Cathedral Quarter column: Meeting new bishop Niall Coll in Letterkenny

Members of our committee were delighted to recently meet the new Bishop of Raphoe, His Excellency Bishop Niall Coll to inform him all about the Cathedral Quarter project.

As a native of St Johnston, Bishop Coll is very familiar with Letterkenny in coming to the town since the 1970’s and was a former teacher in St Eunan’s College. Indeed, the Bishop taught our own Patrick Friel during his time in Sentry Hill.

Before being made the Bishop of Raphoe, Bishop Niall Coll was the Bishop of Ossary in Kilkenny and as a History and Geography teacher, he was very aware of the positive role that heritage has had on Kilkenny City. His predecessor, Bishop Alan McGuickan regularly attended the Christmas Carol Trail that we could in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce, Letterkenny CDP along with the respective churches and we invited Bishop Coll to attend our next one.

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On a personal note, the Bishop informed me that my father and his own dad were friends. He told me a nice story about my late father in his job of a Community Welfare Officer in St Johnston. It is good to hear of positive stories of deceased family members.

New Businesses
While our immediate priority was to get the buildings on Church Lane fixed up so they could be brought back into use, we were very aware that this would create opportunities for budding local entrepreneurs. This is coming to fruition as a number of new business for opened up in the locality over the past few months.

In December, Claudia McLaughlin opened up Vixen Hair Studio in the former premise of G&G, located above Universal Books.
Claudia has been hairdressing for eleven years and she is working along with two other very talented stylists, Jennie Smyth. They have a great amount of experience in colour and cuts.

Upstairs from the Hair Studio is the Allure Beauty Studio, which is operated by the very skilled beautician Arlene Cassidy who is working under the Vixen Brand. All together a power house for all beauty needs. To find more information contact Vixen Hair Studio Instagram page.

Plus, with Sparkling Nails located in the same building, all your beauty needs are catered for in Houston House. It is another reason for people to come and spend time in the Cathedral Quarter.

Easter Craft Fair
On Easter Saturday, April 4 we will be holding our third Easter Craft Fair from 12 pm to 4pm in Conwal Parish Church Hall. We have a number of crafters already signed up but we are looking for more. It is a great opportunity for talented local makers, artists, and artisan producers to showcase their produce.

If you make handcrafted goods, including Easter decorations, bespoke gifts, handmade jewellery, artwork, textiles, home décor or baked treats, then we hope you will come along. Tables cost €20 and you can book a place by ringing 086 345 2457 or contact us via our social media pages. Admission on the day is free but we will be having a raffle draw with €2 per line or three lines for €5.

Plus, a final reminder our Annual General Meeting is taking place in Dillons Hotel on Thursday, 12 March at 8pm. If you would like to get involved in any aspect of the Cathedral Quarter Project, then come along to our AGM. Everyone has a role to play in the development of the Cathedral Quarter, no matter what size.