Fógraí bháis: Joshua 'Josh' Kielty

Josh Kielty gives Martin McGuinness a warm welcome as Maurice Roche looks on

BY COUNCILLOR MAURICE ROCHE

THE republican family has lost one of its most loyal sons with the death of Volunteer Josh (Joshua) Kielty in his 89th year. He was one of life’s true gentlemen.
A resident  of Wexford town, and originally from Ballinabarney, Gorey, he was born in 1919 when the shockwaves from the Easter Rising were still reverberating. Josh was active in the Republican Movement for most of his life and never wavered, even in the face of huge harassment and hardship from the gardaí in Wexford who raided his home and pub in John’s Gate Street on a regular basis during the war years.  Never were they able to pin anything on him and this was a source of great frustration to many a Wexford garda.
He was supported throughout the years by his loving and loyal wife, Mary (neé Donnelly), and her death in 1989 was a huge blow to him and to his family: daughters Mary and Catherine, and son Paddy.
Josh spent his working life with CIE as a carpenter. Such was his dedication and skill that he was called back from retirement. He finally retired at 70 due to his wife’s ill health.

PASSIONS
Apart from his stalwart work with the Republican Movement, his great passions in life were traditional Irish music and hunting.
He was an accomplished harmonica player and loved nothing more than a trad session at which his great party-piece was a rendition of Seán South from Garryowen.  His pub had many visits from such musicians as The Pogues’ Shane McGowan, Liam Ó Maonlai, and Larry Kirwan of Black ‘47.
He had a pride in family, home and country and loved all things Irish.  He was delighted to see some of his children attending Gaelscoil and would have been so proud that grand-daughter Máire received her gold fáinne on the eve of his funeral.

KEPT FAITH
He fully supported the Peace Process and kept faith in the leadership through the many difficult steps and decisions which were taken by the Movement for the good of the cause.
This was the first in many a long year that Josh missed both the Easter and Bodenstown ceremonies. Josh had been confined to bed since his health took a turn for the worse in December of last year, and he passed away peacefully at his daughter, Mary’s, home on Tuesday, 24 June, following an illness borne with great dignity and courage.
Josh was laid to rest with his late wife in Monaseed Cemetery, Gorey, following Mass in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Wexford, on Friday, 27 June.
We wish to extend our deepest sympathies to his family and to his many friends who are all deeply saddened at the loss of Josh.
He is survived by his sisters, Nancy and Betty; his loving children, Mary, Catherine and Patrick; his sons-in-law Jack and Peter; grandchildren Catherine, Cathal, Máire and Néamh; grandson-in-law Aidan; great-grandchildren and a very large extended family.
Ar Dheis Dé go raibh a anam dhílis.