An old reel of tape was discovered at a recent car-boot sale, showing how TidyTowns operated in Newtownforbes a century ago! 
Bingo is making a welcome return to the village this Sunday (2nd Oct) at 3pm in the Sports Complex. Prize money on offer is a monster €2,500!!
Ever get confused by all the different ‘dates’ on your food packaging? Do you know the difference between ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ and ‘display until’ and ‘sell by’? If not, you could be throwing out perfectly good food, “just in case!” If you’re in any doubt, check out ‘When a Display Date is past its Sell By Date!’ on the Stop Food Waste website, or download their simple information leaflet.
People travel from far and wide just to be seen in Newtownforbes! Here’s a few from Boyle GAA on walkabout.
Is this a good sign?
(Picture borrowed from Boyle GAA blog)
The first meeting of ‘GIY Longford’ takes place on October 17th in the Longford Library.
From the Longford CoCo website:
GIY (Grow it Yourself) Ireland is a new not-for-profit initiative that is literally sweeping the nation. It aims to get people interested in growing their own food and provide them with the practical skills they need to do so successfully. The organisation gets growers together (in the community and online) on a regular basis to talk, learn from each other and exchange tips, produce and war stories. GIY activities include monthly meetings, talks and demos; garden visits, seed and seedling swaps; produce bartering, mentor panels and grower’s meitheals.
For full information, see http://www.longfordcoco.ie/coco_content.aspx?id=21530
This week is National Organic Week! From the Bord Bia website:
National Organic Week has been held annually since 2005. It is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and co-ordinated by Bord Bia on behalf of Forás Orgánach. National Organic Week 2011 aims to continue to raise consumer awareness of the benefits of organic produce and increase the frequency of consumption of locally produced organic food. Cooking a tasty meal for friends and family with in-season organic ingredients is an ideal way to treat your loved ones and enjoy the freshest produce sourced in your local region.
For full information, see http://www.bordbia.ie/aboutfood/organicfood/pages/nationalorganicweek2011.aspx
On Friday 16th, you can enjoy some local organic produce at a food sampling event in the Market Square, Longford. For further details, see http://www.bordbia.ie/aboutfood/organicfood/Pages/NationalOrganicWeek2011-EventsListing.aspx
The Newtownforbes TidyTowns entry for 2011 achieved 232 points – an increase of 9 on the previous 223 points from 2009. Congratulations to all those involved. Due to the weather and other factors outside of the TidyTowns group’s control, many jobs were not completed until after the village was judged on June 15th. That’s just the way things go sometimes! Hopefully, extra points will be gained for those jobs in next year’s competition. You can read the judge’s report by clicking here.
Newtownforbes has improved markedly since the TidyTowns group was reformed in late 2008, with much of this improvement driven by its membership; but many other individuals and organisations have also helped to make the village and its environs a nicer place to live in. Thanks go to everyone, including:
