Former Waterford councillor Seamus O'Donnell laid to rest in his beloved Old Parish
Seamus O'Donnell was a committed advocate for Dungarvan district, especially for the Gaeltacht.
Old Parish, Co. Waterford man Seamus O'Donnell was laid to rest on Friday afternoon, October 2, in the village he loved so much.
At the end of the Requiem Mass, his coffin was brought out of the church to the song 'Dungarvan My Hometown'.
Mourners gathered at the Church of the Nativity of Our Lady, Old Parish, for the Requiem Mass for the former Independent Councillor of the Dungarvan-Lismore District.
Family members presented an Old Parish jersey, a deck of cards, car keys and a voting card to symbolise "the person he was, the life he lived, and the memories he leaves behind us".
Father Conor Kelly presided over the Requiem Mass, with Father Michael Enright acting as concelebrant.
Fr. Kelly shared fond stories and jokes about his dear friend Seamus. He spoke about the moment he learned about his friend's ill health: "It's a good while ago now, that time he was telling me that his health was beginning to go down.
"He didn't say it, friends, with any self-pity. He didn't say it with any fear. It was just a fact. Hope for the best, but accept what comes. So that's the attitude, the personality of the man for whom we pray here today."
Fr. Kelly spoke about Seamus's record of service in the locality, particularly for the local GAA. He said: "When I was on the board here in Ballymacart, I was very conscious of all his help here.
"His connections with the Cumann Lúthchleas, the Old Parish GAA, he was very much there to help them and do whatever he could."
Fr. Kelly shared a story about Seamus's 'football prowess': "Apparently in one match, he scored three goals on some very good defender and people were saying: 'Wasn't Sheamie great!'
"The only problem was that if we go back and check the history, the defender wasn't playing that day!"
The congregation heard of Seamus's work for Waterford City and County Council, his love of card-playing, farming and dancing.
Fr. Kelly said: "On a personal level, Jean and the family won't mind me saying that he loved dancing. I think I read somewhere that at any given time, somewhere around the world, something like a third of humanity is dancing at any given time. So it's a nice image to have of him."
On his record as a Councillor, Fr. Kelly said: "He wasn't out looking for plaudits. He wasn't looking for the clap on the back. He simply did what he did behind the scenes, and as long as the good was done, it didn't matter who got the credit. That kind of humility, friends, as you know, is also quite rare."
Friends and family all played a role in the funeral service. His dear friend Peter spoke about the life and times of Seamus, going all the way back to 1941 when he was born in Loskeran, Old Parish.
The night before the funeral, Peter said, the funeral cortege paused outside John Paul's Bar. He said it was appropriate given the connection between the O'Donnell family and the pub: "As a young man, Seamus was well acquainted with one side of the counter, and later in life, in a truly unusual move, took like a drop to water to the other side of it."
Peter said that Seamus's life could be split between two parts; his younger years as 'a bit of a tearaway' serving in the Irish Navy for 12 years before working for Waterford Council for another 12 in a machinery yard.
"In his middle years, he settled down, relatively speaking. He gave up drinking completely and became very involved in politics."
Peter spoke about Seamus marrying wife Jean and raising their three sons, PJ, Liam and Tommy, saying: "They have always been a very united family."
Seamus was described as a 'fervent' community activist, especially for Old Parish and Ring. Peter said that he was a 'de-facto' councillor before his official election to Council in 2014 as an Independent candidate. (He had previously run unsuccessfully for election for Fianna Fáil).
Peter said: "I can't emphasize enough how great an achievement this was for someone coming from a parish as sparsely populated as Old Parish."
Seamus passed away peacefully on September 28 at University Hospital Waterford. He is predeceased by his parents Paddy and Hannah, brothers Michael and Patsy, sisters Phyllis, Chrissie, Birdie, Kathleen and Maureen and other members of the O' Donnell and Hourigan Families.
He is sadly missed by his loving wife Jean, sons PJ, Liam and Tommy, granddaughter Fiadh, brothers Billy, John Noel and Martin, sisters Theresa O'Donovan, Cora Wrenn and Noreen Mohan, sisters-in-law Catherine Foley and Alice Hourigan, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.
May he Rest in Peace.
