Top trad artists feature in new CD for special needs' groups

If you haven’t got all your Christmas shopping done yet – and who does except for really formidable people? – a gorgeous new CD of trad and folk music might fill a gap very nicely.

Réiltín is a compilation album with tracks from Séamus Begley, Sharon Shannon, Don Stiffe, Liz and Yvonne Kane, Matt Keane and Orlaith Kane, Dermot Byrne (of Altan) Mirella Murray (of Cherish the Ladies), and a whole lot more.

So it’s high quality. And it’s also in a good cause.

Réiltín, the creation of musician Mary Shannon, is a fundraiser for two organisations, The Williams Syndrome Association of Ireland, which is based in Ballinasloe, and the Clare Crusaders, based in the Clare village of Barefield.

Mary is the mother of a little girl with Williams Syndrome and has availed of the services of both these organisations. She felt that a CD would help raise much-needed funds for the two groups and also raise awareness of the work they do.

Not many people are aware of the existence of Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that is estimated to occur in one out of 20,000 births.

In fact according to Ballinasloe woman Ann Breen who founded William Syndrome Association of Ireland in the 1980s, it’s only since 1993 that a genetic test has been available to help diagnose it. Williams Syndrome causes medical and developmental problems of varying degrees, explains Ann, whose daughter Karen, now 27, has the condition. Caused by the deletion of some genetic material from Chromosome Seven, it occurs across all ethnic groups and it affects males and females equally.

William Syndrome was first identified in 1961 by a New Zealand doctor – before that people who suffered from the syndrome were labelled under the catch-all description of ‘mentally handicapped’. There is a wide range of ability among people with William Syndrome, but most are unlikely to be able to live independently and, so having a child with the condition brings specific responsibilities.

Ann’s own daughter Karen, who is highly dependent, and who went to a special needs school in Athlone, now lives at home with her mother – her father, Paschal passed away a couple of years ago. She will never be able to live independently, says her mother who has done trojan work to raise awareness of Williams Syndrome since Karen was born.

The organisation Ann established offers support and also organises an annual camp in Fermanagh for people with William Syndrome and their families. The camp is based around music, she says, because many people with the syndrome are very musical.

For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.