The late Mickey Hanly Tributes continue to be paid to the late Mickey Hanly, the former Clarecastle and Clare hurler and retired vocational school teacher who died in Drumkeeran, County Leitrim. He was a past president of the Teachers Union of Ireland and a past chairman of the County Leitrim Hurling Board. He won a minor hurling championship with Clarecastle and in 1949, when he was 17 years of age, he won a senior championship medal with The Magpies. There were large and representative attendances at his funeral in County Leitrim, including many from his native Clarecastle. At the funeral mass Fr Gerard Alwill, PP, Inishmagrath, said while people mourned Mickey's passing and were naturally saddened by his death, there almost seemed to be an air of good humour, of laughter, dare he even say of joviality, as people recalled their own various memories of Mickey, whether it be in school, on the sideline of the pitch or within the privacy of his own family. His sense of humour and fun, the things he said, brought a little laugh and a little lift, even in the midst of sadness. Fr Gerard said that Mickey was no mean player himself in his younger days when he played with St Flannan's and won a Fitzgibbon medal shortly afterwards. When he came to Drumkeeran in 1966 he certainly did not forget his native Clare or his native club, The Magpies of Clarecastle. The two happiest days and greatest days of his life were in Croke Park in 1995 and 1997 when Clare won All-Ireland titles. Not only was Mickey cheering for his native county, he also knew many of the players, their families and in many cases, still had contacts with them. And he brought his love of hurling to Drumkeeran. He was, for a while, chairman of the Leitrim County Hurling Board. And then there was the sense of humour, his sense of fun and even when he was quite ill in the hospital, he joked with the nurses as they came to take yet another blood sample. "I have no doubt that it was this sense of fun that endeared him to so many of his students. His students also saw in Mickey a very human person. Most of all, in Mickey they discovered a man who, had no favourites, who treated everyone the same and who was committed to helping the less fortunate, the less privileged of his pupils. Indeed this was to be one of his great themes, one of his great goals during his time as president of the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI)," Fr Alwill told the congregation. He added that whether it was as a teacher of maths and business or as vice principal or, at times, as acting principal, Mikey was, as one person said, the most loved and most respected teacher in the school. The presence both at the removal of his remains and mass of so many of his past pupils was eloquent testimony to the huge esteem and respect they had for him. They often used the phrase " he never had a bed word to say about anybody" and that was certainly true of Mickey Hanly. He was a very loyal, very supportive and very genuine friend. He was also a very straight man. He had his principles and he did not wander from them. He was not afraid to stand his ground. That's what people meant when they spoke of Mickey's honour, his honest, his integrity. Fr Alwill also referred to Mickey's involvement in the local Drumkeeran GAA club and the central role he played in negotiations into the planning and construction of a new football pitch in Drumkeeran. All this he did quietly, without any fuss. And then there was his family, his wife, Bernie and his children Michael, Shane and Sinead. And while he doted on all of them, Sinead had a special place in his heart. Theirs was a special kind of relationship that words just could not describe. Her death in 1999 came as a shattering blow to him and to all his family. "We have lost our greatest treasure" he told friends. But through his and other family bereavements, he never lost his trust in God. He was not a man to publicly make a great show of his faith but he always carried a crucifix in his pocket. Fr Alwill also said that Mickey's death had robbed Drumkeeran of one of its most colourful and most respected members of the community. Courtesy of the Clare Champion 23 March 2007 Tweet

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