Dunford, Tony
February 15, 2011It is with a sense of deep sadness that we record the passing of Tony Dunford, Ballinacourty, Dungarvan which sad event occurred recently at the early age of 54 years.
Born February 8, 1956 to the late Bridgie and Michael Dunford of Lacken, Tony was the youngest of seven children. In April in 77 Tony married Breed Elsted and they had two children, Linda and Gary. He was a great family man, who loved his wife dearly and was very proud of both his children. He was very close to his brothers and sisters who were immensely supportive over the years. Tony loved his home in Ballinacourty and would frequently say he thought that there could be nowhere nicer.
At the age of 16 Tony started his apprenticeship as a mechanic in Fennell's Garage, after which he moved to Quigley Magnesite in Ballinacourty where he worked until it closed in 1982. He spent several years in Moloney's Garage before moving on to work in Waterford Crystal, where he made some of his closest friends. In the last few years he worked with FAS in the Parish Hall in Ballinroad.
Tony was keen sportsman and played underage hurling for Abbeyside/ Ballinacourty and he remained an avid fan of the Deise hurlers throughout his life. He loved fishing and spent a great deal of time in boats off the pier in Ballinacourty. Golf was his real passion and he spent many happy years playing with his good friends at the Gold Coast Golf Club.
He was involved in organising trips with his golf society and they had great enjoyment on their many outings. He was also a great fan of traditional music and loved a good trad session.
In 1993, while still at the young age of 37, he was diagnosed with a serious illness. Despite this Tony fought back time and time again and always remained in good humour. He never allowed his illness to stop him from living his life to the full and for many years, in between treatments, he continued to play golf. One of his proudest moments was going on to win Golfer of the Year and the Presidents prize in 1996. In 2004 Tony had a bone marrow transplant and all the family will be eternally grateful to Tony's brother John for donating his bone marrow as assist Tony's recovery.
As a token of his gratitude, Tony became heavily involved in fundraising for both the Haematology/Oncology unit in Waterford Regional Hospital and the Bone Marrow for Leukaemia Trust in St James Hospital in Dublin. With the help of friends and family he organised many fundraising events including golf classics, table quizzes and a concert that reformed the group Bodhran after many years. Through all his fundraising events he collected almost €100,000 for charity, a tremendous achievement,
Tony's family greatly appreciate the wonderful care that he received from his GP Dr. Higgins, the medical and nursing staff of St. James' Hospital, Dublin, Waterford Regional Hospital and St. Vincent's Community Hospital, Dungarvan.
They could also like to thank the many friends and family who have shown enormous support over the years.
Tony was the life and soul of every place he went or worked. He was a warm, fun-loving person and was never short of a joke or innocent prank. Nothing was ever any trouble to him and he was always there to give a helping hand. His exceptionally positive attitude throughout his illness was an inspiration to all who knew him. Tony was a kind and loving husband, father, brother, uncle and friend who touched our lives in a special way.
He was the kind of man who binds a community together and Ballinacourty is a poorer place today because of his passing. He will be greatly missed and deeply mourned by his wife Breed, daughter Linda, son Gary; their partners Donal and Cindy'; brothers and sisters Michael, Mary, Christy, John, Jim and Margaret, as well as a wide circle of family and friends.
Month's Mind Mass for Tony will be celebrated on Sunday February 27 at 10am in St. Laurence's Hall, Ballinroad.
Courtesy of the Waterford News & Star
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