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Kidney Respite Centre opens in Killarney

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RESPITE: John and Anne Keady arriving at new Irish Kidney Association respite/holiday home on the Muckross Road.

By Sean Moriarty

A new holiday house for kidney transplant patients and those on dialysis has just opened in Killarney.

The new facility on the Muckross Road will allow patients enjoy a holiday while undergoing treatment or recovering from a transplant operation.

It is managed by the Irish Kidney Association (IKA) with support from the local branch.

The Killarney facility is the second one in the county, an existing holiday house in Tralee has been in operation since 2006.

Patients can liaise with the IKA’s head office in Dublin and they will allocate a week’s holiday at the house while at the same time booking in their thrice-weekly treatments at University Hospital Kerry (UHK) in Tralee. The facility is also suitable for patients who can self-treat and one of the bedrooms in the house is converted into a home dialysis unit.

Last week Galway man John Keady became the first kidney patient to use the new facility.

Since his transplant in 2015, he has been unable to work which meant current finances would not allow for holidays.

“It was like a five-star hotel,” he told the Killarney Advertiser. “It is a fantastic facility and I was able to enjoy a proper holiday.”

So far the local branch of the IKA have raised over €180,000 for the facility, mainly through the annual Ring of Kerry Cycle, but fundraising remains on-going to pay for the upkeep of the house and to purchase additional equipment.

Proceeds from this Sunday’s Ring of Kerry Honda 50 run will go towards the new facility which will be officially opened in September.

“Fundraising is on-going to pay for maintenance,” Theresa Looney, Local Branch Secretary told the Killarney Advertiser. “We run it on behalf of the IKA and manage bookings, cleaning staff and thing like that. There are 500 people all over Ireland awaiting a transplant and this will allow them to have one week holiday respite in Killarney.”

The annual Honda 50 run was launched on Thursday evening – more details in our dedicated motoring section on page 54.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Chamber pays tribute to late Dick Henggeler

Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce has expressed condolences following the death of Dick Henggeler, the well-known owner of The Rose Hotel in Tralee. Mr Henggeler passed away peacefully at […]

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Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce has expressed condolences following the death of Dick Henggeler, the well-known owner of The Rose Hotel in Tralee.

Mr Henggeler passed away peacefully at his home in Baltimore, USA surrounded by his Aghadoe-born wife Eibhlin (née Moriarty), their son Franz, and other family members.
Dick and Eibhlin purchased The Rose Hotel in 2015 in tribute to their late daughter Dorothy, who represented Washington DC in the 2011 Rose of Tralee Festival.
The Chamber said Mr Henggeler would be remembered for his warmth, good nature and positive approach, as well as for being a forward-thinking and knowledgeable businessman.
“He knew how to run a good hotel and that was and still is very obvious at The Rose Hotel, which is a great success story,” the Chamber said.
It added that continuity of ownership will remain in place, with Eibhlin, Franz, daughter-in-law Amber, and grandchildren Conrad and Rowan continuing to honour Dick’s legacy and vision for the hotel.
“Dick took enormous personal pride in Tralee and all of Kerry and he was always available to generously support any community initiative or endeavour undertaken in Killarney,” the Chamber said.
“He will be greatly missed by all that knew him but he leaves a wonderful legacy.”

He will repose at O’Shea’s Funeral Home, Killarney, on Friday (October 17), from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. The funeral will arrive at St Mary’s Cathedral on Saturday morning at 10:00am for Requiem Mass at 10:30am, with burial afterwards in Aghadoe Cemetery. The Requiem Mass will be live streamed at https://www.churchservices.tv/killarneycathedral.

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Beaufort Film Night returns with French drama-comedy

Beaufort Film Night will return on Friday (October 17) at Cullina National School, with a screening of the French drama-comedy The Marching Band. The film tells the story of Thibaut, […]

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Beaufort Film Night will return on Friday (October 17) at Cullina National School, with a screening of the French drama-comedy The Marching Band.

The film tells the story of Thibaut, a successful conductor recently diagnosed with leukaemia. A search for a bone marrow donor reveals that he was adopted and has a brother, Jimmy, a cafeteria worker.
The two meet, discover a shared love of music, and form a strong bond through an unexpected collaboration with Jimmy’s workplace band.
The Marching Band (French title En Fanfare) will screen at 8.30pm. Admission is €7, cash only, and will cover the motion picture licence fee.
The film has a 12A rating and is in French with English subtitles.
Beaufort Film Night is a non-profit community group that screens cultural English and international films that usually do not receive general release in Kerry.
The event is supported by Kerry County Council Arts Office and Access Cinema. Cullina National School is providing the venue.
Further details are available on Beaufort Film Night’s Facebook page @BeaufortFilmNight.

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