Major refurbishment planned for St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church in Dundalk

Major refurbishment plans are in place for St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church on the St Alphonsus Road in Dundalk.

Earlier this week The Redemptorist Community applied to Louth County Council for planning permission for work to be carried out on the monastery. This was deemed to be an invalid application but still revealed many of the plans the church has.

These include refurbishment and alterations to the existing monastery, the replacement of the existing St Gerard’s Hall and the construction of a single storey extension to the rear of the monastery to facility the future long-term use of the complex by the Redemptorist community.

Amongst the changes planned to the ground floor of the monastery, which is a protected structure, are minor changes to the entrance porch and reception area to form a display and waiting area, the conversion of the kitchen to a laundry room and the subdivision of the existing dining room to form a large meeting room and a small meeting room.

The proposed works to the first floor include minor structural alterations to convert existing bedrooms into meeting rooms, offices, a kitchen and a toilet. It is also proposed to convert the existing first floor oratory into an archive and library area.

On the second and third floor, it is proposed to carry out minor structural alterations to facilitate the provision of 12 study bedrooms with en-suite bathroom facilities where small bedrooms presently exist.

The proposed works to the roof include re-slating it and replacing the lead flashings, dormer windows, gutters and downpipes.

The application also proposes the demolition of St Gerard’s Hall and the provision of a single storey rear extension to accommodate 16 study bedrooms with en-suite bathroom facilities, a community room, oratory, library, communications store, dining room, new St Gerard’s Hall toilets, kitchen and an associated storage area for the hall and kitchen.

The proposal includes the provision of a small single storey ground floor extension inside the courtyard of the existing monastery to provide toilets, changing rooms and a small meeting room.

It is also proposed to take down the existing stone wall and wheelchair access ramp at the front elevation adjacent to the car park and rebuild the wall in a revised location to allow the extension of the car park. A new disabled access ramp will be provided under this proposal.

Liam Lawton to perform in the Redemptorist Church in Dundalk next month

Award-winning multi-platinum singer/songwriter Liam Lawton is set to perform in St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church in Dundalk next month.

The priest will bring his show ‘Bethlehem Sky’ to town on Monday December 8^th in a show that will be in aid of Dundalk Simon Community and in memory of Christine Holcombe.

He will be accompanied on the night by the Redemptorist Senior Choir under the direction of Trevor Clarke.

Doors on the night open at 7.30pm, with the concert getting underway at 8pm.

Tickets, priced €20, are available from the church office.

Novena attendees embracing selfie craze

Fr Michael Cusack (centre) of the Redemptorist Church embracing the selfie craze with fellow Novena attendees

The annual St Gerard’s Novena in St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church always attracts plenty of attention in this area but now it is making national headlines too after embracing a new craze.

Those attending this year’s Masses have been asked to upload photos onto the Redemptorist Facebook page, starting a new “Novena selfie” craze.

The new trend featured in a number of newspapers today, as well as on the likes of RTÉ Radio and Pat Kenny’s Newstalk show.

The man credited with the idea by Fr Michael Cusack is 27-year-old Matthew Cregan who is studying to join the priesthood.

With 10,000 people attending Masses at the Novena on a daily basis, there have been hundreds of selfies taken so far. Indeed, many people have been sharing pictures of them celebrating the Novena abroad as well, bringing people together.

You can check out some of the selfies here.

St Gerard’s Novena gets underway next week

It’s October and that can only mean one thing in Dundalk – time for St Gerard’s Novena.

The annual solemn novena to St Gerard Majella gets underway in St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church next Wednesday October 8th and runs until Thursday October 16th.

There will be masses from 7am to 10.30pm daily, with a number of special events planned including a healing Mass on Saturday October 11th and the annual Blessing of the Babies on Sunday October 12th.

This year Michele Ryan of Dundalk Simon Community will also address the congregation on Monday October 13th on ‘Serving the homeless.’

The Racket Café to open at Dundalk Tennis Club on Monday

A new café will open on the grounds of Dundalk Tennis and Badminton Club on the Ramparts Road this Monday.

The Racket Café will be open to all members from the public from 9am on the day and will be serving great tasting, locally roasted coffee along with some great homemade delights.

The Racket Cafe will also offer a new experience at lunch time providing a selection of sandwiches and melts as well as daily specials.

Open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday The Racket cafe will allow you to enjoy the beautiful surroundings of Dundalk Tennis Club and the neighbouring Redemptorist Church.

The cafe offers peaceful surroundings away from the hustle and bustle of town and with free car parking, it is the ideal place to meet with friends for morning coffee or afternoon tea.

With the large amount of offices in the area, The Racket Café will also offer a pre-order service as well as a free delivery service to all offices and workplaces around town. For more information or to get your first order in on Monday call Katrine on 086 3425378

For more information on The Racket Café pop over to their Facebook page here.

World Record for Dundalk Santa Run is confirmed

Organisers of last year’s Santa Run in Dundalk have received official confirmation from the Guinness Book of Records that they set a new world record last November for the world’s largest santa run.

The run from the Redemptorist Church to the Market Square required 4,000 participants to break the record with estimates at the time of up to 6,000 taking part.

The event raised over €50,000 with 18 local charities and organisations benefitting including Men’s Sheds, North Louth Hospice, SNAP, Lordship Children’s Respite Centre and SOSAD.

Well done to all concerned.

Picture credit: Masterpiece Aerial Photography.

Special Mass to remember the little ones

St Gerard’s Novena might be coming to an end tomorrow but there’s still a special Mass coming this weekend in St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church called ‘Remembering the Little Ones’.

This special Mass is aimed at remember babies lost from the womb and in infancy and takes place on Sunday October 20^th at 7pm.

During the Novena a special box has been placed at the Shrine of St Gerard and there you can write the name of your special child on one of the forms provided and your child will be prayed for at the special Mass.

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