What happened in Kerry this week
Kerry FC’s sold-out clash with Sligo Rovers this Friday is the curtain-raiser for a bumper weekend of sport in Tralee that will also see thousands flock to the town for three GAA county finals.
Lily Kelliher was back behind the bar on Saturday - celebrating her 100th birthday in one of Kerry's most renowned local pubs.
Kerry’s science sisters, Ciara, Saoirse and Laoise Murphy - winners of the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2025 - will be among Ireland’s greatest young scientific minds who will take centre stage in Latvia next week.
The All-Ireland medal collection of the late, great Mick O’Dwyer has been donated to the GAA Museum following a ceremony in Croke Park on Tuesday afternoon.
They say do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life – and for Tralee woman Brenda O’Sullivan, doing what she loves means travelling the world.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
‘Vital support when we needed it most’
The late Jack Leane was born on August 11, 2008 to adoring parents Annette and Pádraig –but following an arrival that was far from straightforward,Jack suffered a severe brain injury that would dictate the course of his life.
However, with the support of an array of wraparound services offered to his family, little Jack had many years during which he thrived –and in return, his parents say he brought so much joy and a sense of calm to their household.
The little Killarney boy, who was non-verbal, lived with complex medical needs, including epilepsy, feeding difficulties, chest infections, and serious spinal and hip surgeries.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
Jigsaw star Emma eyes World title
Schoolteacher Emma Quirke has all the pieces in place as she heads to the World Jigsaw Puzzle Championship this week – and this year her parents will also be hoping to complete a family puzzle.
The 25-year-old from Muckross in Killarney will be competing both as an individual and as part of a team alongside her father, GP Darren Quirke.
And competing ‘Team Quirke’ at the world championships in Spain will be a pairing of mother Kathryn and dad Darren, who will compete together in the doubles event.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
Lily is back behind the bar at 100!
Lily Kelliher was back behind the bar on Saturday - celebrating her 100th birthday in one of Kerry's most renowned local pubs.
It’s been over 70 years since she pulled a pint, but this one was perfect –and nobody was surprised, because for the county's latest centenarian, a zest for life combined with a sense of humour are the secret ingredients that always kept her glass full to the brim.
Lily celebrated her milestone 100th birthday on Saturday at Quanes in Blennerville –the legendary bar she spent ten years managing in her younger days.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
Huge interest expected in saint’s Tralee relics
Huge interest is now expected in the Kerry-based relics of Carlo Acutis, known as ‘God’s Influencer’, following the Italian teen’s canonisation as a saint by Pope Leo XIV last Sunday.
Fr David McGovern, Prior of Holy Cross Dominican Friary in Tralee, was in Rome for the canonisation. He flew out on Friday and spent 48 hours in the city and attended the canonisation ceremony for Saint Carlo Acutis at St Peter's Square in Vatican City which he said was a ‘magnificent and wonderful’ occasion.
Carlo Acutis, who died of leukaemia in 2006 at the age of 15, is the first millennial saint. He was canonised alongside Pier Giorgio Frassati, a 24-year-old Italian noted for his charitable work in the early 1900s, whom Fr David said was also connected to the Dominican Order.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
Head start for tiny readers
Even the tiniest readers are getting a head start in Kerry – thanks to Kerry County Library who have donated books to the neonatal ward at University Hospital Kerry.
The donation is part of an ongoing initiative between the hospital and the library to encourage reading from parents to children from the earliest stage.
Kerry County Librarian Tommy O’Connor explained that while the babies in the neonatal unit are very small, it is never too early to introduce the comfort of a parent’s voice through reading.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
Brenda finds career in far flung places
They say do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life – and for Tralee woman Brenda O’Sullivan, doing what she loves means travelling the world.
Brenda is the founder of Joined At The Trip Tours, a growing travel community for solo travellers launched in 2021. After Covid, she made a big change in her life. She didn’t just walk away from her career as an engineer with TLI – she flew away, taking herself off to Africa on a solo trip. And along with the African savannah, she discovered her true passion – travel.
“I was tired of waiting around, trying to organise friends to go, and said if I don’t take myself, who will,” Brenda said.
Read the full story in Kerry’s Eye Digital Edition.
