Great timekeeper who loved music and cared for others
A CLOUD of sadness dispersed over Knockafreghane, Brosna on Saturday March 11 as the news of the passing of Con (Connie) Cronin broke in the community, just four days short of his 71st birthday.
Connie, who was born to parents Teasy And Sonny of Kilmanihan, East Brosna on March 15, 1946, was the oldest of a large family and was the only member of the family to be born in Newbridge, County Kildare, in his mother’s native home. Indeed, he would often joke to the other siblings by saying ‘I am a Kildare man’ but, of course, Connie was a Kerry man and a Brosna man through and through. He was so proud of his county and native village and never once denied where he came from.
He started attending Knockbrack, Knocknagoshel national school in September 1950 where he first met Denis Brien O’Connor who Connie sat beside and stood beside for the remainder of their friendship and finishing school. At the young age of 12, Connie left Kilmanihan and went working at Roche’s Farm in Knockafreghane where he became family to Maurice, Elsie and Joseph. The money Connie earned while working hard on the farm was sent back to his parents to take care of the other family members.
Connie was a powerful worker, a fantastic neighbour and was always there to lend a helping hand to the elderly people in the community or to those living alone without any mode of transport. He would always make sure they were okay for shopping and, if they had an appointment or any place to go, Connie was the man who would arrive and take them to their destination and bring them safely home again.
Connie’s highlight of the week was a Friday as he would collect his pension and gather up the North Kerry Advertisers and the Sliabh Luachra Magazines and do his rounds around the road delivering them to neighbours and friends. He would spend time in every house having a chat and a cup of tea
Connie was a great man to trace relations and would spend time telling people just who was related to who. He took great pride in claiming a relation to Garret Fitzgerald and also to Danny Hannon the man who wrote Brosna Town and, of course, Connie was so proud of that song. At his funeral, Connie’s friend of many years through the vintage club, Leo Finucane, told the family that a few years ago at the Moyvane vintage Connie marched through the crowd at Leo yard to make his way to the stage to tell the late Johnny Donnegan to sing Brosna Town. Johnny did especially for Connie and again Connie told everybody present that Danny Hannon was related to the Connie.
Connie loved the vintage society and attended all the local vintage clubs and days around the length and breadth of the country all over Kerry, Limerick and parts of Cork. He always wore his cowboy hat there and he would meet different people from all over the county.
Connie’s highlight of the year was St Patrick’s Day when he would drive his 1975 vintage Blue Leyland tractor so proudly through the parade of Castleisland town.
Connie loved the simple and basic things in life. He was always very happy and content in his own environment and loved life in Knockafreghane. All the neighbours became family to Connie and all had such love and respect for him. He also maintained strong roots in Kilmanihan and would often call to see his brother Larry in the home place and local neighbours such as Donnie Pat & Joan Moloney. Dillanes shop was a place Connie loved to go to and he could never understand why people were going into big supermarkets to do their shopping instead of going to Dillanes where Connie shopped all his life. Indeed, he had a great relationship with the Dillane family who were always so good and kind to him.
Connie lived by his watch and was a brilliant time keeper. He would always be at least an hour ahead of time for every appointment and for any event he would be attending, Connie was a very traditional man with a king gentle and decent heart, a witty and humorous man and a man who always was there to help others.
He was a kind and loving neighbour and friend and this was proven by the large crowd of people who attended his funeral to say their final goodbyes.
Connie loved music and was the road manager for the Paddy Jerry O’Connor band over the years. Connie spent many happy years on the road with the Paddy Jerrys and maintained a good friendship with the O’Connor family up until the end,
Last August, Connie was so proud of his nephew Mike McCarthy, Duagh, who wrote and produced his own song Raise a Glass to Seamus Moore. Connie went into a neighbour’s house to see Mike’s video on ‘Hot Country’. But again he was an hour ahead of the programme and kept asking Denis why it was not on? He was told it was to start at 8.30pm and it was only seven. But he stayed to watch it and was delighted with the song and the video.
He loved Western films and loved to read the local papers where, without doubt, Connie would appear nearly every week at different vintage events and rallies and alongside various local politicians of all parties.
Connie played his cards very close to his chest and kept in with all representatives. In fairness, they all did their very best to help and assist him over the years
Connie had being in declining health since last August and was in and out of Kerry General, Killarney District and, in the last three weeks of his life, he was in Cork University Hospital where he sadly left this life on March 11.
Connie had many visitors while in the three different hospitals and was so proud and happy that so many people came to see him. He always took such pride in letting his family know who was in to see him. They passed the time for him and kept him up to date with the local ongoing and events taking place in Brosna and through Kerry.
Connie lived a short but very fulfilling life and fitted an awful lot into his short 71 years.
Connie was predeceased by parents Teasy and Sonn, brothers Bernie, Jack and Michael, sisters Margaret and Martina, Maurice and Elsie Roche and is survived and sadly missed by brothers Liam and Larry, sisters Mary, Ann and Pat, nephews and nieces. And by neighbours too and very close friends Joan, Joseph, Maurice, Elma and Denis Roche; Eamon Walsh; Dan Davis; The Denis & Bernie Brien O’Connor family; The Paddy Jerrys O’Connors and The Dillanes of the shop; The Moloneys Of Kilmanihan who were all very good caring and kind to Connie over the years and they all became family to him
Connie was laid to rest in the new cemetery Brosna on his 71st birthday along side his dearly beloved aunty Eily and Bill O’Sullivan where Connie spent many happy and joyful years while living in Kilmanihain. Indeed, he became like an adopted son to Eily And Bill
At the graveside, his nephew Mike McCarthy played Brosna Town on the accordion and his niece Catherine Cronin played some slides on the fiddle.
May Our dear brother, uncle and friend, Connie, rest in peace.