Articles in the General News Category

By PATSY McARDLE COMMUNITY achievement awards, which recognized outstanding voluntary effort that exuded with a spirit of true volunteerism were signally recognized and celebrated by a large attendance which packed the Íontas Theatre, Castleblayney on Monday night last, for the presentation of nine achievement citations to highly deserving groups and individuals from all over Co. Monaghan. The audience was drawn from all across the county and included the Minister for the Arts Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys T.D., and the Castleblayney-born ...

Good fortune was on the side of Castleblayney man, David Lynch, when he won €93,000 and a car worth €30,000 in RTE’s popular Winning Streak Game show on Saturday 18th October, 2014. Pictured at the presentation of winning cheques were from left: Nuala Carey, game show co-host; David Lynch, the winning player; Harry Cooke, Head of Operations and Corporate Affairs, The National Lottery and Marty Whelan, game show co-host. The winning ticket was bought from Centra, Bective Square, Kells, Co. Meath. Meanwhile, Cootehill woman, Mary Fitzpatrick, also took part on ...

Drumhowan 0-11 Toome 0-11 By JOHN GRAHAM A point from a free by Colm Lambe in the final minute of normal time was the score that sent this junior championship match to a replay and a score too that means Blackhill have to wait at least another week to see which of these two teams they will be playing in the next round. Overall a draw was probably a fair enough result to this lively contest that was played in good conditions in Blackhill on Friday evening last as both sides had their periods ...

By PATSY McARDLE DESPITE a festive air as a handful of people gathered on West Street in Castleblayney last Thursday evening to witness the Town Council perform its final role—and formally thank the local inhabitants for their involvement with the Council since its inception as a civic body in 1853—there was an obvious sense of loss, as a new bureaucratic era was ushered in, linking Castleblayney with Carrickmacross, in a ‘new-born’ administrative body! OUTGOING town councilors, as well as Cllrs. Aidan Campbell ...

Voting in Saturday’s election in the Ballybay/Clones Municipal District will take place from 8 am until 10 pm. There are eleven candidates contesting the six available seats. Eugene Bannigan, son of the late Owen Bannigan, is joined on the Fine Gael ticket by outgoing Co Council members Hugh McElvaney and Ciara McPhillips. Sinn Fein are running two candidates, both outgoing Co Councillors – Pat Treanor and Cathy Bennett. The Fianna Fåil team consists of outgoing Co Council member Seamus Coyle, former Clones Town Council member Deirdre Kelly and former Ballybay ...

By Cianna McNally A son of the late Fine Gael councillor Owen Bannigan is attempting to step into his father’s shoes and will represent Fine Gael in this weekend’s Ballybay – Clones municipal district election. 21-year-old Eugene Bannigan joins outgoing councillors Hughie McElvaney and Ciara McPhillips on the Fine Gael ticket. The election for the Ballybay – Clones electoral area was due to go ahead on Friday, 23rd May. However, the sudden death that day of Councillor Bannigan resulted in the election being declared void and postponed until Saturday, ...

A young man was kicked and punched to the head while he lay on the floor of a Chinese take-away by two men who mistakenly believed he was an officer of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, an assault case hearing at a special sitting of Monaghan District Court was told. The defendants – Paul Campbell, aged 35, of 10 Castle Meadow Court, Tirkeenan, Monaghan and 47-year-old Michael Gallagher, Cremoyle, Swans Cross – pleaded guilty to assaulting Colin Kerr, causing him harm, at the Treasure House Chinese take-away, Glaslough Street, Monaghan ...

A Co. Monaghan woman was one of the oldest voters in the country—if not the eldest—when she cast her votes last Friday in the European and Local Elections. Mrs Molly Loughman, a widow who is in her 102nd year, and a native of Castleblayney, voted before noon at a booth, which facilitated urban residents, as well as a number of elderly patients domiciled at St. Mary’s Hospital in Castleblayney. She celebrated her 101st birthday last February and is now ...

By Cianna McNally An emotional tribute was this week paid to the late councillor Owen Bannigan by his brother Gabriel at his funeral which took place in the Sacred Heart Church, Lough Egish on Tuesday, 27th May. “Owen, you have been taken too soon. No-one will ever fill your void but your legacy will endure for generations and you will live on through Maria, Padraig, Eugene, Micheal and Aoife.”  Mr Bannigan was described by his brother as being a family man, a man of the people and a man of the ...

The entire political and community landscape of Co Monaghan was plunged into grief on Friday, May 23 last with the news of the sudden death of Fine Gael member of Monaghan Co Council Owen Bannigan. C olr Bannigan took suddenly ill in Ballybay during final canvassing for the local government elections, in which he was seeking to be returned to the Co Council as a representative for the Ballybay/Clones Municipal District.  The 51-year-old father of five is believed to have suffered a heart attack. He was pronounced dead at Cavan General Hospital ...