Brendan Gaffey's seven decades as ‘a born entrepreneur’ in Athlone

by David Flynn

The name Brendan Gaffey has been familiar to many Athlonians for almost 70 years, due largely to his presence at houses in urban and rural South Westmeath where he delivered timber and turf.

He is also well-known for providing plant machinery for county council projects and for developing group water schemes.

Along the way, he invested in the acquisition of land and allowed it to flourish as grazing pasture for cattle and horses.

Brendan has been a household name for fuel delivery throughout many decades, providing a much-needed service in the urban area when most families didn’t have access to cars or trailers to bring home their turf.

His story began in a rural family in Moydrum in 1942, at the height of World War Two (known in Ireland as The Emergency), in a house that was across from the entrance of the 2RN/RTE broadcasting station.

Brendan was the second-youngest of a family of nine children. His father Johnny Gaffey, a native of Castledaly, was employed for 45 years by Athlone Urban District Council, and died at the age of 65, when Brendan was 19-years-old.

His mother was Ellen Mulhall, also from Castledaly. Brendan’s siblings emigrated to the UK and Australia, and he was the only one who stayed at home, although his brother Jack and sister Mags (formerly of The Bottle Neck and Granny’s Kitchen) did come back.

Brendan went to school in Cornamaddy NS and, like his mother before him, was taught by his namesake, Mrs Gaffey, who was not related to him.

As a young boy, Brendan was enrolled by Mick Nugent (father of late Garrycastle man Seamie) in the men’s sodality, meeting in St Mary’s Church.

Adelphi Cinema

He had been working part-time in the Adelphi Cinema on Gleeson Street before he went to Athlone Technical School on Northgate Street, where he stayed for five months before leaving at the age of 14 years to go working full-time at the cinema.

“I left school in the February after starting, because I was needed to show the pictures in the projection room of the Adelphi in the daytime, and I got thirty shillings a week,” Brendan explained.

“I checked tickets and worked all over the place there, including the shop upstairs.”

Among the films he remembers in the cinema was the multi-Oscar winning, 'The King and I', which ran for one week.

“The films usually ran for one or two nights, but there were big queues on the road outside, up to the printing works (the then premises of the Westmeath Independent),” said Brendan.

However, his time at the Adelphi didn’t instil a love of films in him, because he was so busy.

“It was a job, and that’s all I was focused on. Now I’d look at films, but at the time I was working the projectors and every 20 minutes you’d have to change reels,” said Brendan.

“I might see a bit of the picture, but I’d not have much interest in it. It was good money there, but I wanted to move on.”

In the late 1950s Brendan began to look toward self-employment through delivering fuel to Athlone's housing estates.

“I used to buy a load of turf for £5 in Bord na Mona, and sell it for £10, but it was hard work,” he said.

“I got my first tractor in 1961, and in 1968 got my first digger, and I worked for the council with the digger for thirty shillings per hour. In those days, you worked a 44-hour week for £66. I worked with the Urban District Council for 43 years.”

It was in the Goldsmith Tavern that Brendan met Patricia Carey, from Tang, who would become his wife, and the mother of his four daughters, Mary, Helena, Colette, and Claire, and one son, John, who went on to become a prominent footballer with Garrycastle and Westmeath.

“Four of Patricia’s brothers played football for Tang, and also played for Westmeath. That’s where the football came in with John, not from me, I was not good at football,” said Brendan, laughing.

John captained Garrycastle to their 6th senior championship win in 2011, and was the first Westmeath man to captain a club team to win the Leinster senior championship.

A good day's work

Brendan’s daughter, Helena, also spoke to the Westmeath Independent about her father.

“To this day, Dad enjoys doing a good day’s work.” said Helena. "He believed Sunday should be a day of rest and he spent it with family and friends attending football matches or equestrian events.”

Brendan said that, when he worked with a tractor and trailer in the Athlone housing estates, he was never owed a penny.

“Once I looked after the people, and treated them decently, I was never owed,” said Brendan.

He has always been an avid reader of books, and every week he reads the Farmer’s Journal and the Westmeath Independent, while every day he reads the Irish Independent.

“Brendan is a great funeral-goer and is very religious and spiritual, and goes to Mass regularly,” said his wife, Patricia.

“He has a keen interest in land and property development and has a remarkable knowledge of local land ownership and transactions. Still going strong when he was 72, Brendan made his last purchase of 50 acres, near the broadcasting station in Moydrum.”

Brendan’s daughters and grandchildren got the love of horses from him, although he humorously said that, when he was young, he was only reared with an ass!

“There was always a pony here when we were growing up,” said Helena. “Dad was always lucky, and he draws people in, and still has an interest in all things going on.”

Brendan said he was lucky to have all his family happy and healthy, and living within a seven-mile radius of home.

“Our home house is still the magnet of the family,” said Helena.

“I bought the place in 1967. It was a run-down farm at the time, with 45 acres, and I bought it for £5,100,” added Brendan.

“It was the talk of the country at the time, because it was a lot of money to pay for the way the farm was. It was all forestry as well, and was a swamp other than that. It was a small four-room house.”

Helena remembers another time when her Dad bought a dog track for another “outrageous price” of £40,000 in 1989.

“I was told by the bank manager that whatever you do, don’t pass £30,000, but it went to £40,000 for ten acres. It worked out and I was lucky,” said Brendan.

Working for himself

He is not a man for taking on partners in business, and has an interesting saying – 'Only join somebody in the Rosary'.

“Anything I did, I did it myself with the support of Patricia,” said Brendan.

Another part of his working life happened in the 1990s when Brendan worked with Canada Life and was recognised by the insurance group as its seventh highest rated salesman in Ireland.

In 1994, he was chosen to represent Canada Life at a prestigious round table event in Toronto.

Brendan is a committee member of the Athlone Agri Show. He was among a group who restarted the show, and for a number of years the Agri Show took place in the Gaffeys' grounds in Moydrum.

Brendan’s granddaughter Grace Claffey wrote an interesting few lines about Brendan for a school project.

Grace called Brendan, “a really inspirational person, one of a kind, and a very determined person,”.

“It would be true to say nothing or no-one would stand in his way,” said Grace. “He's a born entrepreneur, and with the help of Granny, they had great success in business.

“The farm had a great plant hire business and accumulated so much land. He enjoys all aspects of business and is fair to all. Granddad is a proud man and thinks so much of his family and fifteen grandchildren.

“He is always encouraging and looks for the best in everything and everyone. I really look up to Granddad. I enjoy his company very much, and he's a great friend to me and many others.

“There is no doubt Brendan Gaffey is a very happy man and never fails to lighten up the room when he is in your company!”

Family ties

While Brendan was a born entrepreneur, he naturally instilled those skills in his children when they were young and is a support for their business decisions to this day.

Brendan and Patricia’s eldest daughter, Mary, works with the HSE. Helena, second-eldest, who was well-known as an Athlone auctioneer for many years, now runs Mount Temple Dairy Farm along with her husband.

Their third-eldest daughter, Colette, runs Essentially Equestrian in Moydrum, selling horse tack and equipment, which has become a big online business.

Their youngest daughter, Claire is the owner of Athlone Equestrian Centre which will have been in operation for 20 years this October. Their son John is a business development manager with Three Ireland.

“I remember being at horse sales, and a lot of children wouldn't be allowed to hold a pony or sell a pony, but Dad would let you just go off and do the business yourself, so that was how we were encouraged from a young age to be independent and make our own money,” said Brendan’s daughter, Claire.

“While times have changed, Brendan still enjoys the company of many, including calling and visiting to many houses and friends throughout the country,” says Patricia.

“He’s a great friend to many and our own home is one of the few rambling houses left. We have an open-door policy, and love to have friends and family calling.”

Brendan, at the age of 84, is still a busy man.

Following his interview for this Westmeath Independent article he quickly leapt up and got ready to go to his digger, with his dog Spot, for a few hours of work, reseeding a field for Claire, which he still greatly enjoys!