Frank Neill died on June 1st. His death was sudden and unexpected, a great shock to his wife, family and friends, but for Frank it was the end of a perfect day.
Frank loved his garden and had spent that lovely summer's afternoon putting in bedding plants. He was a quiet man, not usually loquacious, but on that day he had long conversations with everybody. He was an avid reader and had a great appreciation of the Irish short story - he spent the evening reading his favourite William Trevor. In the late evening he went to bed, closed his eyes and died in his sleep in his 81st year. Frank would have appreciated his going.
Born on the Howth Road in 1919, he then moved to the countryside of Santry, where he lived for the rest of his full and varied life.
On leaving O'Connell's School his original intention was to become an accountant. He joined the firm of Craig Gardiner but soon left when he was called up to join the Army. He was commissioned in 1939.
A tall man, always fit, healthy and athletic, he was suited admirably to Army life. He served with the United Nations in the Congo and Cyprus and on retirement had reached the rank of lieutenant-colonel.
The Army made good use of Frank's organisational skills. He helped to organise and directed the State visits to Ireland of such illustrious dignitaries as Princes Grace of Monaco and President John F. Kennedy. He was aide-de-camp to King Baudoin of the Belgians who, as a sign of his appreciation, made him a Chevalier of the Order of Leopold II.
At the age of 58 he retired from the Army to take up the position of bursar in Holy Cross College, Clonliffe. Frank was the first lay bursar appointed in the Diocese of Dublin. In Clonliffe he was responsible for the clerical students and their well-being, the buildings of the college, the grounds and the Mater Dei Institute. All functions for the Diocese took place under Frank's good guidance and they were many and varied.
Clonliffe College became the centre for all planning for the historic visit to Ireland of Pope John Paul II, and Frank's organisational skills again came into good use as a member of the planning committee for the visit. At the Papal Mass for 1.3 million people, Frank was the chief steward. The planning of this day was one of his proudest achievements. He received commendations for this work from the Pope and from Archbishop Dermot Ryan.
Frank had deep religious be liefs. His main goal in life was to follow the Christian way. He was an active member of the St Vincent De Paul Society for many years and was a founder member and president of the Mary Immaculate Conference in Darndale.
He was also a devoted family man. He always had a ready ear to listen to a problem and to give sound advice. He was kind, generous and humorous. People who knew him remarked that he was always smiling, but then Frank would say that he counted his blessings and he had plenty to smile about.
J.O'C.