Giggles and Smiles Photography - Happy Faces Days

Giggles and Smiles Photography shall be hosting two Happy Faces Days on Thursday, 1st April 2010 and Saturday, 3rd April 2010 from 10am until 5pm each day at Marine Court Centre, The Green, Malahide.

There will be prizes from La Spa Therapie, Mischief and more! Also entertainment by Genie Mackers both mornings!

I.P.P.A. Happy Faces is the annual fundraising project, now in its fifth year, organised by the Irish Professional Photographers Association (I.P.P.A.).

People young and old, are encouraged to visit their local I.P.P.A. photographer and have a professional portrait taken for a €25 donation to C.F.A.I. 100% of every donation will help to provide much needed isolation facilities for people living with Cystic Fibrosis.

For more information please call Giggles and Smiles Photography on 01-8061582 to schedule an appointment or just stop in on the day.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Malahide Rugby Football Club - A.R.L.B. Club of the Year

Congratulations to Malahide Rugby Football Club who were announced as the A.R.L.B. Club of the Year at the associations annual dinner on Saturday, 27th March 2010.

The award, voted annually by the active referees in Leinster, has gone to a junior club for the second year in a row, with Ashbourne R.F.C. winning in 2009.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Malahide Girl Wins 2 Fashion Awards

Congratulations to 22-year-old Emmy Slattery from Gainsborough, Malahide who won the D.I.T. Student Design Award at the Alfa Romeo Fashion Show in Vicar Street and the Nokia Young Fashion Designer Award at the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre both on Wednesday, 24th March 2010.

Competition was intense with 28 students from third-level fashion colleges around the country vying for the prizes, worth €2,000 and €5,000 respectively.

A fourth-year student specialising in womenswear at N.C.A.D., leather was common to Emmy's two entries.

Pictured above is Emmy Slattery's 'Metallic Knights' outfit worn by Suzi McAdam.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Malahide - Ireland's Latest Fairtrade Town

Malahide is becoming Ireland's latest Fairtrade town, following a successful local initiative last week.

According to the Fingal Independent, the Malahide Justice and Peace Group organised a product exhibition at the Diamond in an effort to encourage residents to buy Fairtrade items and make the 'Big Swap'.

Both St. Sylvester's and Yellow Walls Road have now declared themselves Fairtrade parishes.

Group Chairperson, Brendan Butler, told the Fingal Independent, 'We are in the process of making Malahide a Fairtrade town. This would entail all of the schools, parishes and major businesses in the area making a commitment to stock Fairtrade products.'At present, many of them do. People don't realise how many products there are in Malahide, for example, in the restaurants and hotels – the Grand Hotel now serves Fairtrade tea and coffee.'

Both parishes are awaiting their final status confirmation from the Fairtrade Ireland office.

For further information, please visit www.fairtrade.ie

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Malahide Spring Show and Plant Sale

The Malahide Horticultural Society shall hold their Spring Show and Plant Sale on Sunday, 28th March 2010 from 2pm until 5pm in St. Andrew’s Parish Centre, Church Road. Admission is €2, and all are most welcome.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Free Rail Scheme on Track for Older Visitors

From Tuesday, 16th March 2010, all overseas visitors aged 66 or over, from anywhere in the world, shall be able to benefit from free unlimited travel on mainline, DART and commuter trains in the scheme, developed by Fáilte Ireland in conjunction with Iarnród Éireann.

Travelling to the Grand Hotel, Malahide via DART and commuter trains will now be free!

The scheme was announced by the Government as part of the budget in December 2009, in a bid to increase overseas visitor numbers. It is similar to the free travel scheme for Irish people aged 66 and over, but does not include free bus or Luas travel.

The scheme is initially for a fixed 1-year period, but shall be subject to review and is expected to continue indefinitely if the demand is there.

Tourists can access the scheme by visiting the Fáilte Ireland website, www.discoverireland.com, to arrange for a Golden Trekker reservation. They will be asked for details such as their date of birth and passport or national identity card number. Their Golden Trekker reservation can then be used to book their free Golden Trekker tickets when they arrive in Ireland.

Tickets can be purchased in blocks of four days, depending on the length of stay. A 4-day unlimited ticket is normally worth €100.

Visitors who do not pre-book the reservation can also avail of the scheme when they arrive in Ireland, by calling to a Fáilte Ireland tourist information office.

Al Ryan - Director
Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Weddings at the Grand Hotel

The magical setting of the Grand Hotel makes it an outstanding Wedding venue..... The Hotel offers the beautiful coastal Malahide setting; luxurious comfort; excellent cuisine and gracious style.

For more information regarding the Wedding Packages on offer at the Grand Hotel, please contact our Sales Department on 01 845 0000.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Matthew Ryan Completes 2 Years as I.H.F. President

Matthew Ryan, Managing Director of both the Grand Hotel, Malahide and the Marine Hotel, Sutton, successfully completed his two year period as President of the Irish Hotels Federation in March 2010.

Mr. Ryan presided over the annual conference in Galway before handing over to his successor, Paul Gallagher of Buswell’s Hotel, Dublin.

During his two years at the helm of the I.H.F., Mr. Ryan helped steer the industry through a very difficult economic cycle. Achievements included revision to the J.L.C. regulations; allowing V.A.T. to be claimed back by overseas conference organisers; free rail for overseas visitors; commissioning of the Peter Bacon Report on the Hotel Industry; and of course constant representation of the Hotel sectors interests to both government and public bodies.

Pictured to the right are Matthew Ryan and Paul Gallagher.

Al Ryan - Director
Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Enchiriadis Treis Choir

Enchiriadis Treis is a mixed adult choir of about 120 voices, based in Malahide, Co. Dublin. Founded by Dr. Marion Doherty Hayden in 1994, it is committed to achieving musical excellence through performance of the great classical choral works.

Enchiriadis Treis shall be performing Karl Jenkin’s ethereal work “The Armed Man” and Mozart’s exultant “Coronation Mass” in the National Concert Hall on Saturday, 10th April 2010 at 8pm.

For more information regarding this event, and the choir itself, please send an email to info@ench3.com

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Grand Hotel No. 1 in 2009 Royal Irish Tours Customer Satisfaction Report

The Grand Hotel is delighted to announce that they have come 1st for Breakfast; Dinner; Service and Overall Impression in the 2009 customer survey by Martin Mulcahy Travel based on his Royal Irish Tours series. They also came 2nd for Accommodation.

Well done to all Departments involved!

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Malahide Toastmasters Club

Toastmasters is a worldwide non-profit educational organisation founded by Dr. Ralph Smedley in 1924.

The Malahide Toastmasters Club (No. 2360) was founded in 1981 with meetings taking place on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, from September until May, at 8pm in the Grand Hotel, Malahide. All are welcome.

Toastmasters is about people developing their public speaking and leadership skills by practising in a comfortable sociable environment with other learners. Through Toastmasters, members of all ages and from all walks of life improve their speech making, communication and leadership skills. This in turn leads to improved technical and presentation skills in their work environment and their everyday life.

For more information regarding the Malahide Toastmasters Club, please contact Liam on 087-2696260.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

J.C.I. Fingal enhance their Emotional Intelligence

Fabio Grassi, Certified E.Q. Trainer, shall present an introduction to the topic of Emotional Intelligence on Tuesday, 9th March 2010 at 8pm in the Grand Hotel, Malahide. The session shall help participants to understand, assess and enhance their emotional intelligence. This event, which is organised by J.C.I. Fingal is open to all and is free of charge.

What is Emotional Intelligence? Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to use both emotional and cognitive thought. Emotional intelligence skills include empathy, intuition, creativity, flexibility, resilience, stress management, leadership, integrity, authenticity and intrapersonal.

If you would like to find out more about J.C.I., please email fingal@jci-ireland.org for more information.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Malahide Man Skis in Winter Olympics

Malahide man, and St. Sylvesters hurler, Shane O'Connor represented Ireland in the men's alpine slalom at the 2010 Winter Olympics held in Vancouver.

Shane improved to 45th despite a slower second run in the men’s slalom at Whistler Creek on Saturday, 27th February 2010. The Malahide native was 51st after a first run of 60.83 seconds in testing conditions and clocked 64.31 secs later in the evening.

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager

Visit of An Tánaiste and Malahide Business Awards

On Thursday, 18th February 2010, the Malahide Chamber of Commerce were visited by An Tánaiste and Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mary Coughlan T.D.

To a gathering of over ninety Chamber members in the Grand Hotel, Malahide, who sponsored the event, the Tánaiste outlined the strategy the Government is pursuing to get the economy back on the rails.

In a calm and purposeful manner, she spoke about focusing on the export sector and using it to stimulate general economic growth. She recognised the pain our businesses are feeling and acknowledged that we will need to persist for some time yet.

There was a call for us to look to our own resources of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship in order to sustain us in these straightened times.

The Tánaiste's address was very well received and she also participated in presenting the Malahide Business Awards.

Al Ryan - Director

Sarah Ann McGrath - Assistant HR Manager