I gcroí lár an phobail
IT’S said that it takes a community to rear a child. In Ventry it took the help of a community to keep the local post office and shop open through the coronavirus crisis and it provides a heart-warming example of people pulling together in a time of need.
Oifig an Phoist Cheann Trá faced no threat of being ordered to close at the start of the lockdown because it was listed as an essential service, but staying open presented huge challenges.
The shop that Seamus Ó Lúing and his wife Noirín Ní Chrualaíoch run alongside the post office is one of the very few remaining rural shops in West Kerry and although its size is small its value is enormous to the local community. It packs in everything from the daily papers to specialist tea, wholefoods and sides of bacon and with all that there isn’t a lot of space for social distancing.
When the coronavirus lockdown was introduced on March 15 Seamus and Noirín realised the enormity of the challenge facing them and just a day later posted an appeal on their facebook page:
“We are struggling currently to keep our doors open in a safe environment and are feeling overwhelmed over safety concerns about ourselves and our community…
[ We] will need to ask for your help at this time and we are currently working on the logistics. We are looking for any other ideas or people who may be able to help us out at this very difficult time.”
The response from the local community was immediate; words of support and offers of help flooded in, local woman Caroline O’Connor worked through the night making social distancing signage. The support lifted the cloud and on St Patrick’s Day Oifig an Phoist Cheann Trá was able to announce: “Thank you all so much for the help offered, the ideas, the support and continuing to shop local. We have new measures in place today... the shop is open and there are no supply issues currently… Táimid an bhrodúil as an bpobal atá mórthimpeall orainn.”
Since then the shop has held its place at the centre of community life. They open at 8am on Friday to facilitate pensioners, customers have adapted to queueing outside the door, most people now use cashless payment.
“The difficulty was overcoming simple difficulties,” said Noirín. “It’s strange that we’re so used to it all now.”