Great woman Myra (98) was active member of community

Tallaght remembered “great woman” Myra Sharkey after her passing on Saturday, May 4 at the age of 98.

Myra was originally from Co Down and came to Tallaght in the 1950s, where she met Desmond Sharkey, had two sons Declan and Derek and throughout her time in the area, became well-involved in local affairs, including local politics.

Former Dublin South-West TD and Tallaght Central councillor Charlie O’Connor recalled Myra’s years in Fianna Fáil circles.

Charlie said: “I only came to Tallaght in 1969, but I got to know Myra fairly soon after that. She was a Fianna Fáil activist, a member of the local Cumann.

“She had been very active with the then-Deputy Seán Walsh, and then in time she obviously got to know me…when I became a TD in 2002, she was always very supportive and we kept in touch.

“I regard her as a great woman.”

She put time into several other activities within the community, and was noted to be involved in the setup of Tallaght Community School, which opened its doors in 1972, and was on the board of the school following its inception.

The Old Tallaght stalwart also played a hand in setting up the 24th Tallaght Scouts back in 1970.

Myra spent her final year at The Residence Citywest on Cuil Duin Walk, but before then was often seen at mass in the village.

She attended the 10am mass at St Mary’s Priory on a daily basis and could be seen chatting to churchgoers often, remaining an active member of the community.

Myra’s son Derek noted that “she was on top of everything local” and read The Echo often, even making an appearance in 2017 after she objected to a Costa Coffee retention application for a sign, which she claimed shone into her home on the Main Road.

Derek visited his mother often and recounted a special connection that he helped to develop.

He said: “I have a beautiful dog, a Cocker Spaniel who’s 11 now, and she loved to see the dog. The dog gave her so much joy in her life. She told everybody about the beautiful dog.”