Animal lover Martin was a great teacher
THE communities of Wexford and Tagoat were united in grief recently with the death of Martin O’Donnell.
83-year-old Martin of Newtown Road, Wexford died on April 4 following an illness which he faced with great dignity and courage.
Martin who was born in Doneraile in Co Cork was one of seven children, five boys and two girls. Martin spent his early childhood in Doneraile before moving with his family to Tagoat when his father Tom was made sergeant in Rosslare Harbour.
The family moved to Ard Na Mara where they enjoyed some very happy times.
Martin qualified as a primary school teacher in 1955 and worked for a year in the CBS in Wexford town. In 1956 he was appointed as principal in Tagoat National School and he remained there for the duration of his teaching career, a further 44 years.
He retired from the school at the age of 65 years in 2000 although he would happily have continued working where it not for the mandatory retirement age.
Martin met his wife Josephine at a dance in Rosslare and the couple married in 1962. Together they raised five children, Geraldine, Joe, John, Enda and Eleanor. The family lived in Tagoat before moving to the Newtown Road shortly before Martin retired in 2000.
They settled into the area quickly and were very happy there.
A man who relished his job Martin was extremely dedicated and his family don’t ever recall him taking a sick day from school. He had a particular love of Irish and History as well as Latin and was always on hand to help his sons out with the language when they were attending St Peter’s College.
He was an extremely kind teacher and very generous with his time. He never minded going over and over the same material if a pupil was having difficulty grasping the subject matter.
A very patient man Martin would sit for hours going through various subjects with his students and children if there was any confusion with figuring out a problem.
In his younger years Martin loved to spent time of farms and was a frequent visitor to relations with farms. He loved the great outdoors and nature and was especially fond of the freedom living on a farm afforded.
As a man who never liked to be idle farm life suited Martin as there was always work to be done. He was especially fond of the traditional Meithal way of farming whereby rural communities gathered together on a neighbour’s farm to help save the hay or some other crop. Each person would help their neighbour who would in turn reciprocate. They acted as a team and everybody benefited in some way.
Martin had a great love of politics and was a proud member of the Fine Gael party. He was always very interested in political debates and analysis on television. Martin really enjoyed being on the campaign trail looking for votes. He enjoying nothing more than knocking on doors looking for a first preference vote for the local Fine Gael candidate and engaging in debate with people,
Despite his love of politics he never wanted to run for election himself preferring to be behind the scenes on the campaign trail.
A great animal lover Martin was rarely seen without his dog in his free time. He got great pleasure walking his dog and until his final illness he managed to get out to walk his dog daily. A man of many interests Martin also loved gardening and his vegetable garden was one of his great passions. He sowed all manner of vegetables which he tended to with loving care.
He was also a keen DIY-er and painted the family home on many occasions.
A very modest and humble man Martin had a life long love of learning and had no airs or graces. He loved chatting to people he met during his daily routine.
He was very much a family man and was a rock for both his wife and children. Nothing was too much trouble for him and their happiness was paramount to him.
In later years Martin developed Parkinson’s Disease, an illness he faced head on with great courage. Despite being nearly blind as a result of his Parkinson’s Martin still continued to walk his dog and was very independent.
Shortly before his death he suffered a stroke from which he never recovered and he died surrounded by his family on April 4.
Martin’s remains reposed at Macken’s Funeral Home before removal to St Alphonsus Church, Barntown followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery.
He is survived by his heartbroken wife, Josephine, children Geraldine, Joe, John, Enda and Eleanor, grandchild Caoimhe, brothers Derry, Pat, Michael and Noel, sisters Carrie and Noreen, brother-in-law Micheál, Kathleen and family, John, Ciara, nieces, nephews, extended family, relatives and friends.