The late David Veale
Apart from the last six weeks of life, which he spent in Havenwood Retirement Home, David lived his whole life in the Dunhill family home where he was born.
Born on March 23rd, 1921, David was the fourth eldest of eight children of Michael and Mary Kate Veale of Dunhill and the only boy in his family. They were a close and loving family and David and his sisters retained a strong attachment for each other all of their lives.
David attended Dunhill NS and St Augustine’s College in Dungarvan. At age 17, he returned home to work on the family farm with his parents. Tragically, his father died a few months later, requiring David to take on responsibility for managing the farm with help from his mother.
In 1950, David married Agnes Kirby from Clonea Power. They spent 46 very happy years together raising six children. Agnes was the love of his life and sadly predeceased him by 20 years.
David enjoyed farming. He was a progressive farmer who ran a very successful farm that he expanded over the years. David was well known for breeding top Friesian cattle and for many years the pedigree sales on his farm attracted buyers from all over Ireland and the UK.
As a dairy farmer, milk quality was of the upmost importance to David and he was awarded the James English Memorial Cup for Highest Protein Yield three years in a row.
David was an active member of many farming organisations. He was a founding member of Waterford Milk Producers, a member of the Irish Friesian Breeder’s Association Waterford (Tipperary Branch) and Chairman and Delegate to their National Council.
He was also a member of the East Waterford Ploughing association and regularly gave his land for use in competitions.
David was involved in the revival of the Waterford Agricultural Show, which for many years was a regular event in the local Waterford calendar. He was one of the initial members of the Waterford Macra na Feirme, where he enjoyed debating and coaching the debating teams.
David was passionate about his parish, Dunhill. He was a true community man, always available to contribute and support local endeavours. For him this was a hands-on job, from fundraising to being an active committee member and advocate for many causes in Dunhill.
David valued education. He was a long-term member of the management board of Dunhill National School, Treasurer of the Parish Hall, which had originally been the site of the school he had attended, and an advocate and supporter of the Dunhill Multi Education Centre where he enjoyed computer classes and history lectures.
Throughout his life, David enjoyed sport as a participant and through his involvement with local sporting organisations. He was a team member of Athletics Cross Country and won medals for running.
He was a proud member of the Dunhill GAA Club as a player and, along with others, was instrumental in acquiring the present GAA field. Before that he happily made his own field available for games. He was a Selector for the inaugural Clan na Gael team. David was also an enthusiastic supporter of his grandchildren’s involvement in local clubs.
In his retirement, David developed his interests in writing, local history and family genealogy. He gave talks to local schoolchildren about earlier times in the school and parish and he enrolled their help to record details of the Dunhill graveyard headstones.
Another project David undertook was compiling a full record of all students who had attended Dunhill NS. On a number of occasions, when visitors arrived seeking to complete their family tree, David gave them access to his records and to his extensive local knowledge.
David was a deeply religious man and his strong Catholic faith was central to his life. David lived a long, happy and rewarding life in Dunhill. He was loyal, caring and generous to his family and community. He was a fortunate man and died a peaceful death.
David is greatly missed by his family and so many others who held him in high regard.
David Veale is survived by his two surviving sisters Bridget and Kathleen, his six children, Michael, Dan, Mary, John, Catherine and David, their partners and 15 grandchildren. His Remembrance Mass was held at Dunhill Parish Church on Sunday last.