╬  KILMALEY-CONNOLLY-INCH PARISH  ╬

Kilmaley Parish Property and Finance Committee

Kilmaley Parish Office,

Kilmaley,

Co. Clare

September 2024

MAJOR REPAIR WORK TO PARISH CHURCHES

Dear Parishioners,

We hope this letter finds you in good health and spirits. The people of our parish show a great pride in our Churches and Parish, and we hope to continue the excellent work of our predecessors and the various organisations and committees within the parish.

As caretakers of our historic and cherished churches, we have an important duty to ensure all our churches remain safe, functional, and welcoming for current and future generations.

Significant repair and maintenance works are required across our three churches. Each church faces unique challenges that must be addressed urgently:

1. Kilmaley Church: following recent storm damage, several sections of the roof require repair, along with replacement of valleys which have deteriorated significantly overtime. Additionally, we need to install a disabled toilet to improve accessibility for all parishioners and visitors to the church.

2. Connolly Church: The roof needs a full replacement to prevent further deterioration and ensure the safety of our congregation.

3. Inch Church: This church experienced flooding during Christmas. Extensive work on the grounds has been carried out to prevent future occurrences, along with works inside the church to remove the water damage, which has incurred substantial costs.

The total cost for these essential projects amounts to €150,000. While the parish has saved funds over the years with €100,000 available, this still leaves us with a shortfall of €50,000.

We are reaching out to you, our devoted parishioners, to ask for your generous support. Contributions of any size will collectively help us meet this financial challenge. Your donations will not only ensure the immediate safety and functionality of our churches but also future proof them for generations to come.

We understand that these are challenging times for many, but we believe that with collective effort and generosity, we can achieve this goal. As a community, we have always come together in times of need, and we are confident that we can do so once again.

We sincerely thank you for your weekly/annual contributions, they are vital in keeping our parish going, because of your generosity we have accumulated a significant portion of the amount required. Please consider donating towards these vital projects. Donations can be made in the following ways:

1. By dropping a donation into the parochial house or into one of the secure collection boxes available in all three Churches (please label as “donation for major repair fund”).
2. Directly to our major repairs fund account:

Account number: 51936220

Sort Code: 90-42-10

IBAN: IE90 BOFI 9042 1051 9362 20

3. Through our online donation platform

https://www.idonate.ie/crowdfunder/MajorRepairFundKilmaleyParish

In addition, we will soon be placing parish-owned land at Snugville, Kilmaley, on the market. The proceeds of this sale will serve as a contingency fund to support our future needs. We would appreciate it if you would let the diaspora of our parish know that we are fundraising for the above projects in case any of them would like to contribute to the cause.

Thank you for your unwavering support and dedication to our parish community. Together, we can continue to be the proud caretakers of these historic buildings, ensuring they remain in excellent condition for many years to come.

Yours faithfully,

Fr. John

On behalf of the Parish Property and Finance Committee