Mary Nea was secretary of Mullingar Show for just over 40 years. In fact there are many who would say that for much of that time that “she was the show” due to her total commitment to all areas of the activities of the show world. She worked with the Westmeath Examiner in their front office in Dominick Street, where she again became the face of the Examiner for contributors and readers of the paper. In the later years of her life in the Examiner, she was one of the directors of the group. Photo from Mullingar Time Goes By by Matt Nolan

‘She was the show’: Mary Nea marks her 100th

Published: Sun 25 Feb 2024, 3:58 PM

Last updated: Sun 25 Feb 2024, 4:10 PM

A woman who loyally served the Westmeath Examiner and the Mullingar Show Society for several decades, Mary Nea of ‘Sunnyside’, Lynn, Mullingar, has celebrated her 100th birthday.

During her working life, Mary Nea was a well-known and highly respected figure in the town and community. She has been a resident at Cluin Lir Nursing Home, Mullingar, for the past 16 years and was joined there by family and friends on February 7 to mark her milestone birthday.

Mary joined the Westmeath Examiner when she was 18, as a bookkeeper and went on to be responsible for all the accounts and wages and the general running of the office. “The Examiner was her life, she lived for her work,” her youngest sister Roe Lynch said.

One of Mary’s jobs when she started was to read the Irish Independent, cover to cover, to the proprietor, former Irish Parliamentary Party MP, the late John P Hayden. The manager of the Examiner then was John Cox, who was subsequently replaced by Kevin Cadigan. The late Nicholas Nally, who went on to be proprietor and editor of the paper, joined as a reporter about a year and a half after Mary.

Mary was secretary of the Mullingar Show Society for 40 years, having replace Mr Hand, who worked in the courthouse.

She was responsible for the general administration of the annual event.

Born on February 7, 1924, Mary was the eldest of seven daughters, all of whom were born at ‘Sunnyside’: Mary, Ita, Evelyn, Sheila, Detty, Josie and Roe. Ita, Sheila, Detty and Josie are deceased.

Their parents were Peter Nea, a stone mason on the railway, and Anne Cleary, a farmer’s daughter from Wooddown, The Downs. Shortly after they married, the couple bought ‘Sunnyside’, a small residential farm on the outskirts of Mullingar.

Mary always had a marvellous brain and was great with figures as well as being good at Irish and English and an expert at shorthand, Mrs Lynch said.

Mary also loved ballroom dancing, playing cards (25 and whist), and was a GAA fanatic.

The seven Nea sisters were all GAA enthusiasts and regulars at Cusack Park, Mullingar, for Sunday games. In hurling, they supported Raharney as their father Peter was a prominent Raharney hurler who played for Westmeath and won a Leinster medal. They also supported Mullingar Shamrocks and St Oliver Plunkett’s.

Mrs Lynch said that her husband, the late Michael Lynch, who was principal of Gainstown NS for 30 years, played for Mullingar Shamrocks.