Resilient Jimmy (87)had great faith and endurance
KILMORE LOST one of their best-known sons with the sad passing of Jimmy Cousins at the age of 87.
Born to Jack and Johanna Cousins of The Hill on April 15, 1930, he was the fourth of seven children and he remained on the homestead for his entire life.
Along with his brothers, Jimmy learned the ways of farming from childhood and grew up to become a very progressive farmer.
At the age of 23, he married the love of his life Angela Power, from Park, Duncormick, and together, as a team devoted to each other, they built and extended their mixed farming enterprise, and reared six children.
Jimmy was actively involved in the community from a very young age. He, with his brothers, was part of a 20-man committee that fundraised and built the hall in Kilmore from 1947 to 1949. The hall put Kilmore Village on the map as a venue for dances, cinema and theatre.
He was proud to see it handed over to the parish and to witness it as a hub of the village, still playing an integral role in the community today.
Jimmy was extremely hard working but balanced his lifestyle through his passion for GAA and horses.
From his teens to his 30s he played football for Kilmore. He was full forward on the junior football team that brought the first adult football title to the parish in 1962. After hanging up his boots he continued mentoring various teams for many years.
He was heavily involved in acquiring the club grounds in Kilmore through fundraising and hard work. He held the role of vice president of the club until his passing. He was honoured with a Seana Ghael award for his contribution to the club.
When no longer able to participate, he supported local and county teams and enjoyed many trips to Croke Park with his son-in-law Michael, brother Dickie, and friends Oliver and Eddie.
Horses were also a part of Jimmy’s life. He was the last of an era to use horse power on the farm. Later, he began showing horses, starting with his fathers’ horses and the Dublin Horse Show. He then bred his own and travelled to shows around the south-east.
He won plenty of silverware of the years; in one year, he accumulated eight cups, starting with the Tinahealy Show and finishing with the Pilltown Show.
He enjoyed his trips to the horse shows, spectating and predicting the winning horse with his good friend Jim, where they were fondly known as ‘the two Jims’.
The show nearest and dearest to his heart was the Bannow and Rathangan Show. He recalled his family entering six horses in the first show in Littlegraigue in 1949 and bringing home the red rosette. Later, when the show moved to Killag, he became a loyal member of the show’s committee.
As well as exhibiting his own horses, he was very involved in the preparation and planning, and was hugely proud of its success. Even with failing health, he still attended and welcomed everyone to the show.
His memory will live on as, at the 2018 show, his wife Angela presented a perpetual cup in his honour.
Jimmy also had a great affinity for Kilmore Quay where he first met Angela. He and Angela often visited and reminisced on their youthful days and trips to the Saltee Islands.
Diagnosed with illness in 2003, Jimmy enjoyed life up to 2015, his attitude being to ‘get on with it’. He received great support from family, friends and especially Angela, who was his mainstay.
Although very weary in the summer of 2016, he was delighted to welcome three of his American fourth cousins back to walk the grounds of their ancestors. Bill, Linda and Nancy had traced their roots back to the Hill where their great-great-grandfather Patrick Cousins and two siblings had left and set sail for America to settle in New Jersey in 1850.
In August and November of that year, he showed great determination and willpower to attend the weddings of his two granddaughters Michelle and Eilish. He loved all of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
In his latter years, when the road got rough, he showed remarkable resilience as he had many complications and setbacks, each necessitating hospital admissions.
Under the great care of Wexford General Hospital, he rallied back and soldiered on to the next battle. His strength, endurance, faith, and will to live were nothing short of admirable. The love Jimmy had for his family and his love of life helped him fight his long illness.
He received excellent care and treatment initially from the Urology and Radiology departments in Whitfield Clinic, and then the Oncology team in Wexford that sustained and gave Jimmy such an extension to his life.
Both he and his family were very appreciative to the ever-obliging team in Bridgetown Health Centre, both the palliative care team from the hospital, and from the community, and his much loved carers.
He was also very grateful for the visits from the priests of the parish.
Jimmy is predeceased by his parents Johanna and Jack, sisters Ita and Mai, brothers Sean, Tommy (who passed away a week after him) and Dickie (who passed away a few months before him), and nephew Willie.
Jimmy is sadly missed by his wife Angela; his children Seanie, Alicia, Joan, Ibar, Angie, and Bertha; his brother Pat; his sons-in-law Michael, Gerdy, Brendan and Cathal; daughters-in-law Mary and Marion; grandchildren and great-grandchildren; the extended Cousins family, friends and neighbours.
The family expressed their thanks to everyone for their sympathies.
Jimmy’s first anniversary mass takes place in Kilmore on Friday, December 7 at 7.30 p.m. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h-ainm.
May he Rest in Peace.