Drum Notes

'Cupán Tae' for Seachtain na Gaeilge: Drum Community Centre invites you to join them for a 'Cupán Tae' to celebrate Seachtain na Gaeilge. The annual festival runs nationwide until St Patrick"s Day and aims to promote the use of the Irish language in everyday life. National and local events are being organised across the country and Drum Community Centre in Athlone is set to play its part in promoting our native tongue by hosting a Coffee Morning on Saturday 14th March from 11am to 2pm. Regardless of how much or how little Irish you have ,you are invited to come along and speak a cúpla focal, have a bit of fun and enjoy a cupán tae. Australian Visitors Arrive In Drum On Friday week last an Australian family consisting of a young gentleman named Peter Lennon, his wife and young daughter arrived on a visit to the Drum Heritage Visitor Centre. They came in the hope that they could seek out any known relatives of their grandfather, an Edward Lennon whom they believed was born in Drum and emigrated to Australia during the early years of the twentieth century. The couple also knew that Edward"s parents were a Thomas Lennon and his wife Sarah who lived at Clonellan after their marriage in the closing years of the 19th century. What they didn"t know was that a Judith Lennon, a grand-daughter of Edward"s brother Denis Lennon, arrived in Ireland to carry out similar research on this same family in 1994. Judith"s abridged research is compiled in an article on the townland of Clonellan and is featured in the recently launched Drum Heritage book 'Bygone Times'. There is also a presentation in the Heritage Centre showing detailed information on Denis Lennon"s struggle to make a decent living on a holding he acquired from the Australian Commonwealth Government in New South Wales. Having studied the presentation which includes family photographs the visitors then proceeded to the monastic site where they photographed a very fine memorial erected over the last resting place of Peter"s great-grandfather Thomas and Sarah Lennon. Sarah"s maiden name was Naughton, she having hailed from Moore parish at the time of her marriage to Thomas Lennon. Then fortune smiled for the visitors when the Heritage Group"s committee member Jimmy Moore came on the scene and offered to take the visitors to call on one of their nearest relations, a Mary O"Brien (nee Lennon) who lives with her husband Ray and young family in the townland of Clonboley. Afterwards they all went to visit the ancestral home place in Clonellan of Peter"s grandfather Edward who was one of five Lennon brothers who took the emigrant ship to Australia. Later the visitors met with more relations including a Bridie Egan of Athlone and a Timothy Lennon of Curryroe. Drum and Clonown Community Games Swimming 2009 The Drum and Clonown Community Games Swimming Competition 2009 for boys and girls in the Under 8"s, 10"s, 12"s. 14"s and 16"s takes place in the Athlone Swimming Pool on St. Patrick"s Day 17th March at 9.45a.m. Enquiries to Mark Connell at (086-8483270). Drum ICA The monthly meeting of Drum ICA took place in Drum Community Centre on Tuesday, March 3, and was attended by a big turnout of members. Apologies were received from Josephine McManus, Marie Naughton, Mary Duignan and Bernadette Shine. The President Margaret T. Fallon extended a warm welcome to all present on behalf of the Guild and extended a vote of sympathy to Bridgie Lennon on the death of her husband Frank, to Kitty Harney on the death of her brother Frank Lennon and to Rose Lawless on the death of her father Leonard Sammon, Kilkenny West. A very comprehensive account of the Guild"s February Meeting was presented by the Guild Secretary Annette Durney and any matters arising attended to. Members were informed that the Roscommon Federation Meeting takes place in Hannon"s Hotel, Roscommon, on Sunday, March 8, at 3pm. The outgoing National President Carmel Dawson will attend this meeting and a large representation from every guild is expected. The Drum Heritage Group"s correspondence requesting support from the Guild for their annual Table Quiz was read and members encouraged to support. The Summer Outing 2008 was discussed and the destination this year will be Belfast on a Saturday in June. More details at our meeting in April. The guest speakers this month were Nicola Ryan ITEC IGCP - Natural Health Consultant, Fiona Tyndall and Phil Dowling from Sangoma Therapies & Training, Scotch Parade, Athlone who gave presentations on the value of Thermo Auricular Therapy or HOPI Ear Candling, sports and injury massage and reflexology. They also informed members on all the other facilities available at Sangomi. Their presentation was educational, encouraging and beneficial to all present and thoroughly enjoyed. The Drum members continue to enjoy the Bridge Classes, Bowling and Ceili and Barn Dancing which are ongoing. Members wish to congratulate two members of the Kiltoom Guild Wendy Donoghue and Ann Murphy on their success at national level in the Make & Model and Short Story Competitions, respectively. They represented their Guild and County with pride. The hostesses were Colette Harney, Eileen Lawless and Annette Durney. Next meeting takes place on Tuesday 7th April at the same venue.