Olive Foley glad she was open with children
THE widow of Munster coach Anthony Foley has said she was glad she was honest and open with her children about their father’s sudden death from the very beginning.
Anthony Foley tragically died at the age of 42 in October 2016 in Paris. His wife Olive was out for a walk at the time and their children, Tony, 11, and eight-yearold Dan were having breakfast with their grandmother.
Mrs Foley revealed she returned to find missed calls from relatives desperately trying to reach her before she heard the devastating news on the radio. Although in a state of shock, she said her instinct was to protect her children and not tell them straight away.
But after a call with friend and child psychologist David Coleman she felt that withholding the truth wasn’t right.
She finally broke the news to them by saying that their father had died in his sleep while staying in Paris with the Munster squad. She said Mr Coleman also advised her to take the children to Paris and to spend as much time with their father before his funeral, a time she treasures.
‘He was laid out for two days at home and I’m so glad I got that advice because it was a lovely thing,’ she said.
Mrs Foley was praised for her powerful eulogy during Anthony’s funeral.
When asked by Marian Finucane on RTÉ Radio One, where she had found the strength to deliver such a speech, she said: ‘I channelled my inner-Anthony.’