Mayo bades fond farewell to cultural champion
The death of retired school teacher John ‘Twin’ McNamara occurred peacefully on Thursday at his home on Achill Island.
There is great sadness across Co Mayo and beyond at the passing of one of the region’s best-known folklorists and historians.
The death of retired school teacher John ‘Twin’ McNamara occurred peacefully on Thursday at his home in Cú Mara, Keelwest, Dooagh, Achill Island, surrounded by his loving family. He was in his 91st year.
John ‘Twin’ was born in Dooagh on June 7, 1935 and was regarded as one of Achill’s most important historians, folklorists and collector of songs, poetry and stories associated with the island and its connections to significant aspects of local and national cultural heritage.
A great champion for the Achill community, he was a significant contributor to Achill Oral Histories project, an initiative dedicated to the systematic recording and archiving of life on Achill Island, as told by the people of Achill past and present.
As recently as 2022, John ‘Twin’ McNamara released an album of eighteen songs called Oileán m’Aislingí (Island of my Dreams), which included some of his own compositions, some old Achill songs and some Achill poems to which he composed the music. All bar one of the songs, which were a mixture of Irish and English, were recorded between John Twin’s 84th and 86th birthdays.
Predeceased by his beloved son Seán, parents Anthony and Catherine, twin brother Pat and sister Nóra, John will be dearly and lovingly missed by his wife Mary, sons Eoin and Brian, grandchildren Seán, Cathal and Keila, sister Mary Teresa, daughters-in-law Catherine and Claudia, sisters-in-law Teresa, Maura, Mary and Anne, brother-in-law John Stephen, nieces, nephews and all his extended family, neighbours and many good friends.
He will repose at Lavelle’s Funeral Home, Cashel, Achill this Saturday from 4.30pm until 7pm and his funeral Mass will be celebrated at St Patrick’s Church, Pollagh on Sunday at 11.30am. Burial afterwards will be in Slievemore cemetery.
Suaimhneas Síoraí Dá Anam Dílis.
