CITY TRIBUNE
Galway native aims to use foundation of friendship to help in time of need
Many’s the good idea is conceived sitting around the kitchen table. But most remain just that – ideas never realised.
One man, however – who came up with an idea on how to help a friend in need – was determined to do something so that other people who faced similar obstacles could get the help they needed to get on with their lives.
‘Cáirde – Friends Matter’ is a nationwide initiative that was conceived around a Galway table but could help countless families once it is rolled out in communities, sporting clubs and schools.
The man behind the movement is Tadhg Ó Beaglaoich from Salthill, who now lives in Newbridge, Co Kildare. Other Galway-based founding members were Andrew Murphy, Clement Shevlin, and John Joe Burke.
Tadhg saw first-hand how a friend facing mental health issues found it hard to make his way in life.
“I have been aware from a young age how problems can hinder you from getting on with your life. In my own case it was dyslexia, which I hid for years.
“There are a range of problems relating to mental health issues from social anxiety, which can be crippling, to depression, to feeling suicidal.
“But there are also other problems like domestic violence, bereavement or post-natal depression, for example, which are all issues people don’t want or feel they can’t talk about,” said Tadhg.
He said he wanted to provide a peer-to-peer support group where people could reach out to people via a network organised centrally. As he says himself, “ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine” which translates as ‘the importance of supporting one another’.
But primarily, Cáirde is an approved housing body which got charity status a fortnight ago which will be engaging with local authorities to secure accommodation for those who suffer from from any variation of mental health issue.
Tadhg is a firm believer that having a roof over your head is a basic necessity but that all too often, people can lose their homes due to their own mental health issues.
Cáirde will be providing homes by coming up with 20% of funding required per unit with the balance paid for out of public funds.
“This is not about homelessness,” stresses Cathie Farrell, a Salthill woman who has known Tadhg all her life and who has come on board to help get the movement off the ground.
Cathie, who is currently living in Dublin, is thrilled to be in a position to help and indeed is one of a handful of key people Tadhg has entrusted with a number of various strands of Cáirde.
“As well as concentrating on the accommodation aspect, we are also in the process of, through social media, publicity and word of mouth, establishing a network of people who want to volunteer.
“A group of trustees is currently being trained in first response course given by the St John of Gods in Stillorgan which will educate people on knowing what signs to look for in people suffering from anxiety, depression or whatever.
“And we also hope to roll out something similar in schools educating children as young as nine in recognising mental health issues and more importantly helping to remove the stigma surrounding all aspects of mental health and provide early intervention,” said Cathie.
Both Cathie and Tadhg acknowledge that there are other organisations providing support and backup for people with mental health issues but believe that Cáirde will fill a particular gap.
Cáirde recognises that there are many strands of mental health and that possibly social anxiety and a bout of depression for example are not always taken as seriously as other types of mental health issues.
Tadhg adds: “If your social anxiety means you can’t leave the house, it means you can’t do your job. And if you can’t do your job, you may not be able to pay for or secure accommodation.
“We have certainly lost something since the boom years. We are answerable to technology instead of to one another and I am hoping that this peer-to-peer network will address that.”
And though Tadhg, who lived in Galway from the age of one up until he moved to Newbridge three years ago, has been working on his idea for over two years, he found out recently that a very similar organisation was set up in Australia.
In fact there are any number of mentoring organisations worldwide but obviously Cáirde will be tailored to suit the Irish, a country renowned for its friendliness, its homeliness and generosity.
But Tadhg is now hoping that Irish people will direct all these good traits into helping people in their own community.
Cáirde is being officially launched in Dingle at the end of the month with a number of activities including a cycle around Slea Head, a golf classic, soccer, GAA and rugby tournaments.
Similar fundraising events will be taking place during the year in Galway and elsewhere and anyone interested in getting involved as a volunteer, to donate, sponsor or participate can get in touch with either Cathie or Tadhg at 086-8131452.
■ More information about ‘Cáirde Friends Matter’ can be accessed on their Facebook page or at cairde.org
From the Galway City Tribune – An impassioned plea for a ‘masterplan’ that would guide Galway City into the future has been made in the Dáil. Galway West TD Catherine Connolly stated this week that there needed to be an all-inclusive approach with “vision and leadership” in order to build a sustainable city.
Deputy Connolly spoke at length at the crisis surrounding traffic and housing in Galway city and said that not all of the blame could be laid at the door of the local authority.
She said that her preference would be the provision of light rail as the main form of public transport, but that this would have to be driven by the government.
“I sat on the local council for 17 years and despaired at all of the solutions going down one road, metaphorically and literally. In 2005 we put Park & Ride into the development plan, but that has not been rolled out. A 2016 transport strategy was outdated at the time and still has not been updated.
“Due to the housing crisis in the city, a task force was set up in 2019. Not a single report or analysis has been published on the cause of the crisis,” added Deputy Connolly.
She then referred to a report from the Land Development Agency (LDA) that identified lands suitable for the provision of housing. But she said that two-thirds of these had significant problems and a large portion was in Merlin Park University Hospital which, she said, would never have housing built on it.
In response, Minister Simon Harris spoke of the continuing job investment in the city and also in higher education, which is his portfolio.
But turning his attention to traffic congestion, he accepted that there were “real issues” when it came to transport, mobility and accessibility around Galway.
“We share the view that we need a Park & Ride facility and I understand there are also Bus Connects plans.
“I also suggest that the City Council reflect on her comments. I am proud to be in a Government that is providing unparalleled levels of investment to local authorities and unparalleled opportunities for local authorities to draw down,” he said.
Then Minister Harris referred to the controversial Galway City Outer Ring Road which he said was “struck down by An Bord Pleanála”, despite a lot of energy having been put into that project.
However, Deputy Connolly picked up on this and pointed out that An Bord Pleanála did not say ‘No’ to the ring road.
“The High Court said ‘No’ to the ring road because An Bord Pleanála acknowledged it failed utterly to consider climate change and our climate change obligations.
“That tells us something about An Bord Pleanála and the management that submitted such a plan.”
In the end, Minister Harris agreed that there needed to be a masterplan for Galway City.
“I suggest it is for the local authority to come up with a vision and then work with the Government to try to fund and implement that.”
The new Salmon Weir pedestrian and cycle bridge will be officially opened to the public next Friday, May 26.
Work on the €10 million bridge got underway in April 2022, before the main structure was hoisted into place in early December.
A lunchtime tape-cutting ceremony will take place on Friday, as the first pedestrians and cyclists traverse the as-yet-unnamed bridge.
The Chief Executive of Galway City Council, Brendan McGrath, previously said the bridge, once opened, would remove existing conflicts between pedestrians, cyclists and traffic “as well as facilitating the Cross-City Link public transport corridor over the existing 200-year-old bridge”.
The naming of the new bridge has been under discussion by the Council’s Civic Commemorations Committee since late last year.
One name that has been in the mix for some time is that of the first woman in Europe to graduate with an engineering degree – Alice Perry.
Ms Perry, who was from Wellpark, graduated from Queen’s College Galway (now University of Galway) in 1906. The university’s engineering building is named in her honour.
The bridge was built by Jons Civil Engineering firm in County Meath and was assembled off-site before being transported to Galway. Funding for the project was provided in full by the National Transport Authority and the European Regional Development Fund.
(Photo: Sheila Gallagher captured the city’s new pedestrian footbridge being raised on the south side of the Salmon Weir Bridge in December. It will officially open next Friday, May 26).
From the Galway City Tribune – Minister of State for Local Government and Planning, Kieran O’Donnell was labelled a “disgrace” for overturning councillors’ decisions to rezone land in the new City Development Plan.
Minister O’Donnell (pictured) confirmed in a letter to Council Chief Executive Brendan McGrath last week that he was reversing 25 material alternations made by councillors to the CDP 2023-29. He made the decision on the advice of Office of Planning Regulator (OPR).
Minister O’Donnell directed that 14 land parcels that were subject to land-use zoning changes by councillors as part of the Material Alterations to the Draft CDP should be reversed.
He directed that a further 11 land parcels in the city should become “unzoned”.
The Minister found that the CDP had not been made in a manner consistent with recommendations of the OPR, which required specific changes to the plan to ensure consistency with the national planning laws and guidelines.
At last week’s Council meeting Cllr Eddie Hoare (FG) asked for clarity on the process by which councillors could rezone the lands that had been changed by the Minister’s direction.
Cllr Declan McDonnell said, “What he [Minister O’Donnell] has done is an absolute disgrace”.
And he asked: “Do we have to have another development plan meeting to deal with it?”
Both Cllrs Hoare and McDonnell wondered what would become of the lands that were rezoned or unzoned by the ministerial direction.
Mr McGrath said the Council had put forward an argument in favour of retaining the material alterations in the plan, but ultimately the Minister sided with OPR.
He said if councillors want to make alterations to the new plan, they could go through the process of making a material alteration but this was lengthy.
The Save Roscam Peninsula campaign welcomed the Minister’s decision.
In a statement to the Galway City Tribune, it said the direction would mean the Roscam village area on the Roscam Peninsula will be unzoned and a number of land parcels would revert back to agriculture/high amenity.
A spokesperson for the campaign said: “the material alterations made by city councillors following lobbying by developers continued the long-standing practice of councillors facilitating a developer-led plan rather than an evidence- and policy-based plan that meets the needs of the city.
“The Minister’s direction is an important step in restoring confidence in the planning system. It is clear from the City Council’s own evidence on future housing projections that there was no requirement to zone these lands for residential purposes in order to meet the needs of the targeted population increase up to 2029,” the spokesperson added.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
