There was outrage following a serious incident of arson at St Colman’s College, Fermoy. Thousands of pounds worth of damage was caused, when ‘culprits’ - believed to be either past or current pupils due to their ‘intimate knowledge of the school’ – lit a fire in the stage/assembly hall area in the new block of the school. Only for the alertness of one ‘eagle-eyed local person’, who raised the alarm early morning having spotted the fire, there could have been ‘utter catastrophe’ as a result. Vulgar graffiti was ‘daubed’ on both blackboards and pictures hanging on walls, while the contents of some teachers’ lockers were also burnt. Fire units from Fermoy and Mitchelstown attended the scene and brought the fire under control.

It was claimed that Glanworth was being ‘underexploited in tourism terms’ – this following the visit of some 50 members of the Tipperary & District Historical Society to the North Cork village. Bernard Coleman, a native of Glanworth who was born in Barry Park and worked in Tipperary, ‘persuaded his compatriots that Glanworth was harbouring (excuse the pun…) a wealth of history’. While the visit was of a historical nature, Barry hoped it might ‘develop into a kind of mini twinning’, stating that the village had a ‘tremendous lot to offer’, however was often only discovered by tourists ‘by accident’. He suggested that souvenirs associated with the likes of the Hag’s Bed, the Abbey and castle, could be sold.

GAA seemed to dictate matters in Galbally – the annual Garden fete was postponed for two reasons – firstly the local club had qualified for the county final on the original scheduled date; while secondly, the All-Ireland final was to be held the following Sunday! Enough said…

An 18 year old West Waterford lady was preparing to represent Cork in the Rose of Tralee. Emillie Pickering, who had just completed her Leaving Cert exams at Loreto Secondary School, Fermoy was embarking on the Rose festival week, having packed her bags and headed for Dublin, to meet with fellow Rose contestants at Dublin Airport. She was gearing up for her ‘Gaybo experience’ in the Dome in Tralee, sure to be well supported by her friends in equestrian circles, as well as classmates from Loreto.

A three month tour of duty, helping the Rwandan refugees in the Goma camp in Zaire, was being undertaken by Maree Flynn, from Duntaheen Road, Fermoy. Educated at Loreto Secondary School, Fermoy and Thomond College, Limerick, Maree held the position of captain in the Army, attached to the Curragh camp. She was renewing family links by going to Zaire, as back in 1964 her father Colonel James Flynn was stationed there with the Irish contingent (then known as Congo).

A new tourist office was officially opened on Doneraile’s Main Street, with the local Community Development council hopeful that the town could become a major tourist attraction within 5 years. The Bord Failte approved office was being run by Michael and Marian Quirke. The premises being used was selected as it had a ‘shop front which was an outstanding example of Georgian art’ and was ‘very striking’.

In brief - The Avondhu broke the news that Taoiseach Albert Reynolds was to deliver the annual Liam Lynch oration at Kilcrumper old cemetery, on the 71st anniversary of the general’s death. The South Limerick village of Ballylanders was ‘opting out’ of the 1994 National Tidy Towns competition – a spokesperson told The Avondhu it was time ‘for consolidation and to take a breather’, while looking to concentrate on ‘new projects’. Mitchelstown Development Company (MDC), organisers of the annual Mitchelstown International Deer Festival, had secured the World Deer Conference, to coincide with the 1995 event – an announcement warmly welcomed, providing an ‘injection of money into the local economy, probably worth several hundreds of thousands of pounds’, according to MDC spokesman, Conor O’Callaghan.

Glanworth ladies footballer retained their Cork county senior championship title, with a hard fought victory over Ilen Rovers at Balincollig, on a final scoreline of 3-9 to 2-4. Glanworth’s goals came from Noelle O’Keeffe, Elaine Browne and captain Eilish Hanrahan.

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