26-year-old Raphoe native, Catherine McCarron will be among 61 Roses from all corners of the globe set to take to the stage at the 2013 Rose of Tralee Regional Festival to be held in the Portlaoise Heritage Hotel, Co Laois at the end of the month.

Catherine proudly sponsored by Kelco Communications, began her Rose journey when she was selected as the Donegal Rose at the county’s regional event in Harvey’s Point back in April.

She will now go forth to represent Donegal at the Regional Festival in Portlaoise from 29th May to 2nd June 2013, where she hopes to be among the 32 finalists selected to continue her journey to Tralee, Wednesday 14th to Tuesday 20th August.

The Rose of Tralee Regional Festival is hosted by Dáithí Ó Sé who interviews each Rose on stage at the Portlaoise Heritage Hotel over three nights, followed by music, dancing and a great line up of entertainment.

 “It’s a very exciting time and there’s lots to do in preparation for Portlaoise. I look forward to meeting 61 Roses from all over the world and making memories of the Regional Festival with each and every one of them. I have no doubt that 2013 will be a special year for us all. Many thanks to Kelco Communications and my family and friends, they encouraged me to go for it in the first instance and have helped me with all the preparation since – A Ghra mo Chroi! I hope to further what has been a wonderful experience to date and join Dáithí on the stage in the Dome in August” says Catherine.  

The Rose of Tralee International Festival has been extended by two days to celebrate the Rose Gathering 2013. Anyone who has ever been to the Festival since 1959 – Roses, Escorts, entertainers and festival-goers – are invited back to join in the celebrations in August.

With a fun-packed entertainment programme scheduled to suit all ages the line-up of events includes JLS, The Stunning, Nathan Carter, Ryan Sheridan, Sharon Shannon, Skyfest Air Display, the Rose Selections, Rose Ball and Fashion Show and much more.

The 2013 Rose of Tralee charity partners are the HOPE Foundation and Epilepsy Ireland.

Anyone who wishes to purchase tickets or find out more about what this year’s Rose of Tralee International Festival has to offer should visit www.roseoftralee.ie or contact the Festival Office on +353-66-7121322.

From all the team at Kelco Communications we would like to wish Catherine the very best of luck in the Regional Finals in Portlaoise. Be sure to stay tuned for more and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook & Twitter. 

Check out a great money saving apps article below written BY AIDEEN SHEEHAN – in Independent.ie - 09 MAY 2013

“From petrol to hotels, apps can take the hard work out of finding bargains, writes Aideen Sheehan

We’re all spending half our lives on our phones these days so we might as well save some money while we’re there. Smart Consumer looks at some top moneysaving apps that can help you net a good deal or save a few euro in your everyday life.

Most of these apps are free to download and browse, but some offer premium services at a cost.

Pumps.ie Free

Fab free app that will tell you how much petrol and diesel costs at filling stations near you. Smart Consumer were able to see around 20 stations in a five-kilometre radius with prices ranging from €1.559 to €1.609 per litre.

Trivago Free

App that checks offers across a range of booking websites such as booking.com, laterooms.com, lastminute.com and others.

For example, it found a double room in the g Hotel, Galway, for €158 with clever-hotels.com compared with €190 on some other booking sites.

Vouchercloud.ie Free

Great for finding deals when you’re out and about. Will tell you what restaurants are offering discounts – and there’s a growing number of retailers coming onboard with offers.

We found offers such as 25pc off your food bill in Pizza Hut; €40 off Timberland Earthkeeper Boots; and 10pc off takeaways from Letseatin, writes Aideen.

Whats App Messenger €0.89

Extremely popular app that lets you send free texts via the internet to the phone of anyone else who’s signed up with it. Particularly useful if you’re abroad to avoid roaming charges – as long as you’ve got Wifi access. When you sign up, you’ll see a list of everyone in your contacts list who’s also connected.

Hailo Free 

The taxi app that’s soaring in popularity allows you to tap on it to call a taxi and track its progress without any of those complicated explanations of where exactly you are as it locates you by GPS. Because you’re linked up with the nearest available taxi you generally have to wait less than five minutes for it to get to you.

Many drivers also waive the €2 callout charge and you have an option to pay automatically by credit/debit card, getting a receipt and a photo of your driver and their ID number as well as a security precaution.

Spotify Free

The music-listening app that allows you to stream music live on your computer or phone. There’s a free trial period for six months allowing free listening interspersed with ads but after that there’s a limit of 10 hours per month.

You can also purchase subscriptions for €4.99 to €9.99 per month offering unlimited ad-free listening.

Onavo Extend Free

App that allows you compress data while using the internet to cut your phone bill. This can be particularly handy if you’re abroad and want to cut down on extortionate roaming charges – though as always the only way to avoid them altogether is to stick to Wifi internet access.

Onavo also has a data monitoring app which allows you see what apps and programmes on your phone are using a lot of data, as keeping tabs on this can help you save money.

Mydealpage.ie

Free to download

If you’re a fan of daily deals sites, this allows you a handy overview of all the major Irish sites and then links you to that site to make a purchase.

We found a €60 Tapas food and drink voucher at Dax café bar for €27 with grabone.ie; and a half-price €55 physiotherapy treatment with dealrush.ie.”

See original Irish Independent Article here

Abbey Vocational Students Gerry Diver, Darren Doherty, Manus Darby, Emmett Doogan and Pauric Doherty, otherwise known as D5 Racing, proudly supported by Kelco Communications, pictured at the 2013 National Finals of the F1 in Schools Technology Challenge, yesterday 30th of April in Griffith College, Dublin.

D5 Racing who were awarded Best Website and Best use of ICT and CAD at the Regional Finals last month went on to represent Abbey Vocational School in the National Finals yesterday.

Work for the 2013 Finals began last September with schools registering their interest in competing. Intense competition followed with 94 teams representing 63 second-level schools from across the country, battling their way through the various qualifying stages of the competition to reach the National Finals.

In addition to racing head-to-head, the competing teams were judged on the quality of engineering, portfolio, resource management, marketing, graphic design, sponsorship activities and on a verbal presentation of their work.

CEO of the Irish Computer Society Jim Friars congratulated all of the participants.

“The standard was incredibly high this year and it was amazing to see the excitement and enthusiasm from both students and teachers alike. An incredible level of commitment and teamwork was displayed and the lengths that the teams went to in modelling and planning the cars were unprecedented.”

The F1 in Schools challenge, powered in Ireland by the Irish Computer Society, began as a response to a recognised skills shortage in computing and engineering, with technology courses having had experienced a significant decline in CAO applications over a number of years. However this trend has begun to change.

Said Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General of the Discover Science & Engineering, Science Foundation Ireland:

“Companies requiring science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) graduates are the fastest growing sectors of the economy. It is encouraging to see an increased uptake of science and technology subjects at third level in recent years, as there continues to be a strong demand for young STEM graduates in Ireland. Discover Science & Engineering supports the F1 in Schools Challenge as it is a great way for second-level students to engage with these subjects in a fun, creative and different way. It allows them to develop their problem-solving and innovation skills, which are vital for anyone who is considering a career in this area.”

This is the ninth year running for the leading global education intiative, which now encorporates over 17,000 schools from 31 different Countries. It will be held in Austin Texas to coincide with the 2013 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix. Wicklow winners, Bardahl Racing will hope to emulate the success of their former schoolmates, the only Irish team to win the World Finals, ‘The Koni Kats’ from St.David’s Secondary School in Greystones in the 2009 Finals in London.

For more information see www.f1inschools.ie and for more information on D5 Racing see www.d5racing.com.

The wait is almost over! The brand new, much anticipated Samsung GALAXY S4 will be available in black and in white online and in all Kelco Communication Stores from tomorrow, Saturday April 27th!

If you want the optimal smartphone experience, then the Samsung Galaxy S4 is the phone for you! With a sleek, slim, streamlined design this handset is jammed packed with amazing features, top of the range hardware, is 4G ready and is operated by a brand new quad-core processor and ultra powerful Jelly Bean Android v4.2.2. 

You will not miss a beat with this smartphone that intuitively adapts to your every move, pausing videos when you look away and resumes when you return your gaze to the screen. It will track your workouts, daily intake, monitors fitness levels and weight levels, so you can stay active and fit with ease.

Shoot multiple exposure pictures and edit them to your liking with the 13MP camera and instantly share your albums with your family and friends. Enjoy the wireless feature that allows you to connect multiple Samsung GALAXY S4 phones to play games, share photos, music and documents. Turn up the volume and create a powerful sound system by combining Samsung GALAXY S4 phones together for an optimal enhanced sound quality.

Break language barriers while traveling abroad with the Samsung Galaxy S4 – your ultimate tour guide which helps you communicate with locals, discover what to eat, what to see and where to be!

Undecided? See full virtual tour here 

Keep tuned for more network news, new releases and promotions. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Don’t miss out on our fantastic HTC Desire C offer, including Beats™ earphones (worth €79.99), flip case cover and car charger, all for ONLY €129.99. Available from Kelco online: http://bit.ly/XkHsdJ and in any Kelco Communications Store, for a limited time only!

HTC Desire C simply makes life easier! Connect with family and friends effortlessly with HTC Sense’s efficient navigation. Capture and share those picture perfect moments and priceless videos with HTC 5MP camera, integrated Dropbox and quick social upload.

Experience music to the max with rich, authentic sounds brought to you by Beats Audio™. Enjoy your favourite movies and shows on the go with HTC Watch.

The HTC experience is one simply to be desired and with its light and compact design you can take the experience with you wherever you go.

Brilliantly entertaining & seriously well connected – see video review here 

KELCO COMMUNICATIONS  now invite applications for the following position:

Retail Sales & Service Consultant
For our stores across
Co.Donegal.

The successful applicant should:
Have a keen interest in mobile phones & tablet computers.
Be able to demonstrate high standards of customer service.
Be a quick learner who can excel in a target driven environment.
Be highly motivated with a genuine desire to succeed.
Be dependable, flexible & always willing to lend a helping hand.
Well presented with fluent English.

Please apply in confidence, including a CV and covering letter quoting reference no RSDON413 in the subject line to jobs@kelco.ie or call 087-3533332 for more information. Closing date for applications is Saturday 3rd May 2013.

Kelco Communications is an equal opportunities employer.

KELCO COMMUNICATIONS now invite applications for the following position:

Retail Sales & Service Consultant for our store in Westport.

The successful applicant should:
Have a keen interest in mobile phones & tablet computers.
Be able to demonstrate high standards of customer service.
Be a quick learner who can excel in a target driven environment.
Be highly motivated with a genuine desire to succeed.
Be dependable, flexible & always willing to lend a helping hand.
Well presented with fluent English.
Please apply in confidence, including a CV and covering letter quoting reference no RSWES0413 in the subject line to jobs@kelco.ie or call 087-3533332 for more information. Closing date for applications is Saturday 3rd May 2013.

Kelco Communications is an equal opportunities employer.

Introducing the Huawei Ascend G510, exclusive to Vodafone. Featuring a 4.5 inch display with a resolution of 480 x 854 pixels,  powered by Android Jelly Bean 4.1 Operating System and a dual core 1.2GHz processor, and featuring 512MB of RAM and 4GB of built in storage, plus a microSD card slot, this phone is feature packed, powerful and ready to go when you are!

Get the very latest in smartphone technology with this slim, sleek and stylish handset for ONLY €149.99 Pay As You Go and from FREE on Vodafone RED Bill Pay from any Kelco Communications Store or online now.

Undecided? Check out the full virtual tour here

Be sure to stay tuned for all the latest network news, information, promos and special offers. Also follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Introducing the Nokia Lumia 520 Yellow – Brand New & Exclusive to Vodafone, until April 26th. NOW available online and instore with Kelco Communications.

Powered by Windows 8, this vibrant, slim and sleek handset is the ultimate summer accessory!

The Nokia Lumia 520 is sure to bring out the photographer in you, with  its in-built digital lens, Smartshoot feature that allows you to take multiple shots with a click of a button, Panorama view so you wont miss and single thing and Cinemagraph so you can add motion to those picture perfect memories.

Tailor to your taste with a wide range of downloadable, apps, games, music, accessories and colourful Live Tiles that lets you know whats new right now, so you won’t miss a beat.

With a 4″ LCD display powered by a 1.0GHz dual core Snapdragon S4, 512MB of RAM, 8GB of expandable storage, pre-installed Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint, your content goes where you do so you can simply keep up to date with your work and social life at your fingertips. 

It can all be yours for ONLY €129.99 Pay As You Go and from FREE on Vodafone RED.

Undecided? Click here for the YouTube visual experience of the Nokia Lumia 520.

Be sure to keep up to date with all our latest and greatest upcoming offers, competitions and promotions right here on www.kelco.ie. Also keep in the loop by following us on Facebook & Twitter.

We are delighted to announce that Raphoe native Catherine McCarron has been selected as this year’s Donegal Rose!

26-year-old Catherine, proudly sponsored by Kelco Communications, was selected to represent Donegal at the Regional Finals of the International Rose of Tralee festival this year at Harveys Point at the weekend.

Catherine was among ten of the beautiful Roses to be interviewed during the day with a panel of judges on an individual basis and also partake in a group interview.

In the evening Catherine and the Roses attended a Gala Dinner in Harvey’s point with Master of Ceremonies Noel Cunnngham, interviewed each of the girls onstage. The evening included performances with the Roses, entertainment by Jason Friel and music by DJWJ to dance the night away before Catherine was ultimately selected as the Donegal Rose.

The Rose of Tralee International Festival is one of Ireland’s largest and longest running festivals, celebrating 54 years in 2013. The heart of the festival is the selection of the Rose of Tralee, which brings young women of Irish descent from around the world to County Kerry, Ireland for a global celebration of Irish culture. The festival also includes street entertainment, carnival, live concerts, theatre, circus, markets, funfair, fireworks and our internationally renowned Rose Parade.

The one million people tuning into watch the selection nights next August will only catch a glimpse of each Rose’s amazing journey along the way to Tralee.

That journey starts in towns and villages all over Ireland! Selection events will be held in every county from March until June with the Regional Finals of the Rose of Tralee taking place in June and the Rose of Tralee International Festival in Tralee in August.

We would like to wish Catherine the very best on luck on her continued venture. Stay tuned for more on how our Donegal beauty gets on at the Regional Finals in June.