Former Garrycastle retailer and GAA stalwart Seamus Nugent mourned
Seamus Nugent, who was a prominent local retailer in Garrycastle and was instrumental in establishing its GAA club 45 years ago, has died at the age of 90.
A hugely popular and well-known figure in his native Westmeath, Seamus (known affectionately by many as Seamie) passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, yesterday (Thursday).
For decades the married father of seven operated Nugent's shop, which had been established in the late 1940s by his parents Mick and Annie at their home in the then-very rural area of Garrycastle, Athlone.
Seamus is believed to be the first child born in the Garrycastle houses, having been born on May 29, 1935, in the month in which the fourteen houses in the estate were opened.
He married Bridie Dolan from Curraghaleen, Bealnamulla, in 1966, and they built a house at the spot where the shop (which operates today as Daybreak Garrycastle) currently stands.
"We first worked out of a room in our new house, and then in the late '60s we built on a flat roof extension, then slowly built up the shop," recalled Seamus in a 2010 interview with the Westmeath Independent.
He was a gifted player of gaelic games, having represented Westmeath at minor football and hurling level before going on to play for the Westmeath junior and senior footballers.
He won a number of honours as a player with Athlone GAA Club, and was a key player on the famed Athlone football team which won six Westmeath senior championships in a row, from 1955 to 1960.
Seamus captained the 1958 team but missed out on playing in the finals in 1959 and 1960 due to a serious knee injury sustained in a motor accident.
He was held in the highest esteem by his teammates - and after winning the 1959 final the Athlone players made a detour to Tullamore hospital so they could share their victory with Seamus and present him with the ball used in the final.
Seamus recovered from the aforementioned accident and went on to win further honours with Athlone in 1963 (junior hurling) and 1965 (senior football).
In 1981, with the population of the Garrycastle area growing, he became one of the founding members of Garrycastle GAA Club.
"It was felt that Athlone GAA was expanding a lot, a lot of young lads were losing out on games, and there was definitely room for two clubs," Seamus said in 2010.
"I was treasurer for the first three years, which was easy because there was very little funds then. We started from scratch, and have every facility there now, including our great clubhouse which was opened in 1995."
His contribution to sport in Athlone was acknowledged in April 2021 when Seamus was inducted into the Hall of Fame as part of the 2020 Westmeath Independent Sports Awards.
Seamus was predeceased by his beloved parents Mick and Annie, brothers Seán and Danny, sisters Maureen (Fitzpatrick) and Nancy (Kelly).
He will be sadly missed by his loving wife Bridie, sons Enda, Fergal, Michael and Dermot, daughters Audrey (Desmond), Denise (Donegan) and Brenda (Mulhern), brother Pat, sister Pauline (Daly), in-laws, nieces, nephews, his adoring grandchildren and great-grandchildren, neighbours, relatives and many friends.
Seamus will be reposing at the Garrycastle GAA clubhouse this Sunday, from 5pm until 8pm. His funeral Mass will take place at 10.30am on Monday in St Mary's Church, followed by burial afterwards in Coosan Cemetery.
May he rest in peace.