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“We’ll be at the door to welcome you in”

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A WARM WELCOME: Fr Kieran O'Brien from St Mary's Cathedral will be on hand to welcome parishioners back to Mass next week. Photo: Michelle Crean

By Michelle Crean

Mass returns next week but it'll be a different experience to what it was pre-lockdown with a smaller barely there congregation, hand sanitisers and face visors for the priests.

In Killarney, St Mary's Cathedral has the capacity for 1,400 parishioners. However, current Government guidelines are set to just 50 people indoors which includes the Priest, Sacristans, Eucharistic Ministers and ushers - but as the cathedral is so large, Parish Administrator Fr Kieran O'Brien says they can easily accommodate 200 people while staying within the two metre distance rule.

"We know people are longing to come back," Fr Kieran told the Killarney Advertiser this week. "We'll be at the door to welcome you in. There is capacity for 200 with social distancing taken into account that we've calculated."

The plans and preparations are well underway but it'll be a gradual process, he added.

Before entering parishioners are asked to hand sanitise and respect social distancing as ushers guide them to their seats. During Mass Fr Kieran will sanitise his hands and wear a facial visor before giving out communion and is respectfully asking people to take the communion in their hand.

After each Mass the church will be sanitised and cleaned by a team of volunteers.

Also this weekend, the cathedral will be 'fogged' clean which will last for three days, ahead of its official reopening for Masses.

Although in recent weeks people have been allowed in for personal prayer from 11am to 5.45pm, he said that it's been a difficult few months saying Mass in an empty church alone.

"It has been difficult certainly - this pandemic has affected everyone. But people were tuning in on the Internet and their radios and people sent us messages of appreciation."

And he added, that in future baptisms will more than likely be one service for four separate families with a maximum of 15 family members each.

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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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Dr Crokes stalwarts enjoy lake cruise

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Dr Crokes stalwarts enjoy lake cruise

Dr Crokes stalwarts enjoy lake cruise

Dr Crokes GAA Club hosted a special day out for its senior members on Monday, this week, taking a group aged between 70 and 90 on a cruise across the Lakes of Killarney.

Organised by the Dr Crokes Healthy Club committee under its Crokes Cruisers initiative, the event was held to recognise the lifetime contribution made by long-standing members who continue to support club activities behind the scenes.
The group travelled on two vessels, including An Cathal, an open boat operated by local brothers Tony and Mike Fleming. Built to preserve the traditional Killarney lake boat style, it is the only purpose-built, fully accessible boat on the lakes, allowing members with mobility issues and wheelchair users to safely join the two-hour trip.
Following the lake tour, the party gathered on shore for coffee and refreshments provided by Derric McMahon and Harry Clifton of the Ross Castle Garden Cafe.
The initiative forms part of the club’s ongoing community work as a Gold Award winner in the GAA Healthy Club programme.

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