The legacy of Athy's Betty O'Donnell

For almost 70 years, the people of Athy bought their copies of the Nationalist and Leinster Times and more recently the rebranded Kildare Nationalist at the iconic shop on Duke Street that was The Gem. As a child coming from Mass in the Dominicans on a Sunday morning, our order was The Bunty, The Teddy Bear and the Sunday Independent, later the Teddy Bear was replaced by The Dandy and The Bunty by Jackie.

 As this writer grew into teenage years, The Look and Learn and Shoot soccer magazine were the subscriptions. Mrs O’Donnell, as we called her, always had them ready when we called into the shop.

 In later years, she would get me copies of the Cricketer and Astronomy magazines, as well as ordering books I had requested and in the early 1980s she stocked and sold a collection of poetry I had written.

The poet TS Eliot in his poem The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock wrote: For I have known them all already, known them all: Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons, I have measured out my life with coffee spoons. 

Our lives can be measured by the books and materials we read through our lifetime and for so many years Betty O’Donnell was central to that progression for generations of people in the town, her kindness knew no bounds. Duke Street and Athy is a little less rich today for her passing. My sympathy to Betty’s family and friends and to the extended O’Donnell family.