Sunday morning Sister Mary McHugh of the Medical Missionaries of Mary spoke at Mass about their missionary work and a special collection was taken up for her. After Mass I met Mrs Jimmy Green Clonfad whose husband had died on Friday and whose funeral was held over until Monday on account of the Country Fair. It worked out fine with a viewing on Sunday in Grenhams Funeral Parlour for three hours and a wake at home on Sunday night. Monday morning the remains were taken to Clonfad church for Mass with burial afterwards in Kilbegley cemetery. May the Lord have mercy on his soul.
Sunday afternoon a Fursey from Longwood called in to tell that he had come down to buy a pony but the fair was over. He was anxious to meet Fursey White on Monday as he said he had not met any other Fursey in his life. I mentioned Fursey Hanley who was a son of Garda Hanley that once served in Shannonbridge and he said he had heard of him but never met him.
The five Belgian pike anglers finished their week s fishing holiday catching 86 pike in total which was down on recent years because of the high water level. They measure their catch in Centimeters and their top ten measured 111, 104, 98, 97, 95, 95, 95, 93, 92 and 90 Cm.
Good to see Paddy Murphy from Enniscorthy around for the past few days. Paddy is a dab hand at trimming trees and says he will shape up the trees at the Health Center and at the steps when he is here again in November. Paddy was working freelance but has now joined a nursery near Enniscorthy which he tells me employs fifty people.
Looks like our mountain climbing team are home from France. Mike our webmaster told that he had an enquiry to this site looking for a website or e-mail address for Shannonbridge Pottery.
He has also added a useful link to Ed Butler's site where photographs of The Fort taken before the renovations are to be found. See links.
Last evening Doc and Brigie Kitt and myself went to visit Pat in Tullamore hospital. Brigie was telling us an interesting story about the statue of Our Lady of Clonert. Apparently her grandfather and two other men were working on the farm when the tree that had sheltered the statue was cut down and they took it to the priest. In the hospital we met Kieran Darcy Clonfinlough, Mrs Mooney from the Doon and Martin Pat Coleman who was in visiting.
Paddy Murphy was anxious to purchase a copy of the Clonmacnois Parish book that was published for the Millenium. Father O Hanlon had a copy and says there is only about a dozen copies remaining.