The late Kevin McHugh As already widely reported in the various media, the untimely death took place at the end of October, 2006 of Kevin McHugh. His passing has brought an air of disbelief and sadness to the fishing community and those involved in the fishing industry the length and breadth of the country and even beyond. While most people knew Kevin as the fisherman, businessman and entrepreneur, to the people of his beloved Achill, Kevin McHugh was "one of us". It has often been said of him that he was a man who never forgot his roots and where he came from. To a closer group of people he was husband, father, son, brother, and a dear friend. They are the people who knew him as the kind person he was. They speak of his kindness and understanding and tenderness for they, more then anybody else witnessed "that best part of a good man's life, his little nameless unremembered acts of kindness and of love". It has been said that the potential of the average person is like a huge ocean un-sailed, a new continent unexplored, a world of possibilities waiting to be released and channelled towards some greater good. Those words indeed give an insight into the character and personality of the late Kevin McHugh. Born to parents Michael and Nora McHugh on May 26, 1946, he was the fourth of eight children. Kevin grew up at Bullsmouth, in Achill. Indeed it can be said that Bullsmouth had a lasting affect on him. The second fastest marine current in Europe rushes through the Bullsmouth Sound and that is where Kevin got his first taste of and gained a respect for the sea. He received his early education at Bullsmouth NS then at Scoil Damhnait at Achill Sound and later at the Vocational School in Westport. After he completed his education his determination to pursue a career in fishing won over many other career options presented to him at the time. His father being an electrician with the ESB tried to interest the young Kevin in an apprenticeship in the ESB as a 'more secure" future for the young man, but Kevin was not listening. He had a dream: he had a plan which in due course he fulfiled. As a "young fella" Kevin didn't know the meaning of boredom. He was continuously seeking a new challenges and new adventures. Great value was placed on work and self-determination in the McHugh household. The ethos of self-sufficiency through the utilisation of one's inner resources was nurtured and the gifts and talents which became manifest were celebrated. Great emphasis was always placed on respect for self, respect for others and respect for the environment. As in many rural areas, Gaelic football is not just a game, it is a passion; one's standing and that and of one's village depends on winning. And so it was with Kevin. In his youth he was an avid and skilled footballer and was a member of the winning Achill Minor football team. His dexterity and fearlessness on the field of play marked him out as a dangerous and wily opponent. The injuries of torn ligaments or dislocated joints were seen as the "scars of the battle" that needed care and attention before the next affray onto the field of play. Kevin had that special love of the sea and fishing and every opportunity he got he was out in a neighbour's currach or in the "punt". Sea angling was and still is a popular summer time activity for locals and for the many visitors to the island. But for the McHugh family it was something special. It was part of their lives. When Michael McHugh, "the ESB man" came home from his work in the evening the fishing lines would be ready in anticipation of an evenings fishing with the family. Each member of the family learned to unhook their own fish and quickly get the line back into the water again, as the competition to see who caught the most fish and the biggest one was always there. Sea angling competitions organised by the Achill Sea Angling Club attracted many entries from other clubs around the country. Kevin represented the Achill club in the Connaught Championships while he was still a teenager and won the gold medal. All of this went to hone the determined streak and help to sharpen the competitive edge of the young Kevin. The quote of an anonymous author, "Do not follow where the path may lead. Go where there is no path and leave a trail," could have been Kevin's motto from his early youth. Like many west of Ireland families in the 50's and 60's emigration began to eat into and scatter the McHugh family - the three eldest soon left home for America and England. Kevin's desire to go fishing was deemed by some to be a little alien as in the early 60s fishing was seen as a part-time, weather dependent, dangerous job with no likely future for a young man. Those kind of comments did not deter the young Kevin and he eventually persuaded his father to try and get him into his cousin's boat (Bob and Willie Reynolds) in Balbriggan in north Co Dublin. Both Willie and Michael McHugh decided that this would either "make a man of him" or cure him of his longing to go to sea. Kevin started as a cabin boy doing the menial tasks but necessary tasks aboard the boat. While it was not glamours he learned, like the great Samuel Johnson that "great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance". Those first lessons aboard the boat helped him to realise that the successful person is the individual who forms the habit of doing what the failing person does not like to do. He completed his BIM apprenticeship and was among the first to graduate from the newly formed fisheries school. While still a teenager he headed off to Iceland where sub-zero temperatures in the winter months replaced the wind and soft rain of the west coast of Ireland. He completed his Skipper's Ticket while in Iceland with a view to buying his own fishing boat on his return to Ireland. As the youngest skipper owner in the country he was not allowed to take out his own vessel as he was not yet reached his 21st birthday; older skipper friends came to his aid and companioned him until he turned 21. Throughout his adult life Kevin's ever-present companion was his wife Vera Ryan, who came from Lusk, a small village in north Co. Dublin, famous for its market gardening, and, strangely enough, the same village that Kevin's grandmother Jean came from, many years before. Kevin's pride and joy was always his children , Paul, Karl, Kevin Jnr. and Noreen and he lovingly guided them on their life's journey. The arrival of his first grandchild Lauren, gave him much pride and joy. He cherished and celebrated the accomplishments of others and continuously sought to bring out what was the best in those who worked with him or sought his advise. Kevin did not see obstacles, he saw challenges and if he did not have the expertise to deal with a situation himself he did not hesitate to look elsewhere. He always gave credit where credit was due. Kevin's feats as a fisherman and business man are legendary in his home place of Achill and Killybegs, as well as nationally and internationally. As one local Achill man, now in his eighties said on hearing of Kevin's illness, "he cannot die, his is our hero...it is on his shoulders that we all stood tall." His illness of four months baffled the doctors who treated him in the Blackrock Clinic and Mater Hospital in Dublin; as his son Karl said at his funeral Mass "Our father was one in a million and it took a disease that hits only one in a million to bring him down." The very large numbers who travelled to be at Kevin's funeral, especially from Achill were a tribute to the esteem and sense of belonging that Kevin had for Achill and that the Achill community had for Kevin. The legacy of Kevin McHugh is not just about the businesses he established or the number or size of the fishing vessels that he helped to design and build. His legacy to future generations will be that he was a man of vision: he saw what was being done in other maritime nations and worked to achieve it here in his own country also. While some of the politicians of the time did not recognise the potential of the sea surrounding our coast as a natural resource, Kevin was not slow in showing them the errors of their thinking... Kevin is survived by his wife Vera, sons Paul, Karl, Kevin Jnr. and daughter Noreen; daughter-in-law Margaret, Ciara and Alanna; granddaughter Lauren, sisters Columba, Mary and Sheila, brothers Robbie, Peter, Michael and Eamon; uncle Sean Lavelle; godfather Paddy McHugh; nieces, nephews, relatives and many, many friends. Ar dheis De go raibh a anam uasal. Courtesy of the Mayo News 22 November 2006 Tweet

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