St Anne’s club man Gerry Anderson who sadly passed away this week
Gerry (60) dedicated his whole life to GAA Club
The Tallaght GAA community is in shock as St Anne’s GAA Club Chairman Gerry Anderson (60) passed away on Monday evening.
Gerry, who was fighting cancer, was a full-time GAA Development Officer at TU Dublin and dedicated his whole life to the Bohernabreena club starting as a player and then becoming a tireless volunteer, coach, and representative.
“He was funny and charismatic, he loved GAA and he took it very seriously during each game,” said Sports Development Officer at TUD Tim O’Connor.
“So many students have been contacting me after hearing the sad news, saying that he was a true gentleman and sending their love.
“But it wasn’t only about GAA and sports, you would see Gerry across the Tallaght campus always there to assist, and students gravitated towards him.”
On the other side of Tallaght, every St Anne’s member has lost a friend this week and the club remembered him with affection.
Celebrating his 60th birthday last August in St Anne’s with family
“He embodied everything about St Anne’s, and was a coach and a mentor as well as the club chairman,” said Adam Doran from the club.
“He attended men’s, women’s and children’s matches, and all the club social functions. He always made sure to meet and greet new coaches and members.”
Both Tim and Adam said that with his lifelong experience in the local club, Gerry brought the TUD Tallaght GAA teams to success, with the college bringing two Trench Cup trophies home under his guidance in 2001 and 2003.
Just last month, Gerry’s longstanding service in third-level education GAA was acknowledged with an award by the GAA Higher Education body at TUD Tallaght.
“College football was brought to a different level with him,” said Adam, “and he had a soft spot for the players from Tallaght especially.
“But I think his big legacy goes beyond the cups and the finals. He impacted the lives of many young people, being there for them at a big stage of their personal development between 18 and 22 years old.
“He always had an open door for everyone, and made sure all of them were looked after.”
Gerry’s funeral will be on Saturday 7th June to St. Anne’s Church, Bohernabreena arriving for 10.00 am Funeral Mass followed by burial in Bohernabreena Cemetery.
A book of condolences with a collage of his photographs was set up in TUD Tallaght for people to pay their tributes.
