Templemore’s heritage comes alive
Templemore’s rich past and heritage is being put into the hands of the youth of the area through the recent launch of a newly-designed heritage map and brochure, with young explorers and enthusiasts in mind.
The map, unveiled this week in St Joseph’s Primary School, opens the door to children, young people and families to discover the sites, buildings and landmarks that have shaped the town for generations.
Every street and building in Templemore tells a story. With this in mind and through the necessity to preserve this knowledge for future generations, it is important to impart this information onto the younger people of the town.
DEEP PASSION AND ENTHUSIASM
Rónán Loughnane’s enthusiasm, coupled with his deep passion and knowledge for local history and heritage, set the wheels for this project in motion. His persuasion skills were also called upon and before long, he had a small group of locals attending a series of six two-hour workshops facilitated by the Heritage Keeper’s Project at the BurrenBeo Trust.
Upon completion of the six online workshops which explored locality, heritage and the significance of place and biodiversity, the group were granted €1000 in order to complete a chosen project that would enhance the heritage footprint of the area. The group, made up of Rónán Loughnane, Bridget Jones and Frances Maxwell from the locality, alongside Elaine Foley, Michael Delaney and Cillian Roche from St Joseph’s Primary School, decided upon a collaborative project between the locality and the school to ensure accessibility of the town’s deep and rich heritage possibilities to all generations.
A child-friendly map of the town, in brochure form, was settled upon. The map includes seven significant landmarks throughout the town with a small amount of historical information about each. The exceptional artistic prowess of two Sixth Class pupils, namely Erika Kovtun and Zainab Ghani, are on display through the impressively hand-drawn landmarks on the map. The brochure was professionally designed by Úna Healy Design, Howth, who beautifully captured the spirit we hoped to convey, bringing Templemore’s history to life in a way that feels both engaging and accessible for all.
Furthermore, and to ensure increased inclusivity of the map for all, overseen by Sinéad Stone, a short video explaining each landmark, delivered by pupils from St Joseph’s, was imaginatively captured and edited by Katie Gleeson and embedded onto St. Joseph’s website by Ger Stone. Scanning the QR Code on the reverse of the brochure will bring you to this important supplementary resource.
CONNECTING PEOPLE OF ALL AGES
The central vision for this project is that the heritage map will be embraced not only by children, young people and local families, but also by schools from outside the town and visitors eager to explore the deep heritage and historical links that Templemore has to offer. In this way, it becomes more than a map or a brochure - it’s a resource that connects people of all ages to the stories of our wonderful town.
A huge thanks is owed to the local committee named above, especially to Rónán Loughnane for his vision, enthusiasm and knowledge, to Úna Healy of Úna Healy Design for her professionalism and creativity, to Katie Gleeson and Ger Stone for their videography and IT skills, to the Heritage Keeper’s project at the BurrenBeo Trust for their invaluable work and funding they provide to groups and projects nationwide and finally, to Templemore Community Development Association for their financial assistance in the printing of this lifelong resource.
BROCHURE STOCKISTS
Brochures are now available at the town library or from St Joseph’s Primary School for all to enjoy. With this map now in the hands of young explorers and the wider community, Templemore’s rich history and heritage is no longer just remembered - it is actively lived, shared, and celebrated for generations to come. Bainigí sult agus taitneamh as an acmhainn luachmhar seo.