Keane, Jarlath
December 23, 2010The first boss I ever had in the Tuam Herald office was Jarlath Keane. When at the age of 14 or 15 I asked for a few weeks of summer I was assigned to him in the printing department, which at that time was on the first floor, overlooking Dublin Road.
It's strange to think that less than 50 years ago Johann Gutenberg, the inventor of printing with movable type more than 500 years ago, could have walked into that office and given Jarlath Keane a hand at setting type for one of the large carnival posters that were his speciality.
Now poor Johann would gaze in mystification at a computer screen and wonder what had become of his wood and metal type, the brass rules and the wooden spacing blocks known as furniture which gave life to the job.
Jarlath Keane had the good sense to retire early, before the computer revolution, but examples of his craftsmanship, multi-coloured posters printed on one pass on a single-colour machine, still lie in our attic to mystify the modern printer.
A neighbour from Galway Road, he joined The Tuam Herald around 1950 as a boy of 15 or 16, apprenticed to my uncle Kevin in what was still known then, romantically, as the Black Art. There he learned the mysteries of founts and leading, of quoins and formes and packing, of foredge and feed-board and ink-duct and flywheel.
Jarlath was townie, but his roots were deep in Sylane birthplace of his parents Tom and Sarah, both members of the Keane clan that is wide-spread in the area.
It was probably that closeness to the ancestral ground, frequent traverses of the three miles from Galway Road to Sylane Bog, that imbued Jarlath with his deep empathy with country people.
He was full of country lore, and had a rich store of salty phrases, many of which resound in memory and make me smile. He enjoyed the simple pursuits that were then still available to the young men of small town and country village; hunting rabbits or weasels with the terrier (joined in the pursuit by my uncle Brendan and Tony Geraghty); a few pence wagered on pitch and toss on a Sunday morning; and of course the ubiquitous football.
Football was probably his introduction to a wider world. Having played with Tuam Stars he became a notable referee, and because he worked in the newspaper he often took notes of the games he refereeing. Out sports editor, Jim Carney, distinctly remembers him managing this feat during a schoolboy match in which Jim was involved.
He gave his time to administration also, and was not only secretary of the Stars, but also of the North Board of the GAA.
Still he found time to join the Order of Malta, in which he rose through the ranks to officer status. Last year while on holiday in Malta and visiting the sites of the Knights' great victory o 1565, I remembered the exact place I was standing in the Office when he gave me the full, thrilling title of the organisation: The Sovereign and Military Order of Knights Hospitaller of St John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta.
Like the knights of old, Jarlath was a committed Catholic, and while his humour was earthy, his attitude to the rules was obedient. Once on a Good Friday afternoon while engaged in some tedious print finishing job, I took a run up to Moran's shop to buy a choc ice, only to be brought to task in no uncertain manner for breaking the fast.
He was involved in other organisations in Tuam, including the Public Utility Society, which led to him developing a second career as an auctioneer and planning consultant. He left The Herald in 1980 to devote himself full-time to that, but made weekly visits to the office for a chat with my father, also Jarlath.
He was promoter of dancehalls and bands long before it was fashionable, and was the first name terms with many of the showband stars whose names he would set up in metal type for the carnival posters. He was manager of the Phoenix Ballroom on Vicar Street at the early age of 21.
Jarlath was also an independent member of Tuam Town Commissioners, being chairman twice, and he took great pleasure in stirring things up, often providing Jim Fahy, then with this newspaper, with highly marketable copy.
One of his favourite sports was horse racing, and he enjoyed a regular flutter. He took up golf in 1983 but had to concede the laurels to his beloved wife Bernie, who became one of the town's top lady golfers.
Jarlath enjoyed good health all his life, but his world shattered in January 2008 with the death of his eldest daughter, Germaine. It was particularly sad that he appeared to have regained some of his old zest for life shortly before the sudden illness that felled him in the home on Friday evening, December 10.
There was a very large attendance at the funeral mass in the Cathedral of the Assumption and at the burial afterwards. All the varied aspects of his life were reflected in the people who came to mourn his passing and sympathise with his family.
Jarlath Keane is survived by his wife Bernie ( nee Heneghan) sons Tommy, John and Jarlath, daughters Mary and Sinead, grandchildren, sisters Bridie, Mary and Annette, in laws and wife circle of friends- DB
Courtesy of the Tuam Herald
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