Author: OPC

Omagh Probus Inter-club quiz 2024
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Omagh Probus annual Inter-club Quiz was held in Omagh Golf Club on Wednesday 17^th April 2024 with nine teams competing.   First held in 1985 the Inter-club Quiz has been a highlight of the Probus year in the west of the Province for some 36 years; however Covid and declining membership in local Probus Clubs has resulted in fewer Clubs and fewer teams being able to participate.  Those that were represented this year were Enniskillen, Londonderry, Omagh Ladies and Omagh Men’s, with a team from the Golf Club invited to make up numbers and make the event more of a competition.

In the event it was a lovely morning with some 40 players enjoying a fun event as they chatted between rounds of the Quiz and renewed friendships formed in previous competitions. The Quizmasters were Peter and Margaret Cummings who challenged players with a wide variety of questions most of which were answerable but with enough tricky ones to leave the Omagh Ladies 1^st team clear winners.  The competition has two trophies – The James Eakin Shield for the best team overall and the Bert McCrory Cup for the best Omagh Team.   For the first time both were won by an Omagh team, and the Ladies were thrilled to have achieved it.

At the close of the event Probus President, Mr Felim O’Neill, expressed appreciation to Quiz Masters Peter and Margaret Cummings and all who had pulled together to make the event memorable, successful and enjoyable.

Probus Outing Wednesday 3 April 2024:  Pat Kirk Showrooms, Omagh

On Wednesday 3 April the club visited the newly refurbished showrooms of Pat Kirk Ltd on the Brookmount Road, Omagh.  Seventeen members attended and on arrival were warmly welcomed by Mr Pat Kirk himself.   Seated in the board room they were treated to tea, coffee and a lavish array of pastries, before Mr Peter Dermott gave an overview of this renowned family-owned enterprise.

Now in its third generation the business was started by “grandad” Pat who opened a petrol station in Strabane in 1963.  He gradually moved into sales, stocking tyres, batteries, brakes etc before becoming a Vauxhall A.S.O. [Authorised Servicing Operative.]  This continued very successfully until the mid-90’s when Vauxhall rationalized in Northern Ireland and Kirk’s lost out. The family responded by writing to every car maker from Audi to Volvo promoting their business and were successful in attracting the interest of Mazda. Determined enterprising won them franchises for Nissan and Ford as well, and to some extent the rest is history.

Not that it was plain sailing or easy. The move from their original location in Omagh on the Gortin Road to the present site on the Brookmount Road – on St Patrick’s Day 2005 – was fraught with difficulty but marked a turning point in the fortunes of the company.  Nor have things stood still in Strabane, the business having relocated three times from its original home on Railway Street; it is now located on Bradley Way.

Today Pat Kirk Ltd is a major employer. The company has a policy of recruiting young men and women from college and supporting them while they develop into skilled mechanics, salespersons, etc. Government policy dictates the future of motor manufacturing and sales. The decision to “go green” by 2035 and focus on Electric vehicles [EV’s] will engage the minds of all in the motor trade for the foreseeable future. However, Mr Pat Kirk and his family are clearly up for the challenge, determined to build on the success of the past, and provide for the population of Omagh and beyond, with first class motor sales and service.

Wed. 21 Feb. 2024; Speaker, Mr Hugh Ward; Topic, The Drumnakilly Urns
The President welcomed everyone and opened the meeting by conferring Honorary Membership on Sam Bullock and Brian Duncan, because they had turned 90.  Both were congratulated on their regular attendance and their continuing loyalty to the club.  Sam and Brian were presented with Honorary Membership Certificates along with warmest best wishes for continued good health and the hopes of members that they would be long be spared to come to meetings.

In line with the decision taken at the AGM in January that the second meeting of each month should be led by one of our own members, Mr Hugh Ward stepped up to the plate with a well-researched talk about the Drumnakilly Urns. It is a topic which has long fascinated our immediate Past-President, partly on the basis of his interest in local history but mostly because he is a native of Drumnakilly. The story begins in the month of May 1870 when an urn with magnificent detail was found by a labourer trenching potatoes. The find excited considerable local interest as well as the interest of Irish archaeologists who visited the site and unearthed further examples. Their remarkable state of preservation belies their age. The style of decoration has been compared with pottery from Newgrange, an ancient monument some 5000 years old. To read the full text of Hugh’s talk click Drumnakilly Urns Text.

Wed 6 March 2024:  Speaker Mr Vincent Brogan from Omagh Heritage Forum

The guest speaker on Wednesday 6th March was Mr Vincent Brogan from the Omagh Heritage Forum. The theme of his talk was Listed buildings in Omagh, which he identified by reference to the website Historic Map Viewer. This brought up a map of Omagh on which each listed building was marked by a dot. He demonstrated how a single click on a dot opens a sub-menu detailing the name of the property, its address and date of construction and the category of listed building into which it falls – Grade A being the highest. The only Grade A listed building in Omagh is the Sacred Heart Church.  This beautiful church was constructed between 1892 and 1899 by Colhoun Brothers, Derry who were, at the same time, working on the construction of the 1st Omagh Presbyterian Church on the Dublin Road.
However, Historic Map Viewer reveals several Grade B listed buildings in Omagh, about which a wealth of information can be uncovered by scrolling around the map.  The buildings examined by Mr Brogan in his perusal of the town included, the Courthouse, Omagh Gaol, St Lucia Barracks, The Royal Arms Hotel, the High Street Banks, the County Club, and the Protestant churches on Church Street – St Columba’s, The Methodist Church and Trinity Presbyterian.  Supported by photographs from Dr Haldane Mitchell’s Images of Omagh series, and Martin Taggart’s collection of vintage postcards, Vincent provided a fascinating and informative talk about Omagh and its heritage.

Annual General Meeting, Wednesday 24th January 2024

At its Annual General Meeting in January Mr Hugh Ward stepped down as club President and Vice-President, Mr Felim O’Neill, stepped up as President for the ensuing year. Mr Alistair Orr and Mr Michael Cooney were re-elected as Secretary and Treasurer respectively. Members agreed that the club should continue to meet fortnightly until the summer, but in the autumn consider reverting to pre-covid arrangements when it met every Wednesday at 10:30 AM in the Golf Club.

Wednesday, 7th February 2024: Speaker, Mr Jack Johnston

In 1797 Sir Francis Beaufort, during his survey of Ireland, noted in his journal that the White Horse Hotel was “a good place to eat”. In the years which followed it became a popular hostelry on the Stagecoach route from Derry to Dublin with stables for a change of horses. However, its place in the town was secured by the arrival of the railway and its proximity to Omagh station. Each train was met with a horse drawn carriage later, replaced by a motor taxi.

The Mullin Fountain which stood in front of the courthouse for many years was erected in 1882 in memory of Mr William Mullin who ran the White Heart from 1861 to till his death in1881, and who stablished its reputation as the best hotel in Ulster outside Belfast. Mr. Johnson enlivened his talk with newspaper cuttings from the late 19th century and early 20th century which provided fascinating insights into the life of the hotel and its place in the community back in the day.

New Year Message: Rev Leah McKibben

On Wednesday 10th January members welcomed Rev Leah McKibben from the Omagh and Fintona circuit of the Methodist Church.   Leah’s superintendent minister on the circuit is Rev Eleanor Hayden and together they have charge of five churches in the area – Omagh, Mayne, Fintona, Drumquin and Togherdoo.

Rev Leah began by talking about her childhood fascination with maps and atlases, which led her to take a degree in Geography at Queen’s University in Belfast.  Uncertain what she wanted to do after graduation, she spent a year with “Team on Mission”, an outreach arm of the Methodist Church, before finding employment with the Bible Society, an international organisation dedicated to the printing and distribution of Bibles in local languages.  This presented an opportunity for travel and Leah spoke movingly of the people she had met in India, Africa and Europe. Her sense of adventure and desire for travel also took her to Base Camp Everest in 2019.

Rev Leah’s reflection on her journey of faith began with a reading from St Matthew’s Gospel Chapter 2 v 1-12 which tells the story of the visit of the magi to Bethlehem, a journey undertaken in faith in response to a call from God. Throughout her life Leah has felt the guiding hand of God and urged those present to be open to what the Holy Spirit would have them do in 2024. You can never be sure where it will lead, but at the end of the day it will surely lead you home.