Memorable reopening of Emily Square & St Michael's Church

IT was wonderful to see the official opening of Athy’s plaza coinciding with the completion of two excellent murals on the walls of O’Brien’s pub and Osborne’s solicitors, which have been part of Athy’s commercial life for more than 100 years.

It is marvellous that we can now enjoy the works of two talented artists, courtesy of those property owners, the artists and Kildare County Council. Congratulations to Shauna Blanchfield and Emily Rainsford, the artists involved.

The official opening of Athy’s plaza was an event which caught the local community’s interest, and despite the poor weather it attracted a sizeable crowd of locals.

Did I imagine it or were there nine or ten speakers on the platform, all giving us the same message?

Thankfully the speeches were relatively short, despite the impression that we were attending a county council meeting!

I enjoyed all the fine music that day but would also have liked to see Athy’s Comhaltas Ceoltóirí on stage. The entire event was a memorable one and was a fitting end to the first-class work in the remodeling of Emily Square.

There is one area of the council’s work with which I must, however, disagree. The 1798 memorial should have been positioned where the Duke of Leinster’s fountain is now located.

The fountain, which no longer works, is of no architectural importance and might have been better transferred to the People’s Park which was gifted by the Duke of Leinster to the people of Athy in the 1850s.

After all, it was in the square in Athy that triangles were erected and where local men were flogged during the 1798 Rebellion.

I hope that the clock in the Town Hall, soon to re-open as the ‘Shackleton Experience’, will be operational before long. Can someone in Kildare County Council confirm this?

I have what is perhaps an unusual request to make in relation to the bell which hangs over the clock.

The bell was made for the Church of Ireland church located in the back square in 1682, and it was transferred to the Town Hall when that church was demolished following the opening of the present St Michael’s Church of Ireland in 1840.

Would it be possible to have the bell ring at noon every day? I believe that if the three-hundred-year-old bell is rung at noon every day it would be a reminder of our heritage and history, and a unique feature of today’s Athy. What about it, Kildare County Council?

Following the reopening of the square, which I now call the ‘plaza’, a ceremony took place on the following day in St Michael’s Church on the Carlow Road to celebrate the reopening of the church. This followed a three-month closure to facilitate improvement works. The ceremony, organised by the select vestry members and the rector, Rev Conor O’Reilly, was attended by the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Michael Jackson and the Parish Priest of St Michael’s Catholic Church, Fr Liam Rigney. It was wonderful to see Fr Rigney’s presence and his involvement in the ceremony.

It reminded me of the time many decades ago when we Catholics were actively discouraged from entering Protestant churches, and I am sure Protestants were discouraged from attending Catholic churches.

How ridiculous it was to stop either side from attending neighbours’ funerals, for example. Can you recall the members of the Irish government standing outside the railings of St Patrick’s, Dublin while the funeral service of our first president, Douglas Hyde, was taking place inside the cathedral?

It was great to see Fr Rigney giving a talk during the ceremony and participating in the service. Well done to Carl Coyle, organist, and the Stedfast band who provided music during the service.

While writing of the Stedfast band I am reminded of a query I had from an amateur musician recently arrived in Athy who is keen to join an ensemble, having played with the Butter Exchange Brass and Reed Band in Cork. I am surprised that Athy with its rich history of pipe bands, marching bands and showbands has not at present a local brass band. Are there, I wonder, any musicians interested in coming together to form a band? If so, please contact me.

On musical matters, I was sorry to learn that ‘Shepherd’s Watched’ will not be performed before Christmas, as it has been for the last 35 years.

I gather this is because the Athy Musical and Dramatic Society is currently inactive, which is a pity given the honorable legacy of Athy’s musical and dramatic societies going back over many decades.

However, I believe that Capella Productions Athy are currently in rehearsal, under their musical director Joseph Gorman, for a Christmas production in the Parish Church in December.

Another loss to Athy is the annual art exhibition which gave local artists, as well as artists from Carlow and elsewhere, the opportunity to display and sell their work. Could we hope that both the Musical and Dramatic Society and the Athy Art Group can be revived?

I cannot finish this week’s Eye without congratulating the Clanard Court Hotel management team and staff on being declared amongst the best 100 hotels in Ireland. This is a wonderful achievement when one considers that there are more than 700 hotels in the country.

Remember, the Lions Club’s Book Fair takes place in the ARCH on Saturday 4 October, starting at 11am and finishing at 4pm.

FRANK TAAFFE