Late Offaly Councillor remembered for 'courteous and diligent' nature

THE late Edenderry based county councillor Noel Bourke was remembered with great admiration and fondness by the Councillors of Offaly County Council during their November monthly meeting in Áras an Chontae.

Noel passed away peacefully on Saturday, October 25, in the care of Ofalia House, Edenderry.

From Killane, Edenderry, and formerly of Roscrea, Noel was a Fianna Fáil councillor on Offaly County Council from 1991 to 2019. Originally from Roscrea, where his family ran a grocery shop, Noel moved to Offaly in the 1960s and began his career as a fitter in Lullymore Briquette Factory before moving into HR with Bord na Móna, where he worked for many years.

Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick told the meeting that when he joined the Council as a new councillor in 2004, Noel was very helpful to him, the newcomer. “Noel worked very hard for the people of north Offaly, for Edenderry, for Portarlington,” commented Cllr Fitzpatrick.

"His involvement with Bord na Móna was distinguished and hard working. I wish to extend my sympathy to his wife, Carmel and son, Donny on their loss. Noel was a quiet-spoken man and was very well respected by the people he represented.”
Cllr Clare Murray Smale said Noel was “a great help to me during the local elections last year. No one had a bad word to say about him. He had a quiet, gentle, thoughtful presence.”

Cllr Liam Quinn pointed out that Noel was “a gentleman. He was a very diligent, courteous and meticulous man. I was in Edenderry MD for ten years with Noel. He very rarely missed a meeting. Serving the local community was very important to him. He was also an easy man to get on with."

Cllr Seán O'Brien said he served on the Council with Noel from 1999. “In another life he would have been an international diplomat; he was that type of person. Since 1999 we ploughed together in a lot of projects in north Offaly. We got on well together. I extend my deepest sympathies to Carmel and Donny."

The Chief Executive Anna Marie Delaney also extended her sympathy to Noel's family. “Noel was always very supportive and helpful,” she remarked. “He had a very good political nose for things that might work or might not.”

Cllr Seán Maher said Noel “was easy to get on with.”

Cllr John Leahy, Cathaoirleach, commented that Noel was “very inclusive. He was meticulous in his work. The boot of his car was like a filing cabinet! Noel loved being a political representative.”

The meeting was then adjourned as a mark of respect for several minutes.

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