Ballymun Youthreach would like to congratulate its five winners at the Lord Mayor’s Awards in the Mansion House. Emma Lawrence, Philip Brady, Rebecca O’Meara, Alex Griffin and Louise O’Hara all received their awards from Carol Hanney, CDETB CEO and the Lord Mayor. We also presented pens made by Martin and Joe to the Lord Mayor, the CEO and Counsellor Paddy Bourke.
Congratulations to Katie Rooney and Ryan Keeley, seen here receiving their prizes from Joe. Winners also included Chloe Keogh and Amy Hennessy. The all – centre Maths quiz was a particular success with a very boisterous teachers team narrowly taking the honours. Well done to all involved and in particular to Joe for organising all the events.
Ballymun Youthreach was delighted to take part in the annual Ballymun Otherworlds festival this year.
Fiona was on hand assisting people making their very own zombie keyrings
This followed Yvonne and the beauty group administering some wonderful make up to create some very scary faces
Thanks to all involved for a very memorable night
Ballymun Youthreach hosted its annual graduation ceremony on Friday, Oct 27th. The ceremony was a great success with wonderful musical performances from Ciara Lennon, Alex Griffin and Setanta Strings.
Guest presenters included the new CDETB Director of Further Education Ann Gilton, local Fine Gael TD Noel Rock, Sinn Fein counsellor Noeleen Reilly and People Before Profit counsellor Andrew Keegan
The first musical interlude was performed by the wonderful Setanta Strings led by Brian Clarke.
Special presentations were awarded to Neil from Setanta Men’s Shed for his wonderful assistance with our musical instrument making course and Robert Murphy from SuperValu for his generous help over the years.
Ballymun Youthreach wishes to congratulate all graduating students on their great success and wish them all the best in the future.
Ballymun is one of 17 towns in Ireland to host activities annually as part of Positive Ageing Week through Age Action Ireland
Delighted to be involved, the Beauty Class in Ballymun Youthreach offered complimentary hand and arm massage and nail paint treatments for this event which was held in the Axis Centre.
It was a brilliant way of integrating with the local community and being part of a very positive experience.
Accompanied by their Teacher Yvonne Murphy, students that participated in the event were Shauna Lennon, Jade Jasmin Lynch, Holly McCleave, Jodie Mahoney and Katie Kinsella.
Krakow, Poland – Yvonne Murphy
Between bake sales and bingo, bag packing and a quiz night we had raised enough money to finally set off on our long awaited trip to Krakow, Poland.
For some students this was their first time on a plane. Youthreach will forever be remembered whenever their first flight stories arise.
A beautiful summer’s evening greeted us on our arrival and soon we reached our accommodation – a charming rustic old building set within an old courtyard dotted with age-old trees. We could not have asked for a better central location. We were two minutes from the famous busy and dynamic Main Market Square. The very square that houses the Tower of St. Mary from which a bugle call can be heard playing just past the hour, every hour. Echoing throughout the city was also sounds of an hourly and half hourly bell. However enchanting and historic these sounds were, they still demanded ear plugs when sleep time arrived!
The following morning we visited Auschwitz Birkenau State Museum, the largest former Nazi concentration camp. We learnt about the Nazi program of “Abreit Macht Frei” famously proclaimed on the entrance gate and the genocide of World War II. We witnessed the gas chambers and barracks, sleeping quarters and poignant exhibitions of prisoners’ personal belongings. No doubt that this is a very thought provoking, weary and melancholy place. A visit that will always be remembered.
The next day we explored an UNESCO World Heritage site: Wieliczka Salt Mine. It is one of the oldest salt mines in the world, dating back to the 13th century. This unique underground complex houses chambers and chapels, where even chandeliers are made of salt crystals. It contains caverns and salt sculptures and also includes an underground lake. Today parts of the mine due to its therapeutic microclimate is also used as a retreat for people with lung ailments.
On our final day we zipped around Krakow in an electric golf buggy, called a Melex. Among many areas, we travelled through the Old Town and Jewish district of Kazimierz passing historic synagogues and a Jewish Ghetto. We viewed Oskar Schindler’s factory where many Jewish employees were saved from deportation during World War II.
Finally no trip to Krakow would be complete without a visit to Inglot Cosmetics store.
There is so much to see and do in Krakow. We enjoyed a variety of restaurants as a group, lots of quirky shops and some home favorites, great market stalls and absorbed the beautiful and unique architectural buildings. The group we brought were fantastic. They were respectful and loads of fun. It was inexpensive and the weather was good too. What else could you ask for… except maybe the removal of the bugle during sleep time!!
The Beauty Course – Ballymun Youthreach
by Yvonne Murphy, Beauty Teacher
For some time now the Beauty Programmes offered in Ballymun Youthreach have been a very popular choice for both internal students and those coming from outside the centre. The Programmes available are an ideal stepping stone for those who wish to pursue a career within the Beauty Industry. We offer excellent opportunities in training to the highest standard for QQI Level 5 exams in both Cosmetic Studies and Make-Up Application.
Minimum entry requirements for the Beauty Course include a successful Leaving Certificate/Leaving Certificate Applied/Full FETAC Level 4 or equivalent standard of education. Students must be aged between 16 and 20 years of age and all entry is subject to interview.
The Beauty courses educate students in both the theoretical and practical side of work. The theoretical side of the programmes offer students a thorough understanding of anatomy and physiology, providing an in-depth knowledge of the main structures and functions of the human body, in addition to various areas such as customer care, business, professionalism and hygiene.
The practical side of the courses are ingrained in areas such as facials, make-up application, manicures, tinting and more. We enthusiastically promote in-house training in areas such as Swedish Massage, Spray Tan Application and Waxing. Gel or Acrylic accredited courses may also an option offered by professional companies on site. We work with the award winning skin care product Dermalogica.
Work placement in the industry is also an integral part of the year. This commences following completion of FETAC exams. Also a strong emphasis is placed on group projects and a fine example of this is the continuous success we have in the yearly Style-It Competition. On occasion we invite guest speakers in the industry to deliver an insight into the ever changing world of beauty.
One such guest speaker who recently visited the centre was our very own ex beauty student Tracey Salter. Tracey completed the beauty programmes with us in 2011 and successfully concluded the two year Beauty Therapy course in Crumlin College of Further Education. Following her time there she gained a contract on The Princess Cruise Ship working in a five star spa. Her duration with this company allowed her to travel the world visiting places such as Hawaii, Santorini, Brisbane and The Great Barrier Reef.
Tracey went on to work in Dunboyne Castle Seoid Spa and The Buff Day Spa on Grafton Street. She has recently completed her Teaching Diploma in Beauty Therapy and now working in Australia.
Hearing Tracey say, ‘My journey in the beauty industry has been very exciting so far and to think that it all started here.’ is a very inspirational and impressive statement. Our hope for all our students in Ballymun Youthreach is that they all find success and satisfaction in their chosen field. And to end up perhaps on a little Greek Island called Santorini might not be that bad after all!
Ballymun Youthreach, along with Setanta GAA Men’s Shed attended Aras an Uachtarain recently as part of a showcase of the Men’s Shed musical instrument making and Neal’s great work with the students here.
The President and his wife were shown all the stages of instrument making, the wares from Setanta and a brief overview of Neal’s teachings in Youthreach.
Afterwards the orchestra performed for the President on the lawn.
It was with great pleasure that Ballymun Youthreach hosted the annual Dublin Youthreach Cake and Craft Fair. The talent on show was, as always first class. Below are list of all the winners. We wish to extend our congratulations to all involved for providing some wonderful (and delicious) entries. A special mention to Louise O’Faogain for her hard work with our winning entry: the Diversitree.
Group Work
First prize – Diversitree – Ballymun Youthreach
Second prize – Sherrard Street YR
Third prize – Transition Centre
Craft Work
First prize – Nicola Loftus – NGG St. YR
Second prize – Floral Box – Harmonstown YR
Third prize – Ray McCormack – Cabra YR
Mixed Media (New Media)
First & second prize – Crumlin YR
Drawing/Painting
First prize – Sinead Tatte – Kilmore Road YR
Second prize – Thomas Reilly – Ballyfermot YR
Third prize – Shane McCann Kilmore Rd YR; Shane Scott – NGG St YR
Cake Work
First prize – Temple of Easter Bunny – Kilmore Road Youthreach
Second prize – Alice in Wonderland – Harmonstown Youthreach
Third prize – Ferro Roche Cake – Cabra Youthreach; Choc Fudge Cake – Louise O’Hara & Courtney Bedford – Ballymun Youthreach.
The Customer Service and Framing Group hosted a very successful framing showcase last week. Invited guests were shown around the framing room and talked through the options available for framing photos, artwork, posters, jerseys or even heirlooms. Jade, Shantel, Shauna and Rebecca led the way as part of their project management course with InnovateDublin.
Our thanks to all who attended and to Annabelle Conway and Keith Finglas of Innovate Dublin who have provided great support to the group all year.
