Tributes flow for local garda Damien Sharkey
Tributes were paid at a recent sitting of Nenagh District Court to a local member of An Garda Síochána whose untimely death occurred just under a fortnight ago.
The Garda’s Court Presenter Sergeant Regina McCarthy said it was with great sadness that members of the force had to bid a final farewell to their esteemed colleague, Garda Damien Sharkey, who died unexpectedly on July 20.
Garda Sharkey (53) joined An Garda Síochána in 1996 and after his attestation the following year he served in Nenagh Garda Station and later in the station in Templemore.
In 2001, Garda Sharkey was transferred to the Garda College in Templemore where he served up to his early death that has been greeted with sadness and shock in the community.
“Garda Sharkey was the epitome of kindness and played a vital role in the training of many gardaí, including myself,” Sergeant McCarthy told the court.
“I had the pleasure of working with Garda Sharkey in the Garda College in recent years and that dedication and support that he has shown over the years remained the same - unwavering and steadfast,” said Sergeant McCarthy.
MENTOR AND FRIEND
She added: “He was a mentor and friend to all he encountered. He was a truly good person.”
She said the late garda was a family man who spoke lovingly of his wife, Joan, and three daughters, Abbey, Polly and Mia.
Sergeant McCarthy said that on behalf of Superintendent Cullen in Nenagh Garda Station, she wished to extend deepest sympathy to all of Garda Sharkey’s family and to all his colleagues in the force. “He will be sorely missed by all.”
On behalf of the local solicitors, Mariea Flanagan also extended sympathy with the family of Garda Sharkey. His untimely passing and that recently of the resident judge, Elizabeth MacGrath, underlined just how volatile life could be.
Judge Fiona Brennan said that while she did not personally know Garda Sharkey, it was clear from what had been said that he was a person who was held in the highest esteem by his colleagues in the force and the community.
Court Clerk Eithne Canning also offered her sympathy to Garda Sharkey’s family on behalf of the staff of the Court Service.
The large crowds who attended Garda Sharkey’s reposal at Keller’s Funeral Home in Nenagh on Wednesday week last and his Requiem Mass in the Church of the Holy Spirit, Youghalarra, the following day were testimony to the esteem in which he was held.