Connacht Tribune
Keeping it in the family
Lifestyle – This weekend the fifth generation of the Kinnevey family will take over the running of a pub that has become an integral part of the community in Roscahill since 1826. The transition is going smoothly as Judy Murphy found out on a visit to the premises.
This Friday, Jonathan Kinnevey will become the fifth generation of his family take the reins of a business that has been part of the community in Roscahill, on the Galway-Clifden Road, since 1826.
His parents, Jack and Nuala who ran the pub for 40 years will have a formal ‘handing-over’ ceremony on the premises to mark the occasion, although they’ll continue to help out as needed.
For more than 50 years, Kinneveys’ has been based in a large 1960s building on the righthand side of the road in Roscahill as you drive from Galway – “it’s known as the orange pub”, says Nuala with a laugh. That description will have to change, as it’s being repainted a cream colour by the next generation, Jonathan and his wife Nollaig.
Originally, Kinneveys’ pub was across the road, in a building that’s still standing. It doesn’t look particularly impressive from the front, but the back is a different story – it’s deep with stone-cut features in a large space that contains the ruins of stables.
During the 19th and early 20th century travellers stabled their horses there while travelling from Galway City to the greater Connemara region, explains Jack, who was reared in the now roofless building.
Although he formally took over the business 40 years ago, Jack who’s a youthful 70, has been working in it all his life, and has fond memories of the original premises.
When he’d come home from school in the evening, he’d help out, and it was normal to have customers in the kitchen having a pint while the family was having dinner, he recalls.
“We were brought up with it and we didn’t mind.”
Those were days when women didn’t frequent pubs and weren’t encouraged to – there was a small snug at the front especially for the rare female visitor.
“It was all men at that time,” he observes, “and today, there are nearly more women than men.”
Friday was the day when pensioners came in for a drink after collecting their money in the Post Office, which also formed part of the Kinnevey family business, along with a grocery.
Jack recalls one occasion when a group of 14 pensioners from opposite sides of the parish challenged each other to a tug-o-war over post-pension drinks one Friday.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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Connacht Tribune
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Connacht Tribune
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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Connacht Tribune
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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