Martin Healy – a tribute
Martin Healy – a tribute
‘A notable person whose deeds or exploits are much talked about in his own lifetime and beyond.’
The above is a definition I came across to describe a modern legend. When Martin Healy was being laid to rest in Collinstown Cemetery on Thursday last, there was no doubt in anybody’s mind but that we were there to honour a legend.
Martin left us too fast and too soon, but his legendary status will live on in the village of Drumcree and further afield, for as long as locals have a story to tell. Most often a person will be granted legendary status because they excelled in a particular field, but Martin was a true legend because he was so exceptionally talented and had so many different skills.
The first thing to say about Martin is that he was simply a lovely guy and incredibly popular as a result. He was a loving husband to Eileen; a caring father, brother and a true friend to many.
Martin Healy was a mechanic, fitter, welder by trade, but that isn’t even half the story. His genius was that ‘he had hands on him to fix anything!’. Whether it be a malfunctioning engine, an electrical motor or a roof that blew off a shed in a storm, Martin was the ‘go to’ man. I wrote an article one time on DIY, in which I stated that DIY in our house consisted of me telling my wife to ‘ring Martin Healy!’. Restoring old tractors gave Martin his greatest satisfaction – especially if it was one pulled out of a ditch after standing there for 50 years.
Along with his late brother Mìchael, Martin was a key member of the Lough Lene Gaels senior hurling team who won back to back championships in 1975/76. His son Derek has given Trojan service to ‘The Gaels’, as has daughter Linda to the camogie team.
Before his marriage to his beloved Eileen in 1981, Martin, not yet 30 years of age, literally built their own house. That shows the hands he had, even at such a young age. They enjoyed 38 years of happiness in that house until Eileen lost her battle with cancer less than three years ago. Martin never got over the loss of his soul mate. He told me that the pain was worse after he put up her headstone last year. ‘Until that was done, I always had one more thing to do for Eileen, but now I feel nothing but an emptiness.’ Now they lie peacefully together beneath that headstone overlooking Lough Lene.
The loss for Derek, John, Karen and Linda is immeasurable – as it is also for Martin’s sisters, Eilish, Carmel and Bernadette. He will continue to be mourned by all the family and a legion of friends.
The community that is Drumcree, rallied around, as they always do. The neighbours thought of everything… and did everything. As one volunteer said: "That’s what he would be doing for me!" There was one more ‘moving moment’ as Martin made his final journey from his home and a convoy of old tractors led the hearse to the top of the village. Luckily none of them broke down – or there was now nobody to fix it!
‘He was a genius’, ‘a great neighbour’, ‘he will be sorely missed’ and ‘we’ll never see his likes again’, were the comments heard around Drumcree and Collinstown over the last few days. Those same people will always be there for Karen, Linda, Derek and John: ‘That’s what he would have done for us!’
I sat with Martin through his last night on this earth. In the eerie silence of a hospital at 4am, I asked him; ‘what am I going to do now, Martin?’
A lot of people around Drumcree are asking the same question…
Rá Dé ar a anam.
(Tribute by Bernie Comaskey.)