Jim, of Mulgannon and formerly Spawell Road, was known for his significant contribution to many aspects of community life and was admired for the gentlemanly grace and humor he brought to everything he did.
Born in 1929 as the middle child of James and Anna Maguire, he spent his childhood in New Ross and Taghmon before attending boarding school in the Dominican Colleges in Wicklow and Newbridge from the age of 11.
Academically inclined, he studied Architecture and later Dentistry at the National University of Ireland in Dublin. As a newly-qualified dentist, he worked briefly in London in the early 1950s, where he also cultivated an interest in music, inherited from his mother, an accomplished amateur pianist, by attending concerts there.
His strong attachment to County Wexford soon drew him back to Enniscorthy where he met his future wife, Mary Curtis – the couple went on to enjoy 62 years of marriage and raised their two sons Jim and David.
Jim and Mary settled in Wexford in the early 1960s as Jim embarked on a career as a children’s dentist with the South Eastern Health Board. Based in the Clinic on Grogan’s Road, much of his work involved traveling to national schools throughout the county, where he would often work from a caravan behind the school, with his long-time dental nurse Mae Wade, and later Heather Boxwell.
In an age before medical cards when public services for children left much to be desired, Jim earned a reputation both for the level of dedication and care he showed to his young patients and his pioneering involvement in the water fluoridation scheme when it was being introduced to County Wexford.
In 1982, he was appointed as County Dental Officer and oversaw a significant expansion of dental services in the county until his retirement in 1993.
Jim was a man of wide and varied interests which he pursued with a quiet but dedicated enthusiasm. An early passion for vintage cars gave way in his middle and later years to a love of boats and a long association with both the Shannon and Slaney Rallies.
With his closest friend David Killeen, he was active in promoting and conserving canals and rivers, particularly the Slaney, through his work with the Inland Waterways Association.
His great interest, however, was the history and heritage of County Wexford, a vocation he served in many capacities, from the writer of articles for journals to his close involvement with organizations and events such as The Wexford Historical Society, An Taisce and the Wexford Festival Historical tours.
Choral singing was a source of considerable pleasure and meaning to Jim throughout his adult life. As a member of Rowe Street Choir, founder member of the Wexford Festival Singers and a former Legion of Mary man, he took special satisfaction in various ecumenical initiatives which were instigated during Alan Cutts’s directorship of the Festival Singers.
There was a historic collaboration in 1979 between the Wexford choir and its Belfast counterpart which was televised live by the BBC and Jim would fondly reminisce about the event with his good friend Johnny Sullivan.
Jim passed away on June 2 and among the chief mourners at his funeral mass in Rowe Street church on June 5 were his wife and sons and his five grandchildren, Luke, Séle, Andrew, Sinéad and Hugh; his daughters-in-law Mary and Halim and sister-in-law Joyce.
The celebrant, Fr. Billy Swan noted poignantly that the funeral took place two days short of what could have been Jim and Mary’s 62nd wedding anniversary.
Jim’s late sister and brother, Doreen and Joe, were remembered and special prayers were said for James Flynn, his recently-deceased nephew and son of his beloved sister-in-law Frances.
His sons Jim and David offered reflections on Jim’s life, expressing gratitude for the care he had received during his final illness, especially at Lawson House and Knockeen nursing homes.
Under the guidance of Cyril Murphy and performed by Clodagh Kinsella and David Hayes, the funeral Mass included selections of music that Jim and Mary enjoyed.
Wexford Lions Club, of which Jim was a member, formed a guard of honor at the entrance to the church.
