Archive

2011 Archive

March

Spring Newletter links

Click here to Download the Spring Newsletter 2010
	Interview with Greg Wilmot, our resident Australian "St Patrick "
	Interview with Bridge Active 'An Active Day'

• Quiz Nights: Running monthly quiz nights dates to be confirmed.
• Disco’s.
  • Christmas
  • Halloween
  • Schools Out 
  • Easter  
  • and many more...
• Ballon Race: usually around June. More details to follow
• Duck Race.: usually around April. More details to follow

2010 Archive

January

Winter Music Festival

It's a great weekend to be in South Clare - Sixmilebridge to be exact, where the Winter Music Weekend got off to a wonderful start last night Thursday, with local musicians, classical guitarist Brendan Walsh and traditional fiddler Orla Harrington, playing to a delighted crowd at the Courthouse.

Tonight Friday offers a very special opportunity to see Frankie Gavin and the New DeDannan in the Mill Bar - 8:30, tickets €25

This exciting lineup has been thrilling audiences up and down the country in large theatres and concert halls - the Winter Music Weekend will be THE place to see them!

The rest of the weekend has over 30 sessions, gig, concerts and so on with the best of traditional, bluegrass, blues, folk, singing, set dancing, eastern and classical, and more. Don't miss this wonderful intimate celebration of music.

See www.wmw.ie or call 086 846 4509 for more information

2009 Archive

• Halloween Disco 31/10/09, 7-9 pm.
• Christmas Disco 22/12/09, 7-9 pm.
  
  

  	Christmas Disco
  	22/12/09, 7-9 pm

  Advertisement for Bridge Kids Childcare Staff

  Please follow all instructions on form enclosed when completing your application

  Click here to download the Bridge Kids Childcare Staff Nov 2009

  Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th of November, 2009 Teach na Cuirte (The Courthouse) 10am to 6pm. Winter Wonderland Christmas Craft Fair Jewellery, Handbags, Wooden Toys, Face Painting, Cakes, Handmade Gifts etc..
  Santa will be visting the Courthouse. 2pm - 4pm Saturday and Sunday.		Entry €3 including Entry for a Door Prize.
  Art Competition entries will be on display during the craft fair with entry form being sent home through the school and also available in the newsletter.
  Show the Winter Newsletter at the door and get in for €2

  

  

  Bridge Active Autumn Program 2009

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  Official Opening

  The Board of Management of Bridge Kids invites one and all to the Official Opening of the purpose built community childcare facility
  By the
  Children of Sixmilebridge aided by Deputy Tim Dooley T.D. and Deputy Mayor John Crowe M.C.C.
  Friday,
  23rd of October, 2009 at 5pm

  Join in the Celebrations at the New Childcare Building at 5pm on Friday, 23rd of October, 2009 Music - Face Painting - Bouncy Castle Finger Food & Refreshments

  

   

  NEW DAY FOR BRIDGE ACTIVE. The Bridge Complex are pleased and excited to announce the expansion of their Bridge Active service. This will be running from 10 am until 4 pm every Friday from the 4th of September in the community centre in Sixmilebridge (the old courthouse). This club is free to attend and lots of activities and guest speakers are planned. There will be arts & crafts, bingo, cards and speakers on subjects such as healthy diet and exercise, money matters, legal matters, gardening and much more. Refreshments are served at various times during the day and from the 4th of September lunch will also be served (for a small charge). All are welcome for guaranteed chat and laughter!! Full day attendance needs to be booked in advance to quantify lunches required, drop in from 1pm onwards for a cuppa and a chat. If you are a carer and would like to arrange for your friend / family member to attend, if you yourself would like to attend or know somebody who would like to attend please call Vicky on 061 713605 or 086 8229424. Some transport can be arranged if travel is a difficulty.
  Press Release Bridge Kids August 2009 Employment boost to Sixmilebridge Sixmilebridge & District Community Complex society ltd., trading as The Bridge Complex and Bridge Kids will next week, increase the number of childcare staff in their employment from 3 to 13, with more jobs expected in the future. A spokesperson for The Bridge Complex, which is a cooperative society and registered charity, said “We are delighted to be able to offer this double opportunity to the area in these difficult times. By providing both employment opportunities and affordable childcare places we are helping to make life easier for families in the region” Following a staff training week, the service starts Monday 31st august at 8 am, offering childcare services for 0 to 12 year olds. Volunteers have been busy getting the building ready and there is a great air of excitement around the village. Initially, it was planned to have a public open day on august 28th, before the children started. However, the Board of Management have since decided to wait a month or two until the children and staff have settled in and “made their own” of the building before holding the open day, giving the children a sense of ownership of what is planned to be a homely, warm part of their community. With services for the Older person also expanding in the near future, and plans for more educational classes, the aim of the Bridge Complex to assist and empower the people of our community to help themselves through the provision of support, education, structures, networks and facilities is becoming more of a reality.
  The Golden Years Club are very excited to announce a new name - Bridge Active Bridge united meet every tuesday in the courthouse from 3 till 5. Refreshments are provided free of charge and the club is open for everybody to attend. Guest speakers are arranged on a regular basis on a wide variety of subjects including healthy eating, rest and relaxation, flower arranging, legal matters etc. There is also internet access available and volunteers available to give a hand browsing the web! Quite often a game of cards is on the go and a good natter is always guaranteed. If you are interested in attending and need transport we will do our best to collect you and return you home afterwards. Call 061713605 for more details.
  	The Summer Festival 2009 Saturday 18th July Pool Competition Final in The Old House Followed by the Celebrity Auction For info on all the items to bid for - check out   Sunday 19th July FAMILY FUNDAY Including the Annual Helium Balloon Race Bouncy Castles Face painting Wheel of Fortune Dunking Machine Vintage Machinery ATOMIC CHICKEN 2-4 PM Kiddies Treasure Hunt And much more................   Also attending the festival RINS FM www.rinsfm.com Pat Collins www.autolawnmow.ie/limerick Don't forget your entries for the Art Competition Click here to download

   

  	Advertisement for Bridge Kids Childcare Assistant Please follow all instructions on form enclosed when completing your application Click here to download the Bridge Kids Childcare Assistant June 2009
  Click here to download the Spring 2009 Newsletter (Approx 2mb)	Download the Spring 2009 Newsletter
  	All Welcome to the Cake Sale in The Courthouse on Sunday 31st of May, 2009 after Mass. All proceeds are to be used for the running of Bridge Active.
  Junior Minister Barry Andrews visits Sixmilebridge
  On Friday last, 3rd of April, 2009 members of the local Teen Cafe group got the opportunity to present Junior Minister for Children and Youth with an information booklet. On the very successful Teen Cafe which takes place in the community centre in The Courthouse every Friday evening from 7pm to 10 pm. Minister Andrews spoke with the teenagers about the project and even gave them some tips on funding. The Minister, accompanied by Timmy Dooley TD., was also given a tour of the new childcare facility, Bridge Kids, which is currently under construction.
  Childcare manager Siobhan Hopkins gave praise to the Clare county Childcare committee, represented on the day by Development worker Nuala Roche, for all their assistance. Minister Andrews, in turn, praised the hard work and dedication of the Bridge Complex committee who, in times when many projects are having their funding decommissioned, pushed themselves to the limit to ensure the build went ahead. The childcare is one aspect for community services provided by the registered charity on behalf of the people of Sixmilebridge.
  Volunteers Needed	Quiz master Francis Grimes has confirmed the quiz night for Thursday 23rd April, 2009. More details to follow... Click here for the Quiz page

  Golden Years Club has been renamed to Bridge Active

  Previous Golden Years Club News

  National Lottery funding enabled us to contract the services of Clare Accessible Transport in the first year. Fundraising has ensured the continuation of the service. Foundation for Ireland assisted in the set up of the Go for Life Club

  • “Go for Life Club” (in conjunction with the I.C.A.)
  • Bus and Taxi facility to day-care centre in Clarecastle
  • Preparation in place at time of print for day care service to be evolved to a larger scale in new premises in the future

  Looking after our "Golden Years" Citizens

  One of our goals is to provide a day-care centre for the elderly of our area.

  In the interim, we are providing as many opportunities as possible for our more mature citizens to socialize and participate in community events.

  We have contracted Clare Accessible Transport to transport a number of our elderly to the day-care centre in Clarecastle each Monday.

  We have organised specific education classes for older people in computers and multimedia.

  We also encourage grandparents to be actively involved in our childcare program.

  In addition, we are working towards organising a Going Strong club for the Elderly in Teach Na Cuirte a couple of days a week, with activities and refreshments.

  This allows us to prove the need and desire for such a service in Sixmilebridge.

  The HSE have already acknowledged this, but it is easier to get support for something that is already in existence in some form or other - then it is not just a notion, it is a reality in need of improvement.

  Ducks are available from the Courthouse and local businesses 2 Ducks for €5 or 1 for €3 Ducks will also be availbale to purchase on the day

  The Duck Race Easter Sunday 12 noon The Square - Sixmilebridge

  The 4th annual St Patricks parade was another great success. The organisers of the parade would like to thank all those who took part in this wonderful community event.	St. Patrick's Day Parade Sunday 15th March, 2009
  The Bridge Complex Playground Committee Public Meeting Thursday, 19th March @ 8.15pm Sixmilebridge Community Centre, Teach na Chuirte, Sixmilebridge.	Playground Public Meeting If you would like to be involved in the running of the Sixmilebridge Community Playground - Please feel free to attend. All are very welcome For more information on the Playground - Click Here.
  @ Teen Cafe	20th of March, 2009 8.00pm till 10.30pm Junior cert and under. €5. Entry. We reserve the right to refuse admission. Strict policy of NO ALCOHOL ! Entry Rules

   

  THE BRIDGE COMPLEX PRESS RELEASE Feb. 2nd 2009. MINISTER GORMLY TO OPEN COMMUNITY PLAYGROUND IN SIXMILEBRIDGE

  
  Friday 13th may be unlucky for some, but the children of Sixmilebridge and surrounding districts will be very lucky indeed, when the state of the art playground opens on The Bridge Complex site on the Shannon Road.

  Minister of the Environment, John Gormley will officially open the playground at 10.30am on Friday 13th.

  It will be a morning of festivities and celebrations, with the children free to use the playground from then on.

  A special playground group was formed as a subcommittee of The Bridge complex 3 years ago. Although most of the playground was funded by Clare county council, the group had to work hard, both to fundraise a local contribution and to research the design and layout of the playground.

  The playground will be on the same site as future community facilities to be provided by The Bridge Complex with the childcare service, Bridge Kids, currently being erected.

  
  All are welcome to come along on the day, with face painting and refreshments being available.

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  GOLDEN YEARS CLUB

  The Courthouse, Sixmilebridge.

  We would like to welcome back all of our existing and new members after the Christmas holidays. The next coffee afternoon will be Tuesday 27th January from 3 til 5 pm.

   

  All are welcome and refreshments are provided free of charge

  The next afternoon will involve 45 cards and hand and nail care for the ladies.

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  2008 Archive

  Santa will be arriving in Sixmilebridge after Mass on the First Friday, the 5th of December, 2008   With Special Thanks to the Sixmilebridge Tidy Towns

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  Winter Wonderland Christmas Craft Fair 29th & 30th November The Courthouse 10 til 6 Lots of goodies for Christmas inc, hand bags, wooden toys, jewellery, wooden clocks, hnad-made cards, jams and much more. Admission €2 adults, children free. Door Prize,

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  The Annual Childrens Art Competition is currently taking place in conjunction with Local Schools.

  Completed entry forms should be returned to the schools by November 19th, 2008 but can also be dropped into the community center in the courthouse by 5PM on November 24th, 2008.

  Additional entry forms can be got in the courthouse or on the website here

  • Page 1 of Art Competition
  • Page 2 of Art Competition

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  Samhain celebrations got off to a good start in the Community Centre, The Courthouse, Sixmilebridge, with a Kiddies Halloween Disco on Friday night.

  The children dressed up for the event and the Teen Café kids ran the show, with a little help from the adults.

  November night brought more great entertainment from one of the Café Orchestra events organised by the Sixmilebridge Folk group and also served as the venue for a grand draw.

  Results are as follows:

  • winner of 32 inch flat screen tv Pat O Connor , Westbury Limerick
  • winner of weekend break for 2 Siobhan Kelly Cratloe
  • winner of 10ft trampoline The Creagh Family Janesborough Limerick
  • winner of Halloween hamper Bridget Sunderland, Shannon.
    

  many thanks to those who supported.

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  1st of 5 Monthly Table Quizzes - Starting Friday 14th November, 2008 The Mill Bar @ 9pm

  Press Release Local Philanthropists Entertain the Golden Years Club

  Local business people and entertainers have agreed to give of their time to the newly formed Golden Years Club in The Courthouse in Sixmilebridge.The following dates have been planned and are open to all our mature citizens. Light refreshments are available and there is no charge. The following dates have been organised

  Tuesday 25th November Unforuntely this has been cancelled to the illness of quiz master Francis Grimes - We wish you all the best and a speedy recovery.

  Contact The Courthouse for more information

   

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  Update Summer 2008

  Our school year is ending with a very eventful month.

  School Tour

  Search and Rescue Helicopter

  We went on our school tour to visit the search and rescue helicopter in Shannon and Mick and Jim gave us a great look around the helicopter. luckily, they were not called out on a rescue mission during our visit.

  Airport Fire Station

  Then we went to the fire station in the airport, which was very interesting. The highlight for the children though was getting to try on the fire fighters helmet.
  Finally, we went to fun times for lots of jumping and tumbling. A very tired but happy bus load returned to the school. Thanks to all the volunteers n the day.

  Updates...

  Wednesday - June 11th. 2008

  We had a visit from a wildlife specialist, John Murphy, who brought some interesting visitors with him (slow worms and newts for example) we also had a turtle called Jerry at school. the children really loved this day and are since searching the garden for wildlife.

  Friday - June 27th, 2008

  Will be our sports day and graduation day when we have a ceremony for the parents, this will be held in The Courthouse as the weather is so bad.

  Friday is also Marelen's last day as teacher, as she is taking a break to work with children with disabilities. Siobhan Hopkins will be the new Montessori teacher. we wish them both well.

  July 2008 - Summer Camp

  Summer Camp gets into swing in July, with lots of fun planned.

  September 2008 - Looking Forward

  Next years children have already come for their visit and are eagerly looking forward to September, 2008.
  All our paperwork is in order for the new creche and the builder is in the starting blocks - just waiting for the governments paperwork to come back and we are off.

  Have a nice summer from all at Bridge Kids.

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  Great Quack at the Duck Race

  Once again, there was great fun at the annual village duck race in Sixmilebridge last Sunday11th May, 2008.

  

  Organised by The Bridge Complex, the Miller statue in the river had 500 yellow visitors in the form of plastic ducks.

  As the crowds egged on their chosen duck, the heats were played and the final was one by J O Sullivan from the taxi rank in Shannon airport.

  Many thanks to those who bought and sold ducks, helped on the day, by donning waders and hopping in to catch the ducks, or by handing out lollies, kindly donated by Crowes Centra..

  The main prize was kindly donated by Leisure world in Ennis.

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  PRESS RELEASE. APRIL 2008 EXCITING TIMES IN SIXMILEBRIDGE After years of hard work, the first sod is finally being turned on the Bridge Complex site on the Shannon road. The plan is to build a community centre to house all the activities of the Bridge complex, which currently are spread over a couple of different venues. However, on April 24th at 2pm. Mayor of Clare Patricia McCarthy will turn the sod on the playground portion of the site. Having received grant aid from Clare county council, the playground committee worked diligently to raise local funding to build a state of the art playground for the young people of the area. The committee express their gratitude to those who contributed in any way & would like to invite everyone to come along on the day to the site & back to the courthouse for refreshments afterwards. This is a momentous occasion in our village & a testimony to the hard work & dedication of volunteers who want to give something back to the community they live in. Meanwhile, the spring adult education programme in the courthouse is in full swing, with art classes, yoga, unislim, Pilates & English languages on from Monday to Thursday. The teen café is still on every Friday night. Dancing & keep fit classes take place in the day times for our younger community, while the Go For Life club - the national programme for sport and physical activity for older people, runs every Wednesday afternoon. The Bridge Complex wish to recruit childcare staff & administration staff, for an immediate relief panel and a panel for future positions. The application form may be downloaded by clicking here Childare Staff Application Form or by sending a SAE to The Manager, Bridge Kids, Teach Na Chuirte, Sixmilebridge, Co. Clare. Closing date extended to the April 18th 2008 English Language Classes Due to public demand, it is hoped to organise another round of English language classes in the community centre in the Courthouse in April. These evening classes will be organised by The Bridge Complex in conjunction with Clare VEC. All interested should leave their names at the office in the courthouse 061 713605 ST PATRICK PARADE Sunday 16th March, 2008 All community groups and businesses are welcome. Booking forms are available from the Courthouse.......... more Parade details here !! 2008, February 15th saw the launch of The Bridge Complex website. It is the aim of the website to provide the community with a central location for up-to-date, local information, so all your feedback is welcome.

  2008 The Bridge Complex is proud to announce that the organisation has received charitable status from the Revenue Commissioners. As well as giving a standing and credibility to the organisation, charitable status opens the door to a wide range of benefits including availability of grants. You too can benefit, as individual and corporate donations to a charity may be entitled to tax relief. The society can also benefit from bequests from community-minded individuals in their wills, without having to pay inheritance tax. The Bridge Complex is a not-for-profit organisation, based in the Community Centre in the Courthouse in Sixmilebridge to provide amenities and services for all age groups in the district.

  If you have any information you would like to see on this webpage please e-mail any ideas or suggestions to info@bridgecomplex.ie

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