Carmel O’Neill sent us this update:
Archbishop Dermot Farrell presented an Eco-Congregation Ireland Award to Blessington Parish on May 7th on behalf of Eco-Congregation Ireland.
This award was the culmination of three years work carried out by the Care of the Earth ministry team. It involved projects on a spiritual, practical, community and global level in the churches of Blessington, Lacken and Valleymount.
Carmel O Neill welcomed and thanked the Tidy Town/Village groups and the Green schools members present for their inspirational work on biodiversity in the locality and for raising an awareness on the problems caused by Climate Change.
Archbishop Farrell paid tribute to the immense contribution made by Sr Catherine Brennan RIP who was so supportive and encouraging of all the work being done in parishes throughout the country. May Sr Catherine rest in peace.
Following refreshments in the Coimin Centre, Archbishop Farrell blessed a dwarf apple tree to launch our next project- the creation of a sensory garden in the grounds of the parish centre which will be used for the care of our senior citizens.
Fiadh Cooney , a pupil from Blessington junior school read her award winning poem on saving our seas from plastic pollution.
As part of their preparation for First Holy Communion, pupils from Blessington No 1 NS composed their own psalm in praise and thanksgiving for the beauty of God’s creation. They were inspired by looking at photographs taken by the late Fr Kevin Lyon RIP who himself was a keen photographer. During the years following his retirement as parish priest, he enjoyed going out in all weathers capturing the beauty of the lake, woodlands and hills in the Blessington area. He left us a wonderful legacy of hundreds of photographs which are on sale in the parish office.
The children also made a Lenten promise on Care of the Earth as part of the Trocaire Lenten campaign.
On Mar 30th, Carmel O Neill joined the pupils of Lacken NS who were taken on a Nature walk by local botanist Patrick Hunt. Patrick identified a number of wildflowers on the lane leading to the lake and alerted the children to the song of the wren, thrush and blue tit en route. He used the Merlin App in the hope of drawing the birds closer to the group but without success. He stressed the importance of maintaining our whitethorn hedgerows as a source of food for early foraging bees. There were a number of healthy Ash trees on the lane and Patrick alerted them to the signs of ash die back which has decimated many trees around the country.
The principal of Lacken Ns invited Carmel O Neill to meet with the student council and set up a school vegetable garden. The school sourced used tractor tyres as planters and had them filled with top soil.
Carmel meets with the group on a weekly basis to monitor and give advice on planting. To date we have planted potatoes, strawberries, herbs lettuce beetroot, carrots, onions, spinach and broad beans. It is hoped that this will encourage the children to start growing some fruit or vegetable at home.
