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From an account by his brother Brendan, and his cousin Cyril, it emerged that Tom Mahon was just 3 months from being ordained a priest, when he left the seminary. Much of his drive for doing what he could in the Pro-Life field stemmed from this spiritual dimension. Tom was a fluent Irish speaker and could converse to other countrymen in Gaelic for hours, as he often tried to do on the phone to me, even though I could only understand a fraction of what he said!
In his youth he must have been a fit man as he once played Gaelic Football for Galway. He also took a keen interest in politics both sides of the Irish Sea. He had close connections with Sir Patrick Duffy, Ph. D. and Kevin McNamara, Ph. D. K.C.S.G. Also he was a friend of the late Lord Longford ~ all three men being distinguished politicians in previous parliaments. This gave a certain thrust as to what he could ask them to do for the group.
Although Tom had been married and widowed for several years, the fact that he had no children was no barrier to the care he received near the end of his life. His niece Olive, a qualified and experienced nurse, had come over from Australia to care for him. Tom asked me to take my Irish harp down to Writtle, to his home, and to play some Irish music for him in his last week. It was a great privilege for me to carry out his wishes to hear the music of his homeland and some of his favourite melodies. He had even invited in an Irish woman who was a neighbour to share in the musical afternoon. Frail as he was, he was able to joke about things in the past and recall his family life on a farm. He told me that he had made up all his differences with people, and so was at peace.
The Labour Life Group will miss him terribly. He was a man of fire and zeal for the cause and tireless in giving out leaflets at Party Conferences. He served the group as Vice Chairman and Regional Officer for the South East, and was most assiduous in keeping in touch with all the officers of the group.
By Elaine Halton
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