It is my sad duty, as Cathaoirleach, to announce that our friend and former colleague, the late Senator, TD and county councillor, Richard Dowling, or better known to us all as Dick Dowling, from Kilkenny passed away over the Easter break. Dick was a native of Glenmore, County Kilkenny. He was an outstanding public servant to the people of Carlow-Kilkenny for more than 25 years. He was elected to Seanad Éireann in 1982 on the Labour Panel. Later that year, he went on to win a seat in the November general election for the Carlow-Kilkenny constituency and served for a full term.
He had a long and distinguished career in local politics, serving on Kilkenny County Council from 1974 until his retirement in 2009. Those of you who knew him, and Senator O'Reilly served with him, would have known he was passionate about sport and his two favourite pastimes were hurling and golf. He was a former alumnus of St. Kieran's College in Kilkenny where he won an all-Ireland colleges medal in 1957. He was a well-respected referee in Kilkenny and refereed many Kilkenny senior county finals in the 1970s.
Apart from politics and his family, he had great pride in being a teacher. He was a secondary school teacher in the De La Salle College in Waterford city where he took great pleasure in mentoring his students. As Cathaoirleach, I extend my thoughts to his family and, on behalf of the House, I express our sympathies and condolences to his wife, Máirín, his sons Padraig, Donal, Richard and John, his daughters Anne Marie and Catherine and his extended family.
He was a good friend and mentor to many of us. He had a great wit, a huge intellect and a huge love of Latin. Our life is made poorer by his passing. May he rest in peace. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.