A DONEGAL couple stranded in New Zealand have issued a plea for help as they attempt to make their way home.

Jack Gallagher and Katy Tysall-Gallagher have been in Auckland since March 12, initially planning one-month tour before emigrating to Canada.

Their flight to Canada, scheduled for April 7, was cancelled by Air Canada after Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister, closed the borders to non-essential travel.

Their tour of Neww Zealand was cancelled last week.

Two flight cancellations today have left them in limbo.

“We attempted to book a flight back to Ireland, but they kept selling out or were completely unaffordable,” Katy told Donegal Daily.

“We eventually got a flight with Emirates for Tuesday (today) via Dubai, but our flight out of Dubai was cancelled. We only found out on at 10 o’clock on Monday night.

“No-one is flying out if Dubai from Wednesday. No-one can fly into Dubai/UAE or Singapore or Hong Kong and the airlines can only tell us to wait and see.”

An alternative flight has not been offered to the couple, whose strife is added to by the closure of the Irish Embassy.

“We can only contact the Embassy via phone, but all that we have been told now is to register our information.”

All international travel will be halted in New Zealand from Thursday.

Katy was born in England is clinging to the hope that the British Embassy may assist and have registered with an initiative in New Zealand that is aiming to get travellers back to the UK.

Katy has issued a plea for assistance. She said: “We are stuck, so if any one has any contacts in any position to help us get home please let us know. We know that it’s a long shot, but we are just desperate to get back home.”

The Government is to increase the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Support payment for people who have been laid off due to the virus from €203 to €350.

The payment will also apply to the self-employed affected by the virus.

The Cabinet has also approved an emergency wage subsidy scheme under which the Government will pay 70% of a workers salary up to a cap of €410 per week net – equivalent to the after-tax income of a worker on around €40,000.

The scheme will initially run for 12 weeks, and employers will be free to top-up the Government’s element of the salary.

The scheme is targeted at companies hit by the collapse of economic activity triggered by the coronavirus outbreak – and employers seeking to avail of it would have to demonstrate a reduction in income of at least 25%, along with cash flow difficulties.

It is understood that the aim is to keep employees and employers connected, and make it easier to restart businesses when the crisis ends.

The Taoiseach has announced new measures in a further bid to ‘flatten the curve’ of the spread of Covid 19 in Ireland.

All theatres, clubs, gyms, hairdressers, bookies, marts and markets are to close and people should avoid public transport if at all possible due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Schools, colleges and childcare facilities closures – will remain in place until April 19.

Any social gatherings of individuals outdoors should be no more than four people – unless they are all from the same household.

Mr Varadkar called the new restrictions – which will kick in from midnight – “unprecedented actions to respond to an unprecedented emergency”.

Park rangers and Gardai will be present to ensure social distancing measures are complied with.

People must work from home unless their attendance to the workplace is essential.

Mr Varadkar said private hospitals “will act effectively as public hospitals” for the duration of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said: “Private hospitals have agreed to do this on a not-for-profit basis.

“Public and private patients will be treated equally.”

Gardai will “increase interventions” to ensure compliance with the measures but such interventions will be used “sparingly”, he added.

All hotels must limit occupancy to essential non-social and non-tourist reasons.

All non-essential retail outlets are to close to the public, while other retail outlets must implement social distancing.

The Taoiseach confirmed unemployment payment and illness benefit is being raised to €350 a week.

All cafes and restaurants must limit supply to takeaway food or delivery and put in place social distancing for queues.

All sporting events are to be cancelled, including those behind closed doors.

All playgrounds and holiday or caravan parks will close and places of worship are to restrict numbers entering at any one time.

Any organised social indoor or outdoor events of any size are not to be held and people should avoid crowded places, including public amenities.

Speaking at a Government briefing in Dublin, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said: “We believe we need to do more to flatten the curve.

“People should stay at home if at all possible – this is the best way to slow the virus.

“I’m asking you to stay at home if at all possible.”

But the Taoiseach said he wouldn’t call today’s new measures a “lockdown” – because the word can “cause confusion and we need clarity rather than confusion”.

Health Minister Simon Harris said patients with Covid-19 will be treated for free in a single national hospital service.

Mr Harris said all private hospitals will be public or run by the State for the duration of the pandemic.

He said: “There can be no public vs private here.”

A LITHUANIAN couple stopped driving without insurance in separate cars and on separate occasions claimed the vehicles were on loan from a garage.

Ms Akvile Barkauskas (31) of Ard na Dun Close, Buncrana, was before the court charged with parking in a disabled bay on the town’s main street and failing to produce insurance and a driving licence on August 20, 2019. She was also charged with driving without insurance on January 8, 2019.

Representing herself, Barkauskas apologised to Judge Paul Kelly saying “I’ll never park there again”.

She added that she did not pay the fine as she ‘lost the letter’ and that the car she was driving belonged to a local garage and that her own car was in for repair at the time.

She said she had insurance cover on her own car and had a driving licence, but had misplaced it while on holiday in Lithuania.

Garda Inspector Siobhan Mollohan confirmed that Gardai had a record of a licence in Ms Barkauskas’ name.

In relation to the charge of driving without insurance on January 8, 2019, Ms Barkauskas claimed her car had again been in for repair and she had been given another car to drive by the garage owner.

Judge Kelly proceeded to strike out the charge of having no licence on August 20, and said he would deal with the illegal disabled bay parking at the next hearing.

Judge Kelly adjourned the case to the May 14 sitting of the court to allow her to get proof from the garage that the cars she was driving were insured.

A short-time later her husband, Mr Mantas Barkauskas, appeared before the same court charged with driving another car without insurance or a licence at Ardaravan, Buncrana, on January 28 last year.

He also claimed the car was on loan from a garage while his own was in for repair and that he had insurance cover for his own vehicle.

A bemused Judge Kelly said he would adjourn the case to the May sitting of the court and told Mr Barkauskas to produce evidence from the garage that the car was insured.

THE DEATH has taken place in Spain of former Donegal businessman Michael Sharma.

Mr Sharma, formerly of Ballygogan, Lifford, passed away in Spain, where he had been living.

The late Mr Sharma was the former Managing Director of Nena Models Ltd.

Clothing firm Nena Models manufactured clothes at factories in Castlefin and Stranorlar, providing a vital source employment in the east Donegal area.

Funeral details have not yet been announced.

SPORT IN Ireland is on a complete shutdown from tonight until at least April 19.

New measures introduced by the Government today means that golf and horse racing – which had been the only two left standing in the last two weeks – will cease.

Golf course remained opened with additional procedures in place – including physical distancing, the removal of rakes from bunkers, leaving of flagsticks in the hole – but there will now be a complete closure across the country.

Horse Racing, too, will stop with recent meetings having been held behind closed doors.

The GUI and ILGU now require all golf clubs, courses and facilities to close with immediate effect until April 19.

A statement said: “While golf is an outdoor sport that allows players to exercise in the fresh air, the message is clear: People must stay at home to help to contain the spread of COVID-19.

“The unions recognise the need clubs may have for business support at this time. We will monitor options available and engage with the relevant sporting bodies in due course to make representations for our member clubs.”

Horse Racing Ireland said: “HRI confirm that racing will cease in Ireland as of midnight tonight as per the latest Government guidelines on Covid-19.

“The Board of Horse Racing Ireland will meet Wednesday morning and will issue a press release soon after.”

APPLICATIONS have opened for Donegal County Council’s Thatch Repair Grant Scheme that assists the owners and occupiers of thatched dwellings with their maintenance and repair.  

The grant scheme provides advice to owners on the conservation of thatched roofs, allocates funding for small-scale thatch repairs and helps homeowners carry out necessary repairs under conservation supervision.

The scheme is open for applications until 12 noon on Wednesday, April 22.

“This is only the second year of the Thatch Repair Grant Scheme and there was a wonderful response to the introduction of the scheme last year,” said Joseph Gallagher, County Donegal Heritage Officer.

“We were able to support twelve thatch repair projects across the county in 2019.  While the funding provided homeowners with support to undertake their thatch projects, we learned a lot from the scheme too.

“We got to know some of the owners and custodians of our vernacular buildings who really are unheralded champions of our built heritage.  We heard about the lack of availability of home-grown thatching materials but were also encouraged by the number of people who grew materials to thatch their own buildings.

“We’re very fortunate to have a small number of highly skilled thatchers in the county and some people who practice their thatching skills on a part-time basis.

“Training and employment opportunities exist in the conservation of traditional buildings but it’s surprising that over a decade after the publication of the All-Ireland Traditional Building Craft Skills report by the National Heritage Training Group that highlighted the dearth in availability of traditional building skills that little has been done to address the traditional building skills shortage.

“We also heard from homeowners about the lack of appropriate and affordable insurance for thatch structures.

“County Donegal is home to one of the largest surviving concentrations of thatch structures in Ireland but if the insurance issue is not addressed, then the decline in the number of thatched structures seen in recent years will continue.

“Donegal County Council recognises the contribution that thatched dwellings and outbuildings make to our cultural landscape, employment, economy and tourism.”

Collette Beattie, Conservation Officer, Donegal County Council added: “Donegal County Council considers that the conservation of our traditional buildings constitutes appropriate, sustainable and responsible development.

“At present, there are over 20 thatched buildings on the Record of Protected Structures for County Donegal and many more are eligible for inclusion.

“The Thatch Repair Grant Scheme addresses several Donegal County Council plans and strategies including the County Donegal Heritage Plan to “Encourage the conservation of thatch and thatching skills and materials in County Donegal as a distinctive aspect of the county’s heritage” and the Culture & Creativity Strategy for County Donegal to “Establish an incentive scheme for the conservation of vernacular buildings” as well as several policies in the Donegal County Development Plan to protect and conserve our traditional buildings.

“Types of small-scale thatch repairs that might be eligible to Donegal County Council’s Thatch Repair Grant Scheme include repairs to the eaves, the ridge, flashings around the chimney, holes, furrows, fixings, ropes, wire netting, the gable and the roof timbers or carpentry.”

Our thatched buildings are one of the most iconic and enduring images of County Donegal.  They lend character to our cultural landscapes; they are indicative of our sense of place, our traditional skills and our resourcefulness; they can be sensitively adapted to meet modern family demands; they invoke our diaspora and support our tourism industry.

Despite their importance and potential, the loss of our thatched buildings, especially in recent years, has been considerable.

Traditionally rope thatching was the dominant thatching method in County Donegal although scollop thatching could be found in parts of east Donegal.

Historic thatch materials varied considerably depending on the local vegetation cover and farming practices.

Thatching materials used included wheat straw, oat straw, rye straw, flax, marram grass, water reed and even rushes.

Thirty-five applications were received in 2019 under the Thatch Repair Grant Scheme and the scheme supported twelve thatch repair projects including works to residential properties, rented dwellings, outbuildings and a business. The thatch projects supported under the scheme were in Glencolmcille, Carrick, Killybegs, Altnagapple, Ardara, Maghery, Ballyharry, Ballykeeny, Clonmany, Drumkeen and Convoy.

While Donegal County Council’s Thatch Repair Grant Scheme focuses on small-scale repairs, there are other grant schemes that allow for the thatching and re-thatching of roofs.

These include the Grant for the Renewal or Repair of Thatch Roofs of Houses administered by the Department of Housing, Planning & Local Government; the Built Heritage Investment Scheme for Protected Structures by the Department of Culture, Heritage & the Gaeltacht and even the Irish Georgian Society’s Conservation Grants.

Assistance for the repair of thatched outbuildings is also available under the GLAS Traditional Farm Buildings Grant Scheme administered by The Heritage Council.

Advice on all of these grant schemes is available from the County Donegal Heritage Office and the Conservation Office of Donegal County Council and on-line at www.donegalcoco.ie/heritage  Applications forms for the Thatch Repair Grant Scheme are available on-line from the Donegal County Council website or by contacting Joseph Gallagher, Heritage Officer or Collette Beattie, Conservation Officer at (074) 915 3900 or by e-mail at thatch@donegalcoco.ie  The scheme is open for applications until 12 noon on Wednesday, April 22.  The Thatch Repair Grant Scheme is funded by Donegal County Council and the Creative Ireland programme as part of the implementation of the County Donegal Heritage Plan.

IT WILL be April 19 at least before local football returns with the FAI today announcing man extension to the cessation of all football under its jurisdiction.

The FAI remains committed to a June return for the League of Ireland, but football at intermediate, junior and schoolboys level may return at an earlier date.

An initial cessation was to last until this Sunday, March 29 but, following fresh directives from the Government, that period has now been extended.

A statement from the FAI said: “The decision to extend a deadline for the return to football has been taken in light of the ever-growing threat posed by the COVID-19 outbreak and in the best interests of our players, coaches, volunteers, supporters and staff.

“This decision will continue to be monitored on an ongoing basis.

“The FAI is in communication with the Department of Health and UEFA on COVID-19 and will continue to follow all government guidelines.

“The Association advises all members, volunteers and stakeholders to respect the HSE guidelines on social distancing during this pandemic.”

The FAI said that regular meetings are taking place with representatives from the National League Executive Committee and the Professional Footballer’s Association of Ireland.

The statement added: “FAI Medical Director Dr Alan Byrne has again advised the FAI that in the current exceptional circumstances, clubs should not engage in collective training during the cessation period for all football activity under the FAI’s jurisdiction.

“This recommendation is based on the government’s desire to avoid the spread of COVID-19 and Dr Byrne strongly advises against clubs training during this cessation period which runs until April 19th inclusive.”

The Department of Health has said that 204 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed today.

It brings the total number of cases confirmed to date to 1,329 in the Republic.

One man in the East of the country has died – the man had an underlying health condition.

It brings the total number of deaths here to seven.

It comes on a day when the Taoiseach announced new measures to deal with the spread of the disease.

Mr Varadkar also announced plans to deal with the economic fall-out from the crisis.

He announced that those who lost their jobs as a result of Covid will be entitled to €350 for 12 weeks.

The Government also said it will pay 70% of wages for those employers able to keep people in jobs.

It has been confirmed that Donegal now has 11 confirmed cases of Covid-19.

The figures were released a short time ago as today’s latest figures were released from across the country.

There is still just one testing centre in Donegal at St Conal’s Hospital in Letterkenny while St Eunans GAA club will also open a test centre at O’Donnell Park.

The locations in Donegal where the 11 cases have been established have not been released.

There are still concerns over the speed of testing here in Donegal with people waiting up to a week and sometimes longer for a test.

Donegal Daily understands that less than 50 tests a day are being carried out in Donegal.

THE Donegal club championships could return to a knock-out format this year, while the 2020 League format may be postponed until next year.

The All-County Football League was due to get underway this weekend, but the future remains unclear with local officials awaiting some direction from Croke Park.

Yesterday, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced that there would be no sports activity in Ireland until at least April 19.

That was one of a number of measures announced by the Government in a bid to curtail the rapid spread of the Covid-19 virus.

The measures were described by Varadkar as being ‘unprecedented’, but were in response to an ‘unprecedented emergency’.

The GAA had already announced that the first Championship game of 2020 – the Connacht SFC meeting of New York and Galway – was being postponed and a further update is expected in the coming days from national level.

Locally, the CCC are considering several possibilities.

“The CCC seek clarification through central Council etc if they can postpone the current league format until 2021,” Donegal CCC Chair Frankie Doherty said.

“The CCC did meet on March 10th and tried to plan for the 2020 season.

“However until the national fixture plan is in place, no decision can be made.

“The CCC members are in almost daily contact. Should we be allowed change the format, the CCC will consult with all those involved first – the clubs, the hurling and football managers and the various boards.”

There are different options on the table as regards what format the 2020 Leagues could take if they are changed with the Co Board awaiting direction before putting these scenarios before the clubs.

Ordinarily, the draw for the club championships would have been conducted by now. However, due to the growing uncertainty regarding the impact of the coronavirus crisis, there has been no decision taken on the 2020 season.

Doherty added: “Clubs may also be asked to prepare for knock out championship for 2020.”

Nationally, the conclusion of the Allianz Leagues is expected to be shelved, while the Championship now seems certain to be, at best, deferred.

GAA chiefs have convened with the majority of county chairpersons as they aim to get some form of a solution in place.

The LGFA announced the cancellation of the 2020 Lidl National Leagues and say the TG4 Championship ‘will be reviewed on an ongoing basis’.

Primary Care Centres across Donegal have cut back on a wide number of services in a bid to make staff available for frontline Covid-19 response services.

Only critical and vital services will continue to be provided at community GP surgeries and health centres during the pandemic.

The revision of services, as announced by the HSE, defines critical and vital services to include GP services, Public Health Nursing and Community Pharmacy services; emergency aids and appliance provision; essential immunisation services; emergency Dental and Ophthalmic services; and any service that is required to respond to a service user being at high risk.

Primary Care Services are all of the health or social care services that you can find in your community, outside of the acute hospital. 

All desired services at the centres will be curtailed and/or cancelled until such time that they can be resumed, the HSE has said.

Chief Officer of the CHO 1 area Mr John Hayes stated “We would like to thank members of the public for their co-operation thus far.  We appreciate that the revision of our Primary Care Services impacts directly on service users and we would ask that you  continue to work with us in the interests of patient and staff safety to ensure that we manage this as effectively as possible.”

For further information in relation to your Primary Care Service, please contact your service provider. In relation to cancellation of appointments, your service provider will communicate this with you. If you are feeling unwell and have a scheduled appointment, please contact your service provider prior to your appointment.

Anyone with general concerns should firstly visit HSE.ie/coronavirus. If you still have concerns, you can ring HSELive on 1850 24 1850.  HSELive is an information line only and can’t order coronavirus tests.

Anyone with symptoms should not show up at their GP/ GP Out of Hours Service or ED unannounced.

A Donegal soccer club is organising a novel way to pass the time during the Covid 19 lockdown – with a game of virtual bingo.

Quigley’s Point Swifts in Inishowen came up with the idea which is free for the entire community to play.

The club says it aims to connect the entire community.

All the details on how to get involved are contained in the poster below.

Why not give it a try?

The EU must step up and support our fishing sector so that it can continue to supply fresh fish for the Irish and EU market over the coming weeks, according to Deputy Charlie McConalogue TD.

The Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Agriculture Food and the Marine said that like every other sector, the fishing industry is experiencing massive turbulence as a result of the economic fallout of the coronavirus.

He added “The sector is determined to continue supplying fresh fish to the Irish and EU market in these crisis times but it is essential that the EU provides the supports necessary to ensure that it can do so over the coming weeks.

“It is crucial the Minister for Agriculture ensures that the EU Agri Fish Council which meets today now moves to put necessary supports in place. In particular the sector needs:

A storage aid scheme for produce that is struggling to find a market at the moment to ensure that a floor is held under prices and that fishing can continue to take place.

A temporary cessation package so that some boats fishing for species for which there is not currently a market can tie up temporarily.

Funding for producer organisations to adapt marketing and production plans so that fish supply can be managed in a way that ensures that the needs of the markets for fresh fish are well managed.

“Our fishing sector has a key role to play in coming weeks in ensuring that fresh fish is supplied for the domestic and EU market in particular. Fishermen and all in the sector are determined to play their role in ensuring that this happens but it is now essential that this work is backed up by the necessary supports being put in place at EU level,” concluded Deputy McConalogue.

A young couple stranded in Australia is making a desperate plea for help to get home to Donegal.

Time is running out for Caolin Maguire and Ben Burgess who were left devastated when their flight was cancelled on Sunday last.

As countries close their borders and airports shut down, the couple has found they are running out of options in their search for flights back to Ireland.

Donegal native Ben (aged 25) and Caolin (24), from Cavan, who both live in Laghey, moved to Gosford near Sydney seven months ago for a new adventure.

But they decided at Christmastime that they wanted to come home to study. Their flights were booked long before the outbreak of Covid-19, and anxiety turned to despair when their scheduled flight on Sunday was suddenly cancelled.

Ben and Caolin had already given up their jobs as they prepared to move home. Now, without any income, they are running out of options.

Caolin was hoping to return to her work at Harvey’s Point Hotel while Ben is a Personal Trainer.

Caolin told Donegal Daily: “We are lucky that we have my auntie here but we are both in a very vulnerable situation financially. We left our jobs, we don’t have a lot of money left and the airline won’t give us our money back.”

The couple spent an agonising day at the airport on Monday searching for flight options.

“We thought we would chance our luck because the airline wasn’t answering calls, on social media or by email,” Caolin said.

“All the desks in the airport were empty. It was full of Irish, English, German and French, people from all corners of the world with nowhere to go.

“We stood in a queue for three hours at a travel operator office. They were giving people options like business flights of $17,000 or flights with four and five stops. The next thing we know they just closed the centre.

“The person at Etihad told us to basically go home.”

Caolin and Ben are among the thousands of young Irish people stranded in Australia now, desperately seeking help now that Australia has been put on lockdown and all non-essential services have been halted.

“We know we are not in the worst situation, but I can’t expect my auntie to put us up for however long this lasts. We are two adults, we can’t get benefits here and if we get sick we are screwed,” Caolin said.

The couple has spent the last week searching online for flight options home, but astronomical prices, cancelled connections and airport closures are a constant worry.

“It’s ridiculous what the airlines are doing to people, the prices they are charging, but they know everyone is desperate.

“We will be self-isolating as soon as we get home, we just want to be home to do it.”

Caolin and Ben have already reached out to local politicians and the Irish Embassy in their bid to get assistance. They can be contacted on ca_olin2010@hotmail.com

A heroic Donegal nurse who answered Ireland’s call to fight on the coronavirus front line is stranded in Australia.

Hundreds more, many jobless because of Covid-19, are also stuck, with others stranded in the United Arab Emirates.

The only flights home that by-pass a new Middle East no-fly zone and Singapore are costing up to €12,000.

Nurse Aine Gleeson, 24, from Buncrana, last night described how more than 100 Irish including doctors and nurses were barred from their flight.

“Leo Varadkar asked us to come home. We quit our jobs and are now stranded. We need help to get home,” Aine told the Irish Mirror.

All other passengers were turned away at the gate as authorities in Abu Dhabi suddenly brought forward a decision to bar non-nationals from entering the territory.

Some found out via social media.

“Effective immediately, passengers departing from international destinations will only be allowed to travel if they are UAE citizens or diplomatic passport holders, and only if their final destination is Abu Dhabi,” Etihad said on its Twitter.

Now, many are being put up in the homes of the GAA community in Melbourne who have rallied around.

Aine said: “I’m a member of Padraig Pearses, one of five clubs in Melbourne. “They have been like family helping people who are stuck,” she said.

There are other Irish in Sydney and Perth also desperate to get home but unable to do so via the main flight hubs in the Middle East.

They include 65 Irish doctors in Perth who have called on the Government to arrange a charter flight.

The doctors quit their jobs to come home answering the call made by the HSE.

The only seats available now are business class via countries like Canada with eye- watering ticket prices.

“I was looking at flights on Skyscanner for between €10,000 and €12,000,” said Aine, who worked in St Vincent’s hospital in Dublin.

She is most concerned about the Irish who were in Australia on working holiday visas but suddenly lost their job because of the virus.

“They didn’t come to Australia to save money so that is a big issue for them. They cannot afford this,” she said.

She took the decision to come home after hearing the plea made by Mr Varadkar.

“I came out here on a working holiday visa but then I got sponsored for a job with the health service. I am trying to get home. I’m a psychiatric nurse and I think we will be needed more than ever in the current situation,” she said.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is providing some help but no flights home yet.

“We are in direct contact with a number of Irish citizens currently in Australia, through the Irish embassy in Canberra and the consulate general in Sydney.

“This is a rapidly evolving situation and consular officials are following up with Irish citizens providing all possible advice and support in relation to those seeking to repatriate to Ireland,” they have said.

Deputy Padraig Mac Lochlainn has said that all non-essential businesses in Ireland need to close.

The Inishowen TD posted a video to Twitter which showed a building site in Dublin.

Workers can be seen arriving for work on the site within close proximity of eachother and are not practising social distancing.

Deputy Mac Lochlainn commented on the video and said “These are scenes from a construction site that have been sent on to me.

“This is why we need to close down all non-essential businesses across the island now and ensure that social distancing is maintained at all times.”

Building sites are among a list of businesses which are allowed to continue to operate at present.

Others include supermarkets, DIY stores, chemists and fuel suppliers among others.

A Letterkenny school community was really thinking outside the box when they worked together to record a song remotely from home.

The pupils of Lurgybrack NS have proudly released a new song ‘Stay At Home’, which shares an uplifting message during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Written and co-ordinated by music teacher Brighdin Carr, the song was recorded on mobiles with students hiding in hot presses and utility rooms for the best acoustics. Many more pupils contributed by sending in artwork and pictures from their activities at home.

Ms Carr said the aim of the project was to create a positive aspect to home-schooling at this worrying time.

“It struck me that so many young people need to have their voices heard too, and that the majority of these youngsters really do want to make a difference and get through to other young people just how important it is to them that they choose to stay at home, for the greater good,” she said.

“They don’t need to worry or be anxious about academic scores, extra book-work and the normal curriculum during these troubling times. That time to shine will come again.

“Instead, our young people need each other, their families, a sense of security, love and the time to seize the opportunity to create new memories at home.”

A Song of Hope – Lurgybrack NS

Social distancing guidelines didn’t stop the project from being a success. The students embraced the challenge and learned how to download a recording app, use two phones, acquire headphones and disappear into the hotpress to record a couple of lines of the song and harmonies to send to the school.

Terry McGinty of Finn Valley Music Studio worked behind closed doors to combine all the elements into a quality song.

The mammoth task was completed in just four days with the help of the entire school management team, Ms Carr said.

“I am blessed to work with such positive, talented, versatile people. I have had many occasions to be proud of the children of Lurgybrack over many many years, but this is definitely one of the most emotional, roller-coaster experiences of my entire career.”

Ms Carr has issued a huge thank you to everyone who got involved and to the ‘superstar’ children of Lurgybrack who are sharing this message of hope.

SUNDAY was certainly a mother’s day with a difference for Katy Herron.

The Glenfin woman just touched down in Ireland, her maiden season playing Australian Rules having been cut short due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis. A flight home secured just in the nick of time.

A FaceTime call from her seven-year-old son, Joshua – who had been with her in Australia until just over a week ago – brightened up her day.

Back at base again after a whirlwind week in Melbourne, deciding what to do it – and, perhaps more pertinently, when to do it.

“Everyone knew that the Irish girls were on edge,” Herron tells Donegal Daily/Donegal Sport Hub. 

“It was a big call. People realised that there was more to it than sport.

“The club were so supportive of me with Joshua already back at home.

“There were a lot of questions. The whole thing got more serious day-by-day. In the last couple of sessions, everyone was going into the unknown. No-one knew if we’d be playing and everything was just up in the air.”

The AFLW decided to play a game behind closed doors and, after the goalposts shifted some more, the season was eventually shelved.

Katy Herron in action for Donegal

That Western Bulldogs hadn’t qualified for the knock-out phase of the season did make her passage rather more straightforward.

The last couple of weeks were strange, though.

She says: “We just had to prepare as best we could, but then they played a game with no crowd.

“There were only the players, management and the match officials. You’d maybe get 8,000 at a normal game and it’s a big family day out for the community. That was really weird. You could hear everything that was going on.

“After that, we were very skeptical and we were just watching the news all the time waiting to hear.”

Last summer, Herron landed a deal with the Bulldogs, joining her Glenfin and Donegal colleague Yvonner Bonner, in making a switch to Australian Rules, with Bonner lining out for a second year at the Greater Western Sydney Giants.

Early this year, Katy – a Maths and PE teacher at Holy Cross College in Strabane – and Joshua – who is a pupil at Dooish National School – headed for their big adventure.

She says: “He loved it. He really did. That was a concern at the start, for definite. There was no issue, he was very excited by it all and everyone in the club was brilliant to him as well.

“When he came home again, Joshua got back in for a week to school in Doosish and he was so excited. They sent over a scrapbook for him to put down his memories of everything we done. He was like a wee celebrity going back in again.”

The LGFA yesterday confirmed the cancellation of the remainder of the 2020 Lidl National Leagues and said the Championships will remain under review.

Transitioning the other way was initially a challenge for the former Donegal captain, who was skipper in 2015 when Donegal won the Ulster Ladies SFC title for the first time.

Katy Herron with her parents after an Ulster win in Clones

She says: “I practiced at home before I went and thought that I was on top of it. Then, I landed to training and I realised that I wasn’t really. It wasn’t too bad. A skills coach met me in between training days.”

The experience of being a full-time athlete in recent months was an experience the 30-year-old thought had passed her by.

“I loved it,” she says now.

“It was a different lifestyle. You just can’t compare it, with the weather, the football, everything. You have nothing else to worry about whereas here you have so many external factors. It was an unbelievable experience. It was just brilliant.

“It’s only in its fourth year and has a long way to go, but they’re so far on already. The money they pump into it is massive. The amount of people in around the club helping out, it’s crazy. They are trying to be so professional.

“At the same time, with fitness there isn’t a big discrepancy. Girls were would be definitely on a par with the fitness, but the facilities and the lifestyle means it’s a completely different world.”

Soon, she’ll get back to homeschooling Joshua – but has a head-start having done just that in Australia. Sunday’s video call, Joshua showing the bunch of daffodils he picked for his mum, and the regular FaceTimes keeps the spirits up as Katy bides her time in self-isolation.

Day four and the countdown firmly on ’til they’re reunited again.

New guidelines have been set to allow only patients that are displaying two major symptoms of coronavirus to be tested.

The new measures come amidst a backlog of over 40,000 people waiting to be tested.

Nearly 18,000 tests have been carried out in Ireland so far, with 94% of the results coming back negative.

As the numbers of suspected cases grow, the Department of Health announced new criteria for patients to access tests.

Patients will have to display two major symptoms – a fever and either a cough or shortness of breath – and fall into a priority group in order to be tested.

Priority groups include vulnerable people, people in hospital or healthcare workers and people who are close contacts of a confirmed case with symptoms.

Any other person who develops symptoms is being told to assume they have the virus and self-isolate for 14 days. Other people in the household must also restrict their movements.

More information is available on www2.hse.ie