Lorraine Loughran: Creating safe spaces in Ballyconnell
The Anglo-Celt Community & Sports Awards, in partnership with Mannok and Kingspan, will take place this Thursday evening in the Cavan Crystal Hotel. Lorraine Loughran from Ballyconnell is a finalist for Volunteer of the Year...
On January 24, as the full force of Storm Éowyn was felt across the county, many found themselves without electricity and/or water.
While service was maintained in most homes and businesses in Ballyconnell Town, those in rural parts were left without any way to heat their homes, cook or charge phones or laptops.
Then, Lorriane O’Loughran got the keys of the Tom Regan Hall and a community hub was set up offering tea/coffee and biscuits.
That was the first day of the hub. After that, others namely, Cathy Fitzpatrick and Marian Maguire, also chipped in and soon local people were bringing soup and hot meals to the hub to feed the cold and hungry. Before Éowyn though, Lorraine Loughran was working as a volunteer with the youth club, which, brings together children from sixth class to third year to the Community Centre into a safe space where no mobile phones are allowed for an hour and a half each week.
Although the youth club went by the wayside during the pandemic, Lorraine re-started it in January this year as a vital outlet for young people from rural areas to mix with people their own age from other areas.
“The kids from different schools all get to mix and know each other,” Lorraine told the Celt.
On the first night of youth club nine teens turned up. Today there are 34 registered young people.
There’s a pool table and table tennis, couches to hang out on and music is always on in the background.
At the end of this month, the group is taking a trip to Cavan Adventure Centre, and some will be entering a photography competition. And soon, trained leaders will deliver a talk on consent and pornography. This will be followed up by self-defence training.
Lorraine stresses that she does not run the youth club, nor the community hub when it was needed, alone.
She wanted to thank Laura Brady for her help with setting up the hub.
However, she told the Celt: “I opened the community centre first thing in the morning and stayed until it closed in the evening chatting, making tea and serving food for people as they came in all day.”
With special thanks to our partners and sponsors in these awards - Mannok, Kingspan, Sherry FitzGerald Declan Woods, Cavan Crystal Hotel, Dovida, Kyte Powertech, CICS Silo Clean and Joe Rowley Windows