Newsletter 22 June 2025

CAN YOU PLEASE DONATE??

The blood supply is currently low and with a high demand for blood from our hospitals nationally, it is imperative that we continue to maintain the blood supply.

We Need Your Help this Thursday!!!

Cork Biodiversity Hub are doing something a bit different this month. At the entrance to the Cork Biodiversity hub there is a relatively big wall and they are calling on those of you who have already attended our talks who might be interested to give them a hand with their art project.

Ceramicist Julie Forrester is going to guide everyone  on designing and making a mural for this wall that reflects the beautiful, complex biosphere that we are part of. Join us on Thursday 3rd July at 7pm.

This is a great opportunity to work with a wonderfully gifted artist and create together something really special that celebrates nature, plus you will pick up some skills along the way. It will be fun, creative and memorable. All are welcome, bring yourself, your children, your grandchildren your great grandchildren!

Please drop them an email to corkbiodiversltyhub@gmail.com if you intend to come along. They will broadcast other mural workshops shortly depending on how these current times suit. Eircode: P31PX67

No Domestic Waste

Cork City Council have recently put stickers on the Waste Bins throughout Ballincollig. They have had no option because of the high amounts of people continually putting their domestic waste into the bins. Residents from Ballincollig have been observed every morning stuffing their small bags into the bins. The downside of this is that Cork City Council may start removing the bins if this persists. This is not something BTT would like to see happening but it is up to these individuals to stop.

Sunday Morning Works

On Sunday Morning Denis and his Team cleaned signs on Station Road and cleaned the kerbside near the Church of St Mary and St John. They Collected one small bags of weeds and made a huge difference.

Well done Innishmore Residents

Well done to the Residents of Innishmore who did a fantastic job at the entrance to their estate. The Welcome to Innishmore stone stands proudly.

Watering Teams

The warm weather is certainly helping our planters to thrive and are beginning to give a lovely boost of colour. This means more work for our watering teams. We started on Sunday night filling the planters at Eastgate which took over 700 litres compared to 200 last week. They also watered the towers and the Parklet.
On Monday night watering took 3.5 hours. They filled all the pole planters and ran out of water at the West Village after using 1800 litres. Diarmuid and Pat reall put in a hard shift. Jimmy and Bikunda ensured everything was filled on Tuesday.

Tuesday Morning

On Tuesday morning Jimmy and Bikunda were full on as they were topping up the water and feed in the planters at the Western end of Ballincollig. They then did an amazing job at Eastgate removing the dead foliage from both the low and high walls. They removed 2 bags of the brown dead foliage.
A great mornings work.

Cork Biodiversity Hub

Tuesday Works

On Tuesday evening we had 3 crews out. One crew were litter picking in The Village another were cutting back the hedging at the the Welcome to Ballincollig sign on the Western side at Classis where Gay and Ben made a great start on this job. The last crew did a great job preparing the area for our Anniversary Celebrations while half of the crew spent time cleaning back near the much used pedestrian entrance from the Inniscarra Road. A great night’s work.

Anniversary Preparations

On Monday morning Bikunda and Gay put the marking post’s in position for Wednesday. evenings ceremony. They then cut the grass at the entrance to the allotment, and collected the cardboard which had been dumped near the pitch at Innishmore and brought it back to HQ.

A willing workhorse being put out to grass

For the past seven years, our trusty white Peugeot Partner has been the unsung hero of Ballincollig, quietly, yet tirelessly criss-crossing our streets in the name of community spirit. If you’ve spotted a blur of white ferrying flowers, hauling tools, or helping out our hard-working volunteers and Gaisce students, chances are you’ve caught a glimpse of our van in action. Day or night, weekday or weekend, it’s been there, steadfast and reliable.
But like all hard workers, our beloved van is showing its age. Years of rubbish removal, plant transportation, and tool-lugging have taken their toll, and it’s finally time to give our four-wheeled friend a well-earned rest.
Don’t worry though, we’re not going off the road! A shiny new Partner is on its way, ready to take up the mantle and keep the wheels of our work turning smoothly. Keep your eyes peeled for it making its debut on Ballincollig’s streets very soon!
Of course, vans, unlike our flowers, don’t grow on trees. We’re incredibly grateful to our generous sponsors, whose support has made this much-needed upgrade possible. Without their help, such a significant investment simply wouldn’t have been achievable.
Here’s to new beginnings, smooth journeys, and another seven years of service with our new set of wheels!

Ballincollig RFC – Revamp

Well done to the members of Ballincollig Rugby Club who have invested a lot of money and volunteer hours in revamping the front of the club with new raised flower beds. This really enhances the external seating area. Well done everyone.

Birthday Celebrations

On Wednesday Ballincollig Tidy Towns celebrated their 60th anniversary in style. After a lot of preparations the evening started with the unveiling of two trees near the playground in Innishmore.
One tree had been planted to mark the 60 years of Tidy Towns in Ballincollig and a second tree to honour the deceased members of BTT throughout the 60 years.
It was a very special occasion attended by over 60 volunteers. Our Chairperson unveiled the tree to honour the memory of the deceased members of BTT who had done so much over the years to make Ballincollig the amazing community it is today. A very special mention was made for our very special volunteer and friend Tony Whelan RIP who is always fondly remembered.
Long serving volunteer and Ballincollig born and reared Tadg Murphy unveiled the tree to celebrate the 60th Anniversary.
We then adjourned to the White Horse for a very celebratory BBQ. It was a very special occasion and lovely to have Con O’Sullivan and Tadg Murphy join us
We enjoyed amazing food and drinks. There was an amazing atmosphere of everyone enjoying the evening.
The White Horse kindly arranged a beautiful cake for us and it was fitting that our young members cut the cake.
Our thanks to everyone who made this evening so special.

Another Very Special Birthday

On Wednesday night just when he thought he had escaped, everyone present in The White Horse sang Happy Birthday to Tadg Murphy who celebrated his 90th Birthday this week. Tadg is born and bred Ballincollig and has been a fantastic member of BTT. Asked what keeps him going a fantastic wife Mary a loving family and hard work and his garden.
Congratulations Tadg!

Flashback

Long time volunteer Fearghal passed on this picture to us this week which was taken by Tom Butler. This was taken in 2012 at one of our Worknights as we worked on the road down to the GAA Club and the Powdermills. When you think about it at that time there was no Community Nursing Unit and no Ballincollig Primary Care Centre. Even in 13 years there have been major changes.

Commemorative Trees

As part of our 60th Anniversary Celebrations we wanted to mark the occasion for future generations so we sought the advice of our own John Buckley and Ronan Nangle of Nangle & Niesen Ltd. They came up with the idea of two Bee Bee Trees and Nangle and Niesen Ltd. very kindly sponsored them. We agreed locations with Cork City Council and Monika from Printout designed and supplied beautiful signs. John Buckley kindly planted the trees. A fitting tribute for everyone to enjoy.

Thursday Morning

Ger and Bikunda put up the last of the flowers on the poles on Thursday morning. They then segregated last Sunday’s rubbish and brought a full trailer load for recycling.

Old Fort Road Tidy Up

On Thursday evening for our Worknights 15 volunteers assembled on The Old Fort Road and did a mighty job as can be seen from the before & after photos. We cut the grass and also tidied up the beds close by.

Dear Friends,

Ensuring the rights of children are promoted and protected – including the right to live free from poverty – remains a key focus of many of our partners as we prepare for #Budget2026 in October. We have updates from the Children’s Rights Alliance and Community Law and Mediation.

The #RTEToyShowAppeal Grants are out and children in every county are set to benefit.

Plus as Pride Month draws to a close our partners at LGBT Ireland are looking to the future and share their thoughts on video as Dublin prepares for its big weekend!

Do you share our equality mission? Are you looking for a new role working with partners who share our goal? We have updates on vacancies in the team.

I hope you enjoy the updates.

For the latest news, be sure to keep the conversation going on our social media channels, including LinkedIn.

Today, we are taking part in ‘Your Council Day’ along with the other 30 Local Authorities across the country. Throughout the day, we will be sharing content across our social channels highlighting the work that our colleagues carry our daily to deliver over 1,074 services to the people of Cork.

Keep an eye on our socials throughout the day, you may see someone you know!