The late Wally O"Donoghue Sportsman, storyteller, businessman - Walter 'Wally' O'Donoghue had many strings to his bow, but he is remembered above all for his warm character and boundless energy. "People still can't believe that he's gone," said his friend and club trustee with Castletroy Golf Club, Arthur Quinlan. "He was so full of life that it's difficult to comprehend that he is no longer with us. Everyone has a good word to say about him." The enormous crowd that attended his funeral last week testified to Wally's popularity. Many hundreds of people came from all walks of life to remember and pay tribute to a man who played a central role in so many areas of Limerick life. He is perhaps best known for his involvement with Castletroy Golf Club, where he was a past captain (2006). He joined the club in 1946 as a family member and represented the club for the first time in the Barton Shield and Senior Cup in 1960. When Castletroy GC won the Barton Shield, Wally himself won 14 successive matches. Later, he chaired the sub-committee which oversaw the magnificent transformation of Castletroy into the championship golf course it is today. But it wasn't just on the golf course that he displayed his sporting prowess. A talented all-rounder, Wally excelled at snooker, played rugby for Bohemians, GAA for Treaty Sarsfields and soccer for Fairview Rangers. He was also a prominent member of Shannon Rowing Club. In his professional capacity, he ran a successful wholesale fruit business and is remembered as a businessman of great honesty and integrity by all who had dealing with him. He left an indelible impression on all those who encountered him, be it in the business, sporting or social sphere. Those who knew him describe him as a great storyteller - a trait he inherited from his father Paddy - and as a real 'people person'. "It was a huge shock when I received the phone call to say he had died and he will be a big loss to the club because he was a larger than life character," said Pat O'Sullivan who is the current men's captain at Castletroy Golf Club. "He was the only person I knew who was one hundred per cent a people's person because whenever you met him you always felt you had his full attention," he added. Mr O'Donoghue was buried at Kilmurry Cemetery, Castletroy. He is survived by his wife, Elma and his children Tracy, Carol, Tommy and Bobby. -Leinster Leader, January 2009 Tweet

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