All About Cork: Biodiversity hub to open this week in Ballincollig park

This Thursday a biodiversity hub will open in Ballincollig, beside the eastern entrance to the regional park, in the old Powdermills visitor centre.

Two years ago, local residents Mabel Hernandez and Eithne Lynch met with Maria Young, of Green Spaces for Health, while on a biodiversity course in Ballincollig Regional Park, and agreed that a biodiversity centre was needed.

They applied to Cork City Council for use of the old Powdermills Visitor Centre, when it became vacant.

The building is beside the eastern entrance to the park and it now houses the biodiversity hub, which opens this week.

Ms Lynch said they hoped that the biodiversity hub would benefit the park and the local community.

“It is the perfect time to establish a centre like this, when so many people are concerned about climate change, pollution, and loss of habitats and biodiversity,” Ms Lynch said.

“It is vitally important that we all come together to tackle the biodiversity crisis we are facing, so that humanity and nature can thrive together.”

Ms Hernandez said the hub would be a venue for talks and workshops for schools, community groups and more, where an understanding of the value of nature and the environment could be fostered, and where ideas and projects for the preservation of nature could be explored and enacted.

“This location provides the perfect blend of open-air classroom in the park, and an indoor space dedicated to workshops centred around biodiversity and sustainability,” Dr Hernandez said.

The hub will host twice-monthly, admission-free talks and presentations.

The first talk is planned for 7pm this Thursday, February 20, and will feature ornithologist and broadcaster Jim Wilson, who many will know from Mooney Goes Wild and the annual RTÉ dawn chorus broadcast.

His topic will be the winter birds of County Cork and all are welcome.

M&Co Hair to reopen

Next Saturday afternoon, M&Co Hair, on Ballincollig’s Main St, will open, with Lord Mayor Dan Boyle clipping the ribbon on the relaunched business.

Proprietor Michael Maguire has four decades of experience in hairdressing, having worked for years with D’arcy’s D2 hairdressing, before deciding to strike out in M&Co.

Mr Maguire told The Echo he knows what he would be doing if he wasn’t in the business. “If I wasn’t doing this, I’d be having a panic attack,” he joked.

“This is just what I do, and I absolutely love it.”

Michael’s team has between them over 150 years of experience, he said, meaning the business has “the same trusted hands, with a new vision”.

The official opening of M&Co will begin at 3pm on Saturday, February 22.

Darkness into Light date

The 2025 Darkness into Light (DiL) event in Ballincollig will take place at 4.15am on Saturday, May 10.

Last year, DiL saw tens of thousands of people take part in pre-dawn events across the country and across the world, and most took the form of walks aimed at raising funds for the suicide and self-harm prevention charity Pieta.

Fifty-one new walks were held in Ireland last year, out of a total of 180.

In Ballincollig in 2024, some 1,600 walkers turned out for DiL, and they raised an incredible €37,655 for Pieta.

This year, the village will be looking at that figure as the target to beat.

To avail of Pieta services, visit www.pieta.ie or call 0818 111 126. Pieta provides 24/7 support via the freephone crisis helpline on 1800 247 247, or text HELP to 51444.

Alzheimer’s café on Thursday

Ballincollig’s Alzheimer’s Café is open from 3pm this Thursday, February 20, in the Chapel Gate Café. The café takes place on the third Thursday of each month and provides a safe space to sit down and have a chat.

The café is a way to meet others who have dementia, and to meet health and social-care professionals.

For further information, contact Karen Fitzpatrick on 087 3487511, or email Karen at ballincolligalzheimercafe@alzheimer.ie.

Marie Keating unit visit

This morning, the Ballincollig Resource Centre is to host a visit from the Marie Keating mobile unit, from 10.30am to 3.30pm. All are welcome to speak with one of the nurses.

Founded 23 years ago, the Marie Keating Foundation promotes life-saving messages on cancer prevention and early detection.

The foundation offers a free service, but no cancer screening is provided.

Health and wellness workshop

There are still a few places left for the final session of the Ballincollig Family Resource Centre’s Health and Wellness workshop with nutritional therapist and health and wellness coach Jennifer O’Callaghan.

Attendees are invited to discuss nutrition, to encourage a lifestyle transformation.

Everyone is welcome. The group will be client led; anything can be discussed. Some topics may include digestive issues, or hormone imbalances.

The remaining workshop session is scheduled to take place on Thursday, February 27, at 10.30am in Ballincollig Family Resource Centre.

Anyone interested is asked to register by emailing info@ballincolligfrc.org or by calling 021 4876295.

Stars come out for Blue Demons reunion celebrations

Walk-and-talk group

Every Wednesday morning, Ballincollig Family Resource Centre hosts a walk-and-talk group. Starting at 10am at the resource centre reception area, the group is open to all, and welcomes people of all levels of fitness, with a focus each week on social interaction. For further information, call 021 4876295, or email info@ballicolligfrc.org.

Ballincollig GAA Club lottery

The numbers drawn in this week’s Ballincollig GAA Club lottery, which was held on Thursday, February 13, were 15, 25, 28, and 33. While there was no winner of the €8,200 jackpot, there were three consolation prize winners, with €100 going to Pat Patton, €50 to Ger McSweeney and €50 to Pat Conway.

The club is migrating its lottery from its previous host to its platform ClubZap. The new system mirrors the previous one and is played with 36 numbers, and all players with remaining credit have been moved across with their same numbers, plus their remaining credits.

For further information, see ballincolliggaa.clubzap.com.

The next draw is scheduled to place on Thursday evening, February 20, with the jackpot now standing at €8,400.

For details, see the club’s social-media pages.