head was found two days later, the head is now inside behind the bar, all we have to do now is to find his left foot. He is still on the wall headless ha ha ha

As we are coming very close to Christmas, the build up is humming in Roundstone, as there are not a lot of visitors around, there seems still to be a buzz in the preparations, the selling of Christmas trees and slowly but surely the erection of lights, and various other decorations and a few community party’s.

The news is a bit of a mixed bag tonight

I am not very fond of this time of the year, the news is as scarce has hens teeth, and this very wet weather is quite depressing; however we will just have get over it and get on with it.

The de Courcey Clan:

To celebrate Agnes de Courcey’s 90th birthday, people from all over the world came to Roundstone to be with her, it was a rather unique time, Agnes and her husband Martin have 26 Grand Children, 27 Great Grand Children and two Great Great Grand Children.

I am standing in for Ann tonight, as all her family have gone down to Kinsale to see Orla, Ann has Joseph and his Australian girl friend Jemma with her, they both will be going back to Australia at the end on this month, so it’s the only opportunity for Joseph to meet up with his sister Orla for a few days.

I do not have a lot for you as it seems the winter period is fast approaching, however we seem to be able to carry on with a bit entertainment in Roundstone here and there.

News is a little scarce at this time of the year, apologies for last week not coming on air, apart from lack of news’s, I had to be else where.

Well in Roundstone we have really come to the end of all the activities that were held during the summer, but having said that it’s been a good busy week in Roundstone what with christenings, and birthdays and Music and dancing and still a good few visitors trickling in

News from the week by Anne

Marina

Wow, what incredible warm weather, I feel slightly sorry for our visitors who were here in the very wet August, oh well that’s the way it goes, however it’s been very helpful to the success of various events in Roundstone held this week

Please Click Here to view the 2009 Tidy Towns results. (Opens as a PDF file)

Roundstone is certainly quieting down, I have the feeling its because of the torrential rain over the last few days, and I suppose the schools are opening again earlier this year, golly where does the time go to.

A Mr Niall King who hails from Dublin is a regular visitor to Connemara for the last thirty years and in fact owns a house close to Bunowen Castle, Niall is a natural lover of nature, hence his keen sense of observation.

Golly what a mixed bag of weather conditions we have had last week, however with the various events last week we got through it, therefore the news tonight is a bit of a mixed bag

Considering the weather has been a little inclement, Roundstone certainly seemed to be busy this week.