{"id":1654,"date":"2021-09-01T05:00:44","date_gmt":"2021-09-01T03:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/?p=1654"},"modified":"2021-08-13T16:54:00","modified_gmt":"2021-08-13T14:54:00","slug":"ballymun-tidy-towns-btt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/2021\/09\/01\/ballymun-tidy-towns-btt\/","title":{"rendered":"Ballymun Tidy Towns (BTT)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Ballymun, the suburb where I live in north Dublin, has long suffered from a high rate of unemployment and a significant drug problem. Sadly, parts of the area are under control by drug lords; children are lured into the scene and their families are forced to pay their debts, which creates a threatening atmosphere of fear.<\/p>

But despite these major issues, there is a strong and vibrant community of individuals and families in Ballymun who care deeply about their locality, addressing the drugs plight, anti-social behaviour, unemployment, etc.\u00a0 \u00a0Over the years there have been many community programs which have brought local people together and strengthened the community spirit.<\/p>

One such program is Ballymun Tidy Towns (BTT), which is part of a national network of volunteers, initially focused on making towns around the country tidy and attractive to visitors.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Over time, the program has evolved to focus on environmental sustainability in keeping with the UN Sustainable goals and finding practical ways to live those goals locally.\u00a0 One example are the weekly clean-up groups who meet \u00a0for litter picking, weeding,\u00a0 planting \u00a0bee friendly flowers as part of\u00a0 biodiversity plan, separating recyclable materials from household waste,\u00a0 etc.\u2026<\/p>

Ballymun is also home to \u2018retired\u2019 Sisters: Columbans, Infant Jesus Sisters and LSAs, who live in Ballymun as neighbours\/friends and are actively involved with Ballymun Tidy Towns. (BTT) \u00a0\u00a0In July 2020 BTT initiated a targeted recycling program for plastic bottles and aluminium drinks cans.\u00a0 Repak, a recycling company and sponsor of the program provided special large bags and paid \u20ac5 for each complete bag.\u00a0\u00a0 On reflection the Sisters felt that this would be a practical way to help the Parish financially while responding to the call of Laudato Si. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Parish Priest was very pleased and the regular Mass-goers were excited about getting involved as it gave them a practical way to help the Church they loved.\u00a0 \u00a0Among other things, the project has helped pay for the webcam, a crucial piece of equipment for keeping the parish connected during the pandemic. It has also brought those of us involved much closer together, and has given us a collective mission. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>

The program started in July 2020 and we hoped to celebrate the Season of Creation and St Francis of Assisi\u2019s message of love for all creatures.\u00a0\u00a0 However the COVID restrictions prevented any gatherings, and we were not able to give inputs at our Sunday Masses in September because the Churches were closed. \u00a0\u00a0So at one level, it was an individual project, but we intentionally kept in touch by phone and indeed it was a source of hope and connection for all involved. It was heartening to take small steps together in caring for our neighbourhood and to be of mindful of the fears and struggles of so many during the pandemic.<\/p>

As Sisters and laity working together on Repak project we are learning so much, and are appreciating more and more the importance of friendship and relationship-building. \u00a0\u00a0As older Sisters it has given us a new ministry in the community, especially for those of us who have spent a lifetime on the mission and are now trying to adjust and find a new ministry where we can be neighbour and friend. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We were inspired by the amazing amount of free information available online through Zoom, websites and group chats.\u00a0<\/p>

The project has been a lesson in the power of a collective group. Through inviting interested individuals to take responsibility for a specific area, we saw how much we could achieve together. We are learning the power of leading by example.\u00a0 Some of our neighbours and friends were inspired to ask questions and get involved when they witnessed \u2018elderly Sisters\u2019 with their masks, pickers and bags collecting cans and bottles. \u00a0Another important lesson is the power of patience \u2013 not only is it a slow process to collect the bottles and cans, and make sure they are empty and clean, but we are also seeing that more broadly speaking, change takes a long time.<\/p>

Part of this slow change relates to helping people, including our priests, to see the link between caring for the earth and their faith. \u00a0\u00a0Although our\u00a0 \u00a0group of collectors are largely faith-based, many would not have connected the recycling project with their faith. \u00a0\u00a0Nor would they see bio-diversity or planting trees as part of their faith. It is certainly a slow process, but we are making strides and are grateful for this opportunity.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>

As the project continues we have hopes and goals for the future. We would like to invite migrants living in our neighbourhood to join us.\u00a0 And we have reached out to a nearby Church of Ireland to join us for conversations as members of eco-congregation. \u00a0\u00a0We would also like to set up a See Judge Act group to reflect on Laudato Si, acting locally and thinking globally.<\/p>

The COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis have shown how interrelated we are and how much we depend on each other and on the earth. Our challenge, individually and collectively, is to help people understand the depth of our connectedness and our interdependence; even our smallest, most ordinary actions are significant, not only in the here and now, but for our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world, and indeed for future generations.<\/p>

In Laudato Si, Pope Francis requested an \u2018urgent dialogue about the future of our planet\u2019, adding that this conversation must include everyone because \u2018the challenge we are facing affects us all.\u2019 We pray with Pope Francis that we can all recognize how profoundly united we are with the whole of creation and that we must never tire in our work for Justice, Love and Peace. \u00a0I thank God for our mission in Ballymun and pray we will respond to Pope Francis request\u00a0 for\u00a0 \u2018urgent dialogue\u2019<\/p>

Lena Deevy\u00a0 LSA<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ballymun, the suburb where I live in north Dublin, has long suffered from a high rate of unemployment and a significant drug problem. Sadly, parts of the area are under control by drug lords; children are lured into the scene and their families are forced to pay their debts, which creates a threatening atmosphere of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1658,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[18],"class_list":["post-1654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-action","tag-english"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1654"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1654\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1660,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1654\/revisions\/1660"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jpic-assumpta.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}