A Portroe native who made Templemore his home

The death took place on June 27 last of Dominic Wixted, 17 Marian Road, Templemore.

Known to all as Dom, he was born in Glencrue, Portroe, on October 11, 1937, the third child of Anthony Wixted and Mary O’Grady. Sisters Maura and Frances arrived before Dom, with Joan and Noreen following afterwards before his only brother Seamus completed the family of six.

Rural life was simple growing up in Portroe and Dom attended the local schools before joining the Army at Limerick Barracks in February 1954. A brief move to Cork followed before he arrived in Templemore in 1958, serving as a driver. He boarded at O’Shea’s on the Main Street and also at Dan Bergin’s in the Park.

Betty Kennedy caught his eye and the couple married in September 1962 with 17 Marian Road becoming the family home. Life was busy with Tony, Margaret and Dominic Jnr all arriving by 1968. Dom gave 33 years service to the Army, 29 of those in Templemore. He also served twice overseas with the UN in Cyprus. Following his retirement in 1987, he worked as a night porter in the Templemore Arms and for a time as a security guard with Meadow Irish Meats in Rathdowney with his old friend Mick Roche, who predeceased him in 2021.

He also gave a number of years as a supervisor with FÁS, overseeing many local projects. Dom immersed himself in the community from the minute he arrived in Templemore and was a very popular character around the town, always up for a bit of mischief and craic. His talent with pen in hand was exceptional and he loved to write on a variety of topics, his socially active life allowing him to pick up on many local tales.

LAKESIDE PITCH & PUTT

The Wixted clan in Templemore extended for a while in the late 1990s as Dom’s brother Seamus owned and ran the Bridge Bar for a number of years.

The existence of Lakeside Pitch and Putt today owes much to Dom Wixted. Along with a few other hardy souls, they plugged away in the late 1970s when packing it in was the easy option.

That perseverance eventually led to the development of one of the best courses in the country, a feat Dom was very proud of.

He served in almost every capacity at Lakeside and was in his element in 2015, making many contributions to the club history book. His daily trips to the Park with his beloved dog Buddy always involved a visit to the course.

Nature played a huge part in Dom’s life. He loved to feed the birds, do a spot of fishing, while he liked all animals, especially dogs. Following his retirement from the Army, he never forgot his old comrades and he was a founder member of the Pierse McCan branch of the ONE here in Templemore. He was very proud of the organisation and worked tirelessly to promote and support all of its activities.

In later years, nothing gave him greater pleasure than spending time with his beloved grandchildren. His kind, jovial nature attracted many to him and Michael Kiely, Mick Roche, Martin Sweeney, Bobby Kavanagh, Mick Gavin and Lily O’Brien were, among others, dear friends to him.

Dom was predeceased by his wife Betty in September 2020 and was reunited with her in St Joseph’s cemetery following his requiem Mass. Dom spent 66 very happy years in Templemore, a town he certainly left a lovely mark on.

May his gentle, jovial, loving soul rest in eternal peace.