For the residents, service users, and staff of St Raphael\u2019s, Youghal, and a dedicated broadcasting team from CRY 104FM Community Radio, all their Christmases came together when they won a Gold Award and a Craol Achievement Award Standout Submission in the Craol Community Radio Awards for a special show which was broadcast this time last year.<\/p>\n
\u2018Christmas from St Raphael\u2019s 2024\u2019 is a festive mix of memories, of stories of yore, of nostalgia, of the days of the Ballroom of Romance, old music favourites that never date, and the general joie de vivre felt by the service users and staff of St Raphael\u2019s who help each other out and enjoy each other\u2019s company.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe broadcast approximately 165 hours a week,\u201d says station manager Yvonne Smith.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince our existence in 1979, volunteers are the essence of our existence. Today, there are five core staff, 11 Community Employment staff and two Tus staff.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn addition, there are over 135 active volunteers participating in our activities of broadcasting, training, community engagement, and governance,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur community radio station is an active source of engagement and a platform for all sectors of the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
She speaks about days we don\u2019t want to remember.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone knows about the effects covid had on us,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe isolation, the loneliness, the fear, were obvious all over the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cOlder people were the most affected in the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvonne came up with a novel idea to raise the spirits and morale among her community and further afield.<\/p>\n
\u201cI came up with the idea with two of the staff of St Raphael\u2019s to broadcast a programme from St Raphael\u2019s with segments from both the service users, residents, and the staff.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvonne\u2019s idea was warmly welcomed, and the wonderful content that the \u2018dream team\u2019 delivered combined to give easy, memorable listening in the town of Youghal and the surrounding areas of east Cork and west Waterford.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe idea evolved,\u201d says Yvonne. \u201cIt took off. We broadcast programmes at least twice a year from St Raphael\u2019s Centre. We get fantastic feedback.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then the magical idea was hatched to broadcast a Christmas Special from St Raphael\u2019s to include all the clients, service-users, and staff wishing to participate.<\/p>\n
The scene was set. The enthusiastic team of clients and staff of the centre were on cue to spread the joy.<\/p>\n
Angela Kearns, Stephen O\u2019Leary and Steve Whelan of CRY Community Radio were on hand to make the magic a reality.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people at St Raphael\u2019s are like one big family,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\n \u201cThey inspire us. The dedication of the staff is amazing to witness. Being greeted by the staff and clients at St Raphael\u2019s, we were emotional, we were blown away, and we felt privileged. We were treated like royalty.\u201d\n <\/p>\n
The CRY Community Radio team were welcomed and embraced.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe residents got more involved,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe camaraderie and the atmosphere at the community hub that is St Raphael\u2019s is something beautiful to behold.\u201d<\/p>\n
Listening to the award-winning piece, I am transported back in time and to the Ballroom of Romance. Kevin\u2019s music choice is Giving it all Away by Roger Daltrey.<\/p>\n
That was known as a clinger back in the day!<\/p>\n
Kevin enjoys social farming, working with sheep and horses, looking after the yard and enjoying tea and cake.<\/p>\n
Sounds like a good job if one could get it?<\/p>\n
\u201cI only do one day a week,\u201d Kevin says.<\/p>\n
That is because he and his fellow travellers are too busy bussing it to Clonakilty, where they see how black pudding and sausages are made.<\/p>\n
The social outings are a big thing for the people involved in St Raphael\u2019s.<\/p>\n
The regular outings to Kinsale, Kilkenny, Wicklow, Kerry, and many other places of interest make it feel like \u2018a summer holiday\u2019 for all concerned.<\/p>\n
Paudie, from Dungourney, also enjoys social farming, looking after the ducks and the chickens. His music choice is Foster & Allen.<\/p>\n
It is a case of round the house and mind the dresser!<\/p>\n
In the garden, we meet Ali and her helper Jimmy Murphy, who has the gift of green fingers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what I would do without Jimmy,\u201d says Ali.<\/p>\n
We learn about the range of produce, the honesty box under the archway, and the wonderful support from the community. On open days, St Raphael\u2019s flies their flags to celebrate the great day.<\/p>\n
The open-air live traditional music provided by local artists Jon Bulman and Bobby Minogue, lends a party atmosphere to St Raphael\u2019s and its surrounds.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople living in St Sarsfield Terrace wonder what\u2019s going on!<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018Christmas from St Raphael\u2019s\u2019 has been an astounding success, allowing our community to connect with a diverse group of people who have disabilities,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe impact of the programme was profoundly evident; the residents and staff beamed with pride in their involvement.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was really a \u2018kinda magic\u2019.<\/p>\n
\n \u201cWe believe this project offers invaluable social benefits, shedding light on the lives of the marginalised and under-represented members of our community.\n <\/p>\n
\u201cThe residents feel a deep sense of belonging and joy from participating, inspiring us to continue the important project every year.\u201d<\/p>\n
They are all in it together.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are engaging directly with over 47 residents and staff members,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
What does the project mean to everybody involved?<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the residents, it offers a meaningful way to participate in community radio,\u201d says Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe experience builds confidence as they share their songs, poems, and play requests. The staff at St Raphael\u2019s Centre are incredibly supportive and always encourage the residents.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvonne and her team feel the joy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is an absolute privilege to be able to produce such wonderful programmes and to witness the amazing work they do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The collective work of the community, \u2018Christmas from St Raphael\u2019s\u2019 2024, was duly recognised.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach year, Craol run achievement awards and receive submissions from the 22 community radio stations in Ireland,\u201d explains Yvonne.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese awards are very important, and they are an acknowledgement of the work community radio does in Ireland.\u201d<\/p>\n
The last word should go to Richard, who enjoys days out with his friends.<\/p>\n
What did he get up to in Kilkenny?<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t get up to much,\u201d says Richard.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was watched like a hawk!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For the residents, service users, and staff of St Raphael\u2019s, Youghal, and a dedicated broadcasting team from CRY…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58970,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[74],"tags":[20149,18,19,17,82,58305],"class_list":{"0":"post-218192","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-east-cork","9":"tag-eire","10":"tag-ie","11":"tag-ireland","12":"tag-technology","13":"tag-youghal"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/115671525293064426","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=218192"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218192\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=218192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=218192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=218192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}