{"id":668146,"date":"2026-09-02T04:59:23","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T04:59:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/668146\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T04:59:23","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T04:59:23","slug":"beneath-the-hard-exterior-he-was-a-kind-caring-and-loving-man-sons-tribute-to-enda-bonner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/668146\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Beneath the hard exterior, he was a kind, caring and loving man’ – Son’s tribute to Enda Bonner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mourners at the funeral of former Donegal County Councillor and Senator, Enda Bonner, have heard that beneath the hard exterior, he was a kind, caring and loving man.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Fianna Fail veteran passed away last Thursday, at the age of 76.<\/p>\n

His funeral mass took place at a packed St. Crona’s Church in Dungloe, as people from Donegal and beyond gathered to say their farewells to a man that served as a councillor from 1999-2019.<\/p>\n

Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin was represented at the funeral by his Aide de Camp, Commandant Joe Glennon.<\/p>\n

Chief celebrant, Fr. John Joe Duffy, described the late Mr Bonner as a man of deep faith, that was both outward looking and caring.<\/p>\n

“It’s nice to see so many people from all over the county, and country here today to pay tribute to a man that helped so many people during his life,” Fr Duffy said.<\/p>\n

“The only thing Enda ever asked of me was to pray for someone that was sick, or to say a prayer for him.”<\/p>\n

His daughter Elaine highlighted the meaning behind the symbols that were brought to the alter to celebrate her father’s life.<\/p>\n

“Dad’s medals represent his many sporting achievements, and a family photograph on the day he was elected Mayor of Donegal County Council represent his dedication to public life.<\/p>\n

“A calculator is a symbol of his dedication and work ethic throughout his accountancy career, and his walking stick highlights the determination he showed to continue to attend Donegal, Dungloe and Celtic games as he grew older.”<\/p>\n

Fr. Duffy recalled an incident with the late Mr Bonner when he was a teenager.<\/p>\n

“I was on a boat to Arranmore Island one day with Enda, when the engine broke down. We landed in on the beach, and I volunteered to carry some people in on my back, so they didn’t get their feet wet.<\/p>\n

“I carried Enda on my back, but I can assure you that since that day Enda has been carrying me on his back.<\/p>\n

“I know that he has carried many of you gathered here today on his back. However, out of all the tributes that have been paid to Enda over the last few days, all of your presence here today is the greatest of all,” said Fr. Duffy.<\/p>\n

Fr. Duffy paid tribute to his political career, one that was inspired by a deep sense of social conscience and belief in community.<\/p>\n

“Enda wanted to build up the community, and he was involved in the regeneration of Dungloe, and the overhaul of the N56. However, above all, he wanted to help people that the system had failed in many ways. He hated red tape, but there was no better man at cutting through that bureaucracy. He stood up for those that the tide was rising against.<\/p>\n

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“He was a formidable debater, and his style was direct, but he never got personal. As he often said, ‘I will not be dictated to’, and ‘I’ll call a spade a spade’, and he certainly did that, quipped Fr. Duffy.<\/p>\n

Fr. Duffy touched on how be made history when he was elected as the first Mayor of Donegal County Council, and that was among the proudest moments of his career.<\/p>\n

He said his family could be very proud of his political career.<\/p>\n

The church then heard a touching eulogy from his son Patrick.<\/p>\n

He spoke about his father’s time at Gormanston College in Meath, and the influence that his PE teacher, Down GAA legend Joe Lennon, had on him.<\/p>\n

“He was all set for a career in PE, but whilst working on construction sites in the United States, his uncle Connie Sweeney told dad that he should take the business route instead, and that’s what he did.”<\/p>\n

Patrick also spoke about his father’s accomplishments on the sporting field and his unbridled passion for the GAA.<\/p>\n

“Dad was a great athlete, he did his Leaving Cert at St Eunan’s College, and he won the MacLarnon Cup, scoring 2-2 in the final. He was the captain of the NUIG Sigerson Team, and he was part of his historic Donegal team that won their first ever Ulster title in 1972. He was introduced as a substitute in the All-Ireland semi-final against Offaly that same year.”<\/p>\n

“He just loved GAA, and he loved Dungloe. James O’Hagan often remarked of the tireless work Dad did on the new clubhouse, and the guard of honour he got from the club he loved so much on Sunday would have meant the world to him.”<\/p>\n

He then recalled that beautiful September day in 1992, when Donegal finally brought home the Sam Maguire Cup.<\/p>\n

“I have so many vivid memories of that day, I was eight years old at the time, and I can still see it now, the sun shining. I was sitting one side of my dad, and on the other side of him was his own father Dom. It was such a special day for him, and it meant so much to him, and it’s a memory that I’ll also cherish with me forever.<\/p>\n

“Last year, I brought dad and my own son to the Donegal match against Meath, and again, that was such a special day that I’ll always treasure.”<\/p>\n

He briefly touched on his father’s political career, and said that is where he really displayed his resilience and determination.<\/p>\n

“I remember when dad lost the election in 1997, it hurt him. He really wanted it, but it didn’t work out for him. But he didn’t let it define him, he was elected as a senator and served on the council for years.<\/p>\n

“I often think dad was like a boxer, you could knock him down, but it would take a hell of lot to knock him out.”<\/p>\n

He also touched on his father’s love for Celtic, the Irish soccer team and athletics, but the greatest love of his life, was his wife Phylis and his family.<\/p>\n

“Dad spotted mum walking off the dancefloor at the Inter-County Hotel in Lifford, and he grabbed her hand, and that is where it all started. She was the love of his live, and even though dad had so many passions and interests, his first love was his family.<\/p>\n

“He had a hard exterior, but beneath that was a kind, caring and loving man, all his family truly was his one true love.<\/p>\n

“Nobody has had more journeys than you Dad, but ever if one man deserved to rest in peace then it is you, thank you, your best friend Patrick.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mourners at the funeral of former Donegal County Councillor and Senator, Enda Bonner, have heard that beneath the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":668147,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[40],"tags":[9,10,6368,18,13,14,6,19,17,11,12,15,16,5,7,8],"class_list":["post-668146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-breaking-news","tag-breakingnews","tag-donegal","tag-eire","tag-featured-news","tag-featurednews","tag-headlines","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-latest-news","tag-latestnews","tag-main-news","tag-mainnews","tag-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topstories"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117199685437764369","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=668146"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668146\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/668147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=668146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=668146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=668146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}