The Late Bertie Coleman After losing Enda Colleran, Mattie McDonagh, Sean Purcell, Jack Mahon and Miko Kelly, Galway football bids a fond farewell to another of its stalwart sons, Bertie Coleman from Dunmore, who died on June 4th. Bertie had been seriously ill for some time, an illness borne with characteristic courage, faith and fortitude, and even from his hospital bed his faith remained indomitable. Aged 83, he gave a lifetime of commitment and dedicated service to his native parish of Dunmore, principally but not solely to the GAA, and he was a noted Galway football man, well known, well liked and highly respected the length and breadth of the country, and abroad. His funeral took place today (Wednesday) at Dunmore cemetery, after mass at the Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas, Dunmore. Three years ago, Bertie Coleman received a Rehab Galway Person of the Year to mark his status as " a pillar of his community for more than 50 years and a noted figure of sport at a wider level." On that occasion, I had the honour of scripting the citation, which also stated: "With the unstinting support of his wife Mary, a member of another distinguished Dunmore family - the Hallidays - Bertie Coleman has made an exceptional, life-long contribution to his community, through his business (insurance) and through his involvement, on a voluntary basis, in a wide range of community organisations: Community Council, Dunmore Festival, the T.V deflector campaign; amateur drama; the GAA, and liaison with FAS in the implementation of local employment schemes." He had a particularly high profile for his notable contribution to the promotion of Gaelic Football, first a player (he won a County Senior with Dunmore MacHales in 1953) and later as a long serving club official (28 years as a secretary), a selector and mentor of many successful county teams, including the All-Ireland three in a row of the mid 1960's, and as an administrator including, at the time of his death, the honourary presidency of the Galway Juvenile Football Board (Coiste Peil na nOG, Gaillimh) the adult Football Board and the County GAA Board. He was acclaimed for having the vision and determination - supported by his brother-in-law and fellow Dunmore GAA man Jimmy Halliday - to pioneer the concept of an inter-clubs football competition in the late 1960's that sowed the seeds of the high-profile All-Ireland Club Championships of today. Unfortunately, the modern day competition that brought All-Ireland glory to Corofin, Caltra and Salthill-Knocknacarra footballers came ten years too late for the great Dunmore MacHales senior football team of the 1960's and the early '70's, which won five county championships and seven league titles. In the past, i also paid public tribute to Bertie Coleman for his tireless efforts to improve the fortunes of various teams he supported; to win for them not merely honours on the field but respect and appreciation, and also better facilities, especially for young participants. His views were always sought: locally, at county level, and further afield, and his home in Dunmore town became a popular meeting place for GAA followers, with a special welcome for visitors from other counties, including in the summer of 2003 the then newly installed President of the GAA, Sean Kelly, who became a special friend. After his secondary school education at Tuam C.B.S. (now St.Patricks), Bertie showed rare initiative and ambition for one so young, in bad times in bad times in rural Ireland - he went into the insurance business in Dunmore town and met with considerable success, serving customers in all areas of North Galway and further afield. For half-a-century, he was considered one of the top insurance salesman in the West of Ireland and he also served the insurance industry as a founder-member of the IBA (Irish Broker Association), and later as leading rep. of the Irish Permanent Building society. In keeping with the ethos of his non-stop voluntary work, he always lent a kindly ear tot he troubles and woes of the rural community in hard times, with many private acts of personal kindness above and beyond the call of duty. He is survived by his wife Mary, Daughters Mary Majella, Jodie, Brigid and Frances, so Michael; son-in-law Damian O'Keeffe and grand-daughter Katie; brother Paddy; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, relatives and a wide circle of friends. Ar dheis lamh De go raibh a. Courtesy of the Tuam Herald 7 June 2007 Tweet

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