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Magical Christmas experience to benefit local groups

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EXCITEMENT: Ryan Lynch and his friends will run a sweet shop at The Killarney Christmas Tree Farm which promises a magical Santa experience for all.

By Michelle Crean

Santa Claus is coming to town - and to help keep him safe, he'll be in a special "bubble" - but is excitedly getting ready to meet local children.

The elves have worked their magic and are bringing the man in red to Killarney before he gets too busy in his workshop making toys.

Tonight (Friday) from 6pm he is planning a trip from Killorglin in a special red open top Mercedes and will make his way to Beaufort where he will pass by slowly waving at the children before driving through Killarney town. Then it's off to The Killarney Christmas Tree Farm where he'll eagerly await visiting children tomorrow (Saturday) and Sunday.

With a fairy trail, festive wooden decorations made by Killarney Community College students, a dock with hot chocolate and refreshments - and even a sweet shop, it promises to be a magical experience.

An idea by Nicola Lynch and her father Nick Foley, the trail will light up in different colours resembling the northern lights. Santa will be in one giant four metre by four metre bubble lit red where he can interact with the children. A second bubble of the same size further away will have three naughty elves inside.

"When we put it online it completely bookedout immediately and the website crashed," Nicola told the Killarney Advertiser.
"When someone buys a Christmas tree or a wreath they get a golden ticket to get in. He'll be here every Saturday from 12-6 and Sunday in the run up to Christmas. We can only have three families at a time every half hour due to social distancing."
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However, the idea is not concentrating on profit - as charities and groups will benefit including St Vincent de Paul with the money staying locally, and the Tralee Soup Kitchen. Her eight-year-old son Ryan and his friends are also running a sweet shop which raised €650 which they're donating to Fossa GAA Club.
"There is also a post box for the kids - but it's different - as we're asking them to write their letters which I will post to local care homes."

For now it's all booked out but follow their Facebook page: Killarney Christmas Trees for updates.

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Five local postmen retire with 185 years service

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Five local postmen retire with 185 years service

RETIREMENT NIGHT: Pictured at the retirement party held at Killarney Racecourse on Saturday, October 3, celebrating a combined 185 years of service with An Post, are Connie Brady, James Foley, Terry Potts, Pat Cronin, and D.J. Cahill.


Five well-known local postmen celebrated their retirement at a special function held at Killarney Racecourse on Saturday night, October 3.


The event brought together current and former An Post colleagues to mark the combined total of 185 years of service delivered across Killarney and surrounding areas.
Delivery Services Manager Terry Potts retired after 43 years with An Post. He began his career in Dublin, where he worked for 10 years, before moving to Killarney in 1993 for a further 33 years.
Pat Cronin completed an impressive 51 years of service between Killarney and Farranfore, spending 44 of those years delivering post on the Farranfore route.
James Foley served 35 years with An Post, delivering on routes across Killorglin throughout his entire career.
D.J. Cahill marked 32 years of service based out of Killarney post office, delivering mail across Killarney town, Killorglin, Kilcummin, and Headford.
Connie Brady retired following 24 years with the postal service, spending 17 years in Killarney town before completing his service in Killorglin.
The celebration offered local postal staff an opportunity to gather and catch up ahead of the busy Christmas rush.

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New Streetscapes murals launched at College Square

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A colourful collaboration between the Kerry Local Creative Youth Partnership (LCYP) and the Architecture Kerry Festival at Kerry County Council launched yesterday evening at College Square.

Titled Streetscapes, the open-air public art installation officially opened at 5pm on Thursday, accompanied by a performance from the Killarney Youth Drumming Band THUMP! under the guidance of Urs Wenk from Drum Dance Ireland.


The public art project features a series of wall murals depicting Killarney through the eyes of local children, exploring freedom, play, and potential future evolutions of the townscape.

The artworks reimagine Killarney’s iconic landmarks and streets, blending youthful imagination and curiosity.


Supported under the Creative Ireland Programme, the installation is mounted on the gable wall of Reen’s Life Pharmacy in College Square, where it will remain on public display until March 2027.


Speaking at the launch, Daniel O’Shea, Youth Development Officer at Kerry ETB, stated: “Streetscapes is a wonderful celebration of how children see things. Their creativity brings new perspectives to the townscape, and we are proud to support their ideas and their art through this public artwork.”


Deirdre Enright, Co-Ordinator of the Local Creative Youth Partnership at Kerry ETB, acknowledged the community support behind the initiative: “We are very grateful to Reen’s Life Pharmacy who have shared their built space with us. Huge credit is due to the artistic team from Me+The Moon whose dedication to creativity and to children’s art shine through in this work.”


The project forms part of the annual Architecture Kerry Festival and receives funding through Creative Ireland and the Department of Education and Youth via Kerry ETB and Kerry County Council.


Victoria McCarthy, Festival Organiser and Architectural Conservation Officer at Kerry County Council, welcomed the continued inter-agency project: “It’s always a great event for Architecture Kerry and we are so pleased with this collaboration between public sector organisations. It remains a key feature of the Architecture Kerry programme.”
See next week’s Killarney Advertiser for full photographic coverage of the event.

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