Gníomhaíochtaí do Phobal Loch an Iúir. Provide a range of activities for the over 65s.

Description

Coiste Cultúrtha Loch an Iúir actively organise an run various courses and activities for the Loch an Iúir community but with a focus on the older residents of the village. Courses are run in conjunction with the Donegal ETB and most recently Healthy Ireland. We organise outdoor gardening, where we visit each participants gardens, have refreshments afterwards. We also organise regular walking activities where we provide refreshments and entertainment afterwards in Teach Niall Ó Dónaill (when is the home of author of ‘Foclóir Gaeilge – Béarla’. Most of these activities are run through the medium of Irish, which encourages the use of the Irish langauge in this Gaeltacht area.

We also organise classes for example, DIY for ladies, etc. These classes are a great success and each class brings a variety of projects going home with participants. These project included ‘wendy houses’, reupholstering items of furniture, etc.

We are now organising a Healthy Food made easy course funded through the SláinteCare initiative. This course will be focused on older people but again anybody can join.

We also organise entertainment evenings, were we gather together, and people can sing, dance, play a musical instrument or just listen. We provide refreshments at these evenings and again a great success.

We are a very small village with a population of just over 400 people and Teach Niall Ó Dónaill is the only community facility available. We try and use this facility to the benefit of the community and provide as many activities as possible.

Aim of Initiative

The aim of this initiative is to provide a safe environment for the people of Loch an Iúir to enjoy a range of activities. We encourage all residents to join us in activities, especially older people. We want to provide a range of activities for the people of Loch an Iúir, especially older people, in the village itself where people have a change to meet each other in a safe environment. We also feel it is important to provide opportunities for people to meet outside of a ‘pub’. its a social inclusion project also.

Who is it aimed at

This initiative is aimed at the people of Loch an Iúir but essentially it is aimed at the older, more isolated people, those living alone, those that do not want to go to a pub and generally those looking to meet others in a safe environment.

3 Steps critical to success

1. Funding.
   The classes are funded through the ETB and the walking events funded through the Healthy Ireland and SláinteCare initiatives. Without funding to pay musicians it is difficult to organise events like this. The sing song evenings are usually funded through a donation at the door which helps cover the costs of the refreshments and overheads.
2. Advertisement
   We only advertise through our Facebook page and more importantly through word of mouth. But again it is important to advertise and let people know what is happening and when it is happening. Word gets around.
3. The Committee
   Like every small community, without the help of volunteers these events would not take place. In our case, having a fire lit in Teach Niall Ó Dónaill each evening, setting out the place depending on the activity, providing refreshments, etc. The musicians that come and give their time free of charge, etc.

3 Challenges in Planning / Delivery

1. Our greatest challenge is funding to cover the running costs of the facility. Like many community groups we do not have mainstream funding and are dependent on small grants from Donegal County Council, Údarás na Gaeltachta, donations to keep the facility going. With the facility we can provide a range of activities for the community.
2. None
3. None

3 Outcomes / Benefits

1. Social inclusion / engagement. These activities are open to all, especially those living on their own.
   We feel that we need to bring our community together again in a safe environment after Covid and provide activities for members of the community which will enables them to reconnect with each other again.
2. Provide opportunities for people meet. This gives residents of Loch an Iúir a choice of participating in various activities. They do not have to travel to avail of these activities, etc.
3. Extended use of Teach Niall Ó Dónaill.
   This community facility (the home of the author of the Irish-English dictionary “Foclóir Gaeilge-Béarla) was given to Coiste Cultúrtha Loch an Iúir to be used as a community facility for the people of Loch an Iúir. We fixed up the house and now use it as the only community facility in Loch an Iúir. It is of great benefit to the community that we can use this facility for a wide range of activities.