2023 News Review: February

February opened with the news that Columb Barracks in Mullingar, Middleton Park House in Castletown Geoghegan and a site in Castlepollard were under consideration for the accommodation of refugees and asylum seekers.

Sinn Féin TD, Sorca Clarke, revealed that Minister Roderic O’Connor had confirmed these facts to her – and revealed that at Columb Barracks, the arrivals faced sleeping in tents. Already, it emerged, a team of army engineers was at Columb Barracks carrying out an assessment of the site, and Deputy Clarke said there was concern locally about the lack of engagement in advance.

Wilson’s Hospital School student Clodagh Ramsey was back home after winning the ‘Innovation’ award at the Junk Kouture World Final in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Her winning outfit was a dress called ‘Bohemian Pampas Tree’, which was living, and required daily watering, air and light.

A closing date was announced for the Ulster Bank branch in Mullingar. As the bank nationally prepared to cease operations, it was announced that at the Mullingar branch, transactions were to cease on March 31, and the branch was to shut on April 21.

Construction professional Gerry Reddin, in an interview with Ciara O’Hara revealed that he was so determined to get out of school and into the building trade, that he mitched school and walked all the way from Mullingar to Milltownpass because he had seen a job advert posted by Christopher Bennett and Sons Ltd. He got granted a job on the spot – and happily, Jim Bennett drove him home so he didn’t have to walk the return journey.

By the second week in February, protests were taking place over plans to place tented accommodation at Columb Barracks for refugees and asylum seekers: ‘Ireland is Full’ signs were borne by participants in the protests organised by ‘Concerned Residents of Mullingar’ and ‘Mullingar Says No’.

It emerged at a meeting of Westmeath County Council that the increased cost of electricity had added €650,000 to the council’s bills over the previous year.

‘It’s Petitswood – not Hollywood’ was the heading over an account of a visit by a film crew to Mullingar. Actors Graham Earley and John Connors were present for the filming of ‘Barry versus The Binman’, a short film being made by writer and director, Craig Moore from Killucan and filmmakers Brian and Emer Durcan of Western Front Studios, recipients of the inaugural Westmeath Film Bursary.

Popular postman Ger O’Connor retired in February after giving 35 years of service to An Post.

At the opposite end of the scale, someone at the start of his career – Eoin Weir from Multyfarnham – gave an insight into his life in Mumbai, India where he works as a brand ambassador for Jameson.

Having a good month in February were rising media star Sara Jane Foster, who was signed by the prestigious Dublin agency Carol and Associates, and novelist Patricia Gibney, who was celebrating having achieved two million sales with her ‘Lottie Parker’ series of crime novels.

In glorious sunshine, a large crowd attended the official opening of the beautiful new Milltownpass Woodland and Bog Trail. Walkers enjoyed both the walk and the novelty of discovering the four sculptures by artist Richie Clarke installed there.

A special function was held at Bloomfield House Hotel to mark the retirement and departure of a number of staff from Loreto College since 2020.

Staff members honoured on the night were retirees Marese Bell (former school principal), Mairead Glennon (former chemistry teacher), Mary O’Neill, former business teacher and Germaine O’Connor, former home economics teacher, along with Yvonne Doyle, who had departed to take up a position closer to home in her native Roscommon.

A devastating earthquake that affected Turkey and Syria, causing the deaths of 59,259 people, brought heartbreak to Kinnegad resident Ali Atlia from Antakya, whose family were caught up in the tragedy, and who lost friends in the devastation.

A creative teen from Ballinagore – 16-year-old Shane King – was winner of an award in a film competition organised by the cybersecurity company Trend Micro. Kilbeggan Mercy TY student Shane enrolled his entire family in cast and production roles for his film ‘Stop, Think, Check’, aimed at alerting viewers to ways of avoiding getting scammed online.

Ciara O’Hara conducted what proved to be a fantastic interview with the fascinating Audrey Doherty, who came to Mullingar from her native New York in 1966 for a three-week visit. On a night out with her Mullingar cousins to hear Joe Dolan and The Drifters play, Audrey met Des Doherty, The Drifters’ pianist – and thus her life changed, and the couple went on to marry.

Two separate productions of Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat were staged at Mullingar Arts Centre in February, one by sixth class pupils from Holy Family NS, and the other by fifth and sixth class pupils (with chorus help from children from third and fourth class) from St Anne’s NS in Milltownpass. The students were able to use the same set and both shows were greatly acclaimed.

Kinnegad’s regeneration took a significant step forward in February when the contract for construction of the new community library and training centre at the old school on the town’s main street was awarded to Coolsivna Construction Limited by Westmeath County Council.

As the first anniversary of the start of the Ukraine war passed, some of the Ukrainians living locally reflected on the dramatic change the turmoil had brought to their lives. Maryna Kolomiets, latterly working with Charter Private Medical Hospital in Ballinderry, recalled that when the war broke out, she was working in HR for a Toyota dealership in Kyiv, and commuting from Bucha, a town in which hundreds were killed by Russian forces in the first weeks of the invasion.

Journalist Svetlana Osadchuk, hid with her family in a bomb shelter for 41 days before acting on the advice of a journalist friend who urged them to flee, because it was inevitable that the Russians would be preparing lists of people for whom they were looking – “politicians, military, journalists”. Stating that she understood how difficult it was for Ireland to support such a large number of refugees, she went on to express her thanks to Ireland:

“We are grateful to this great country for receiving, supporting, protecting and caring for us,” she said.

On top of the world was a rising culinary star from Dysart, Matthew Looram. Matthew was in the news after winning two international awards at the World Young Chef Olympiad in India, the biggest culinary competition in the world.

Finding drivers to take up the 16-17 jobs that would be required to provide a town bus service in Mullingar was likely to be one of the biggest challenges to getting the project off the ground, members of the Municipal district of Mullingar Kinnegad heard at their February meeting.

National Transport Authority representative John Nott told the members that planning of the service was under way: two provisional routes had been drawn up, and the intention was that the buses should run daily over an 18-hour period to facilitate people wanting to move around in the evenings as well as providing connectivity to rail and interurban bus services.