Dunmore’s Haven Hotel celebrates a half century

Paul, Sharon, Jean and Jason Kelly of the Haven Hotel

The Kelly family has cause for celebration this year, as it commemorates fifty years of running one of Waterford’s most iconic hotels, Dunmore East’s Haven Hotel.

Purchased by Jean and the late John Kelly in the spring of 1964, the hotel has become a favourite with locals and visitors alike as a welcoming home -from-home with stunning sea views, a relaxing and warm atmosphere, inviting accommodation and locally sourced good food.

Today the hotel is run by the next generation of Kellys; Paul, Sharon and Jason.  While the siblings are determined to retain the unique characteristics of the hotel, there are exciting times ahead for the Haven Hotel.

According to Paul, 2014 is going to be a year of innovative developments.  “We grew up in the hotel, it’s in our blood.  When Dad died earlier this year, we all knew that we wanted to take over the reins, build on his legacy and make him proud of our achievements.  It’s particularly poignant for us as 2014 is the 50^th anniversary of Mum and Dad buying the hotel.”

Over the winter hiatus the family invested in refurbishing the hotels 16 bedrooms and suites.  The Haven Hotel started life as a private home and the focus was on retaining the old world charm of a private residence. 

In the restaurant and bar, the Haven Hotel prides itself on its wide- appealing a la carte and bar menus.  The daily catch is landed only yards away in Dunmore Harbour and the Haven Hotel chefs work with local quality food producers to create exciting and sumptuous fine and casual dining options. 

“We have just expanded our options with extensive lunch and dinner menus and bar food served all day.  We are lucky to be situated so close to Dunmore East harbour and are spoiled with the selection of fresh seafood that is landed literally yards from our door.  Locally sourced meat, poultry, fish, fruit and vegetables are a staple of the Haven Hotel’s menus and the kitchen team has nurtured good relationships with local and regional quality food producers,” Paul added.

The stunning setting of the hotel has attracted many weddings.  The Haven Hotel has hosted traditional weddings, civil ceremonies and humanist ceremonies in the gardens set to the stunning coastal backdrop.  The Haven Hotel caters for small and intimate wedding parties to weddings with up to 150 wedding guests.  Sharon Kelly, Wedding Coordinator has worked with hundreds of couples with unique and individual ideas about their big day.

“Weddings have changed.  The traditional wedding with 300 plus guests is a rarity these days.  Couples tend to opt for a more intimate ceremony and reception.  In our experience, when couples visit the Hotel for the first time they are astonished by the magnificent sea views and love the idea of their family and friends mingling and relaxing on the lawn overlooking the bay.  In fact you couldn’t get a more stunning backdrop for wedding photographs.”

Evenings at the Haven Hotel are set to get livelier.  Paul has developed a broad schedule of live musical entertainment over the coming months. “The summer months always had a full live music calendar, however we are determined to develop the schedule throughout the year.”

“Every Friday we hold a very popular traditional Ceili and we’ve had a great reaction to the Country and Western Jukebox, which is superb platform for up and coming local talent. Our Celtic Boogie Night and Garth Brook’s Tribute act were huge successes, so we plan to introduce a wide and varied live music line-up over the coming months.”

Fifty years on, the inimitable Haven Hotel, is renowned as the perfect destination for those who want to explore, those who love good food, those who like to relax and unwind and those who want to spend time with their families, in a setting that can only be described as breath – taking!

The next fifty years hold exciting times for the Kelly family as they continue to develop and enhance one of Waterford’s best loved hotels.

For bookings, queries or further information about the Haven Hotel in Dunmore East, Co. Waterford call 051 383150, visit www.havenhotel.com or like The Haven Hotel Dunmore East on Facebook.

NAS Training Centre to host Chamber Business after Hours

The NAS Training Centre, based in the Cleaboy Business Park, will host a Business after Hours, in association with Waterford Chamber of Commerce, on Thursday, May 1^st.

The state of the art training facility has gained a reputation as one of the region’s leading conference and training venues and May’s open event will give businesses and trainers the opportunity to learn about the facilities and courses on offer.

According to Ray Power, General Manager of NAS Training Centre, the portfolio of courses has grown exponentially since it opened in 2006.  “The NAS Training Centre hosts a wide range of academic and practical courses for different sectors and disciplines.”

“We have proactively sought to work with strategic partners in developing a broad portfolio of training courses.  We are working with an array of local and national trainers, such as the I.I.T.D., Mary Daly and Associates and Darlington Consulting.”

“Our partnership with Adult Continuing Education at UCC has been very successful and has seen the centre run courses in Autism Studies and Disability Studies.”

“We are currently engaged in our second Irish Times Digital Media training course and the feedback has been excellent.  This course is aimed at any organisation, business or individual that wants to gain a better understanding of the ever evolving digital landscape and the trainers comprise of some of the most well regarded names on the digital media landscape, such as Eoin Kennedy of Knudger, Maeve Kneasey of Elucidate and Conor Pope of the Irish Times, amongst other industry experts” Ray added.

The NAS Training Centre also provides facilities for companies wishing to hold off site meetings or conferences.  “We have developed the centre so that it provides state of the art facilities, in a bright and spacious setting, plenty of free parking and catering facilities, which have been proven to encourage and nurture optimum performance from all participants.”

The NAS Training Centre Business after Hours takes place at Unit 3, Cleaboy Business Park, Old Kilmeaden Road on Thursday, May 1^st at 6pm.  For further information or to book your place call Waterford Chamber on 051 872639 or email sheila.quinn@waterfordchamber.ie.

Rotary club of Waterford appeals to the public to cycle for charity

The Rotary Club of Waterford’s annual Fun Cycle takes place again this year on Sunday May 11^th 2014 at Mc Donald’s on the Cork Road, starting at 11.00 am the cycle travels  to Tramore and back.

The Charity Cycle, now in its fifth year, is an opportunity for anyone who cycles and believes in helping a good cause. 

Regular participants are those who know a family who have stayed in the Ronald McDonald House or have stayed in the house themselves and wish to give something back.

  

Waterford Rotary appeals to cyclists of all ages to join. No pre-registration is required, just get the bike out or borrow one, and join in for about two hours on May 11^th.

To top it all, WLR fm will be broadcasting live from McDonalds on the Cork road and Ronald Mc Donald will join the fun on the day. All cyclists will be treated to a free Burger after the cycle plus lots of other treats on the day.

The Ronald McDonald House, Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital

The Ronald McDonald House provides a home-away-from-home for families of seriously ill children who are hospitalised or undergoing extended treatment at Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin. Families will be able to stay for the dura

tion of their child’s stay in hospital. The Ronald McDonald House provides a supportive environment for these families. The first Irish Ronald McDonald House was a 15,000 square feet stand alone building in the grounds of Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin. The House can accommodate up to 16 families in en-suite family bedrooms with communal kitchens, dining areas and living areas. It also has a toddlers’ room and full laundry facilities.

Since opening in November 2004 the House has been “home” to over 1000 families from all over Ireland. Some have stayed for just a few nights, while others stay for 7 or 8 months!  The beauty of the house is that each room accommodates 4 so grannies, granddads, brothers and sisters can all help in the child’s recovery.

The annual running costs are in excess of €300,000. We are very dependent on the continuing support of all to cover the ongoing costs of running the House.

Sponsorship cards are available from Mc Donald’s City Centre or Cork Road, Lily o Brien’s and Nolke Opticians, or donations can be made directly on the Rotary website – www.waterfordrotary.org

Irish Handmade Glass takes the US by storm

Having made its international television debut on one of the world’s largest shopping channels on St. Patricks’ Day, Waterford’s Irish Handmade Glass company has been invited to feature on the QVC shopping channel again next year.

In September 2013, the Waterford glass manufacturer caught the attention of QVC at Showcase, Ireland’s Creative Expo, and was chosen from hundreds of Irish designers and producers to showcase its product on the St. Patricks Day show.

Tony Hayes, Master Glass Blower and one of the founders of Irish Handmade Glass travelled to the Philadelphia home of QVC, where he underwent two days of intensive media training before showcasing the “Lovebird” collection to an audience of over 35 million viewers.

“It was an amazing experience”, Tony said.  “We sent over product, our glass Lovebird pairs, a few weeks before we were due on air.  Then when we arrived I had two full days of mentoring, training and rehearsals.  We were allocated five minutes and ten seconds live on air and when I was finished was told that over 35 million people had viewed our segment and all of our products were practically sold out within that time.”

“Not only was it a fantastic opportunity for us to get such exposure, we made sure to focus on the fact that our products are 100% guaranteed Irish, 100% handmade and most specifically 100% Waterford.”

The positive reaction to the Lovebird collection has ensured that Irish Handmade Glass will be featuring on the channel again in 2015.

“We have just been asked to return for St. Patrick’s Day next year.  The QVC buyers have been in touch with us and requested sample products which we hope to feature on the show. QVC looks for authentically Irish hand crafted products and our multi-coloured Lovebird pairs, which are inset with Irish wild flower, were a huge hit with the US audience.”

Ciaran Cullen, Acting Chief Executive, Waterford City Enterprise Board, which has supported Irish Handmade Glass since the beginning through funding and mentoring added, “We were absolutely delighted that the Irish Handmade Glass Company was chosen from hundreds of Irish designers and producers by QVC.”

 

“Being invited back by QVC for next year’s St. Patrick’s Day broadcast not only proves that Tony and the team can make beautiful high quality glass pieces, it also shows that there is a significant international demand for the work of Waterford’s highly skilled glass cutters and blowers, which is something we can be very proud of.”

The founders of The Irish Handmade Glass Company are Danny Murphy, Tony Hayes, Derek Smith and Richard Rowe.  They established the company in the Kite Design Studios in the Viking Triangle and have almost 150 years cumulative experience in glass blowing and cutting.

Producing 100% mouth blown and hand cut coloured crystal in the Kite Design Studios in Henrietta Street the Irish Handmade Glass Company has quickly become one of Ireland’s leading glass manufacturers.

To see more from the Irish Handmade Glass Company go to www.theirishhandmadeglasscompany.com or call the Kite Design Studios on 051 858914.

Waterford's Cathal takes top national student enterprise award

Jonathan Earl, B2B Communications, Jacqui Gaule and Ciaran Cullen, Waterford City Enterprise Board collecting National Student Enterprise Award on behalf of Cathal Daly

16 year old Cathal Daly, a transition year student at De la Salle College, Waterford, was announced as Senior Winner of the 12th Annual City and County Enterprise Boards Student Enterprise Awards National Finals in Dublin’s Croke Park.

Cathal's award winning company, “Upright Cycle Stands” produces hardwood cycle stands for bicycles with clipless pedals that hold the bicycle by the pedal so it does not touch the frame or rims of the bicycle. 

Organised by the County and City Enterprise Boards, a record-breaking 17,000 students from 370 schools have researched, set-up and managed their real-life businesses, as part of the biggest student enterprise programme in the country

Through their involvement, students learn important business skills, gain real-world experience and develop their commercial instincts. It also gives students;

•  practical, real life experience of setting up and running their own business

• the opportunity to think about entrepreneurship and self-employment as a viable career choice

and it: 

• enhances the teaching of business and entrepreneurship in schools by combining class room learning with real life experience

Judging of the awards centres on key business areas, including: business planning, market research, sales and marketing, financial management, innovation and enterprise.  Cathal receives an International enterprise education study visit to Lisbon as part of his prize.