The Late John Byrne Hundreds gathered in Balymitty last friday to bid a sad farewell to Johhny Byrne. A well-known and popular figure throughout Co. Wexford, Johnny aged just 52 passed away on Tuesday April 14 , in Wexford General Hospital. A beloved husband, father and grandfather, news of Johnny's death will the cause of great sadness will beyond his own parish. Johnny was a native of Tulycanna and after leaving and after leaving Bridgetown Vocational College he commenced work as a joiner. A terrific joiner, he was known the length and breadth of the country for his skilled workmanship. He was very gifted and as known for doing the 'impossible' when it came to joinery. Having learnt his trade in Wexford town, he started his own business in 1986. Always in demand he worked with builders all over Ireland. Johnny was a keen sportsman, who won nine county medals playing football at under-age level with Bannow-Ballymitty. He was also a skilled handball player, loved fishing and shooting, while he was a member of Rosslare Golf Club. He was a soccer fan and a very passionate Manchester United supporter, but it is as a darts player that many will know him. He won titles too numerous to mention down through the years, but among the highlights were five Bannow-Ballymitty darts league wins ( he was the only player to ever win three-in-a-row) and South East League wins. He also once played and beat, English darts legend John Lowe- who won World Championship titles in three different decades when he came to visit Wexford. His wife Anita recalled that one Christmas he won 18 turkeys and ten hams playing darts- enabling him to feed the parish! Johnny was a kind and gentle man, who could never do enough for people. "His heart was too big, he couldn't do enough for everyone- he gave so much of himself to everyone,' said Anita. Johnny and Anita (nee McCarthy) were married in 1975 and after first living in Rochestown, Ballymitty, they moved back to his native Tullycanna in the early '80s, where they raised their three children, Linda, Lorraine and John. There was no prouder man than Johnny in 2007 when he got to walk both his 'little girls' up the aisle at their weddings. Sadly his son John is getting married in just six weeks, a day Johnny had been dearly looking forward too. He was also blessed with two grandchildren,Nicole and Thomas, whom he doted on, and his family got great fun, as did Johnny, out of the fact that Nicole called her grandad 'short legs'! His stature also led to friends calling him 'Mr Tayto', a tag he bore with his usual good humour. The high esteem in which Johnny was held was reflected by the huge number of mourners at his Requiem Mass at St. Peter's Church, Ballymitty. Guards of Honour were provided by Bannow-Ballymitty GAA Club and his friends and fellow darts players. He was laid to rest in Kilcavan Cemetery with his uncle George and other relatives. He left the church in Ballymitty to 'Simple The Best' by Tina Turner. She was a singer that Johnny always admired and that song also epitomises how his loving family will remember him. He is predeceased by his father Thomas and mother Betty, who passed away just one year ago. Johnny is survived by his loving wife Anita, his children Linda, Lorraine and John, his grandchildren Nicole and Thomas, his sister Mary, his brothers Martin and Toddy, his step-father Toddy Moore, nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. Courtesy of the Wexford People 22nd April 2009 Tweet

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