Waterford Today | Waterford's free weekly newspaper

Aviva launches Art Challenge to find the next young Picasso

Aviva, Ireland's leading insurer is searching for budding artists in Waterford. If you have one in your family, then why not take part in the Aviva Art Challenge? All of the entries will be on show in your local Aviva branch for the entire county to admire! The Waterford branch has a Wii Fit for the most creative winning entry, giving your family hours of fun to enjoy together.

Entry forms and full terms and conditions can be downloaded from www.avivahealth.ie or picked up from your local Aviva branch at The Quay, Waterford.

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Irish Sports Council's Child Welfare and Protection Course - Updated for 2011

The Irish Sports Council's Child Welfare and Protection Course, also known as the Code of Ethics, has been rewritten and updated for 2011 in order to provide a more interactive learning experience for course participants. Waterford Sports Partnership was one of 8 organisations involved in the evaluation and rewriting of the new Child Protection Course which also involved Children's Officers from National Governing Bodies and members of the HSE and the NSPCC in Northern Ireland.

The course content has largely remained the same but will be delivered in a more interactive manner with the duration of the course being cut from 4 hours to 3 hours. The course was updated after the Irish Sports Council identified the need to ensure participants gained more exposure to sporting case studies and

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Dungarvan No Name Club will travel to Kerry on February 5th to embark on a competition to win the prestigious titles of the No Name Club Host and Hostess of the Year. 

The club will hope to replicate or even better the success it enjoyed last year, when club member Joe Shine won Host of the Year at the youth organisation's national awards. He beat off competition from clubs throughout the country to take the prestigious honour and teenagers throughout the country will be hoping this year their representatives can replicate Joe's success.

The club will put forward a host and hostess to represent it at the regional final of the national youth organisation's competition. Its teenage Hosts and Hostesses will travel to the final on Saturday February 5th at The Malton Hotel in Killarney, County Kerry. No Name Clubs from

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Waterford Micro Business Network to Explore Business Opportunities Presented by the Waterford Tall Ships Race 2011

Do you have a business based in Waterford? Did you know that over half a million visitors are expected to visit Waterford over the course of the event? Would you like to take advantage of the business opportunities presented by this event? The February meeting of Waterford Micro Business Network, taking place at 6pm on Wednesday 9th February at the Ramada Viking Hotel will help you think about these business opportunities.

The Waterford Tall Ships Race is taking place in Waterford City between 30th June and 3rd July and is one of the most spectacular and colourful events in the world and the biggest event taking place in Ireland this year. There will be over 70 majestic Tall Ships, 1,500 sail trainees and an anticipated

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FREE Training Opportunities in the South-East

The HSE are running a number of training courses over the next 12 months in the South-East aimed at those who work in Communities, the health sector and other workplaces.

If you are interested in attending please contact us here at the Forum and we will provide you with the full list and information: Just some of the courses being run:

• Funding for Community Groups• Introduction to Advocacy• Facilitation Skills• Nutrition and the Older Person• XPERT – Programme for People with TYPE 2 Diabetes• Playground Markings Workshop• Cancer Prevention & Early Detection 

Workshops• Suicide Resource Office• Suicide Awareness Training• Concerned about Suicide- Community 

Education Programme, and more!

FREE Training course and workshop in Dungarvan

The County Waterford Community Forum will hold a training course and workshop in Dungarvan on the following:

Committee Skills Training: Wed 9th Feb, 10am-3pm

A focus on how

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Come along to the Waterford Healing Arts Trust's Fashion Swap party on 11th February between 12 noon and 9pm. Adm is €10. Bring your unwanted, gently worn clothes and swap them for new (to you) ones. 

Buy a ticket for the fashion themed raffle and enter 'The New U' competition whereby you style an outfit from your new clothes and 'model' it in front of our panel of 'experts' to be in with a chance for a fabulous prize.

Phone 051 842664 or email WHATathse.ie for details and spread the word.

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Beware of fraudsters targeting pensioners

If you are retired or nearing retirement, you have a lot of good things going for you, such as great credit, owning your own home and a retirement nest egg. Unfortunately, these things, along with the realities of aging, make you a target for fraud.

It is likely your house will need repairs sometime during retirement, especially if owned for many years. Roofs leak, driveways break up and windows, soffits and fascias need replacing. Fraud occurs when the contractor starts doing work that doesn't need doing - and then overcharges you for it.

Other common frauds include: taking upfront payments and then vanishing without doing the work. Using entry to your house to rob it or convincing owners to join in fraudulent insurance claims.

Reputable contractors don't usually go door to door trying to drum up business.

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Animal Welfare Groups appeal for commencement order of Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010

Dogs and puppies rescued by ISPCA from recent Puppy Farm.

Photos by Carmel Murray

A coalition of animal welfare groups comprising of the ISPCA, Dogstrust, DSPCA and the Irish Blue Cross have written to new Minister for the Environment Eamon O'Cuiv imploring him to sign the commencement order required to bring the Dog Breeding Establishments Bill into effect before the current Dail is dissolved.

The controversial legislation was finally passed last summer after extensive debate but its commencement was postponed until 2011 to allow for the amendment of the Greyhound Bill. However, the order necessary to bring the act into force has not as yet been signed.

ISPCA Chief Inspector Conor Dowling said "Ireland now has an appalling reputation internationally

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Oxfam Ireland Waterford shop critically needs donations of stock

The Oxfam Waterford shop urgently needs donations of saleable items, because its stock levels are critically low.

The volume of donations of stock to Oxfam shops has fallen dramatically in the past couple of years and it has left stock in Oxfam shops at acutely low levels. Oxfam needs you to support the Oxfam Waterford shop by donating anything you can spareThe Oxfam Waterford shop is located at 8 George's Street, Waterford.

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Deputy Kenneally receives full support at FF convention 

Over 150 delegates and supporters attended The Fianna Fail convention held last Friday night 28th January in Lawlors Hotel Dungarvan; Waterford's sitting TD Brendan Kenneally was selected as the only candidate in a new strategy that is being implemented in many constituencies around the country. The convention was opened by Ray Murphy (Cdc Chairman) who asked for a minute silence for former Councillor Dan Cowman who gave over 30 years service to the party who passed away last month. He then asked Minister Martin Mansergh TD to chair the convention, at which he then announced the nomination of candidates Cllr Pat Daly, Ollie Wilkinson and Brendan Kenneally TD. At this point it was announced the Ollie Wilkinson had withdrawn from the race.

The 2 remaining candidates were then put forward for selection at

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'Workers reeling from Universal Social Charge' – Halligan 

Independent candidate in the upcoming General Election Cllr. John Halligan has called on whoever forms the new Government to give a guarantee to the people of Waterford that they will reverse the Universal Social Charge.

The former Mayor of Waterford city said he has been inundated with calls from workers who, he said, have been 'left reeling' by the effect the Universal Charge has had on their pay packets since its introduction on 1st January.

"I have spoken to workers from several local industries in recent days and all have given me the same clear message – they were shattered at the drop in wages and their limited spending power has now diminished further than they could have imagined a few short years ago", Cllr. Halligan stated. "I think many expected to be down

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Now that the General Election has been officially called the candidates and political parties are already off the mark, lobbying and canvassing in cities, towns and villages throughout the length and breadth of the country. In Waterford the nominated candidates are already off the mark and already the political temperature is beginning to rise.

In Waterford all the political parties have nominated their candidates, and both Fine Gael with John Deasy TD and Senator Paudie Coffey and Labour Party with Colr. Seamus Ryan and Colr. Ciara Conway are running two candidates each, while Fianna Fail are running just one candidate in outgoing TD Brendan Kenneally, who was nominated on Friday night. However, the option is open to the headquarters to add another candidate if desired. Sinn Fein has Collr. David Cullinane; The Workers Party are running Joe Tobin; The Green Party

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A personal view of nature

I recently cleaned out my attic and came across a very old notebook of mine with the simple heading 'Nature Notes.' The first entry was that of a kingfisher whirring up St. John's River at the Waterside and then under St. John's Bridge on its way to the Kilbarry Bog. That was in 1956. Why did I keep this little book? I had to think about that. Perhaps because it's a part of my youth when everything was wondrous and new. What mattered then was the joy of the first encounter, the buzz of pleasure seeing my first long-tails tits, the twitch at first seeing my first red admiral butterfly. Various notes titillated other senses and as my eyes read the words, I could almost smell the

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At a workshop in Waterford City Council last week, Waterford City Manager informed the members that agreement has been reached between the developers of the Ard Ri site and Waterford City Council to take the above site out of dereliction. 

After 8 weeks of protracted negiotation with the developer coming up with a bond and a price for taking the site out of dereliction.

Details of the agreement are as follows;

All single story buildings including the swimming pool will be demolished.

There will be a major cleanup on the site.

The boundaries of the site will be secured.

The cost of cleaning up the site will be EUR160,000. of which the city council have seen sight of a bond for EUR100,000.

EUR60,000 will come from Waterford City Council which will receive EUR40,000 back and EUR20,000 will be retained for making available ditigal advertisements of upcoming events

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'So fresh fruit & veg' delivered to your front door

A new local Waterford company called - 'So fresh fruit & veg' run by local lads Dave Byrne and Gerry Rellis have teamed up with growers and suppliers from the southeast to deliver fresh seasonal fruit and veg to the people of Waterford.

From the Grower to your Door

'So fresh' believe that the people of Waterford are disillusioned with buying foreign produce from the supermarkets and that they have us looking for the perfectly straight carrot, the perfectly round tomato or apple. We are an agricultural country and we grow the freshest vegetables and the sweetest fruits here in the southeast, and that's what we should be eating (IRISH).

'So Fresh Fruit & Veg' intend to address this! And have teamed up with growers and suppliers from the southeast to deliver

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