Holy grotto open

A holy grotto which was nine years in the making was finally opened by Fr. Stan Deegan on the grounds of Scoil Bhride earlier this Summer.The grotto featuring the Virgin Mary was built by local man Aidan Daly, caretaker of Scoil Bhride - an all boys school.Nine years ago, seven local people gave money towards the grotto, but no suitable location could be found to place the statue until now. The decision was finally made to build it on the grounds of Scoil Bhrid and Fr. Stan held a blessing and a Mass at the grotto on May 26 to declare it officially open.Talking about the grotto, Aidan Daly said everyone is welcome to come and say a prayer:"We were delighted we finally got to get the grotto built. Once the building got underway, more and more people came on board and gave donations," said Aidan."Everybody is more than welcome to come and visit the grotto or say a prayer, it's not just for the school," he said. It was the first time Aidan has ever worked with stone, but following the erection of the grotto, Aidan will now work with the Tidy Towns Committee with regard to building more stone features in the area.Principal of Scoil Bhrid, Eileen Byrnes said she was delighted to see people come and visit the statue:"It was discussed at Board level to have the statue erected in the school grounds and when the building started, more and more people took interest," said Ms Byrnes."It's lovely to have it on the grounds of the school. That's where we held our end of year mass, which was celebrated by Fr. Stan, and all the pupils sang at it," she said."I've seen people come in and out to visit the statue and I would invite more to do so. There is a lovely seat there for people to come and just take a moment, it's a really lovely place to come and visit."Thanks have been expressed to those who gave towards the building of the grotto, including Total Tiles in Mullingar and the Sisters of the Convent of Mercy, who gave the statue of the Virgin Mary.Birthday WishA big "Happy Birthday" wish goes out to Ethan O'Flynn from Rochfortbridge who turned 10-years-old on Saturday last, August 8.His family and friends all threw Ethan, who attends St. Brigid's School in Mullingar, a big party on Saturday and a good day was had by all.Best wishes for a great year ahead Ethan!