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Students create fairy magic in Deenagh

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FAIRY MAGIC: Students from Killarney Community College Lulu Healy and Luke O'Sullivan pictured with one of the new fairy houses.

By Michelle Crean

Children from Killarney and beyond will be thrilled to discover a magical new fairy trail in Deenagh which has just been unveiled by local students.

Just in time for the midterm break Killarney Community College students launched the 'Deenagh Fairy Trail' with fairy houses designed and created by art and TY students under the watchful eye of art teacher Michelle Mahony and TY co-ordinator Kerri McCarthy.

"Each of the houses is themed on our built and natural heritage," Kerri McCarthy said.

"The students, with Ms Mahony had the idea to create houses for fairies linked to places and themed around Killarney. This idea makes the pieces unique and one of a kind. The ideas started in late 2019 but the project was brought to a halt for some time due to school closures. Ms Mahony was delighted that students got right on task when they started back in September to complete this exciting project."

The materials used for the fairy houses is kept as natural as possible with tree trunks being the main material of construction along with slate and other stones, glass, copper, ceramic and finished off with brightly coloured paints. Each piece has its own theme, she added.

There are seven houses in total and the list are as follows: The Deenagh Fairy, The Waterfall Fairy, The Castle Fairy, The Coppermines Fairy, The Abbey Fairy, The Bricin Dinis Fairy and finally The Fairy of the Forest.

"It has been another wonderful opportunity for the students of Killarney Community College and Ms Mahony to work with Killarney Looking Good to create pieces to enhance the local environment and create a little magic for young and old alike."

Yvonne Quill Chairperson of the Looking Good Committee congratulated the students on such fantastic pieces, each house unique in its own right and with a clear link to heritage and cultural assets.

"This is the second project the students have undertaken in conjunction with the committee and we look forward to working together again in the future. A word of thanks as well to James Purcell who made the signs for each house. We look forward to the children of Killarney getting such joy from the trail."

The project was supported by Kerry County Councils Community Enhancement Programme through the Department of Rural and Community Development.

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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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