Maeve Hillery
Candid cropped photo of Maeve Hillery walking away from a small aeroplane. Wearing a hat, heavy coat, gloves and carries a handbag. Also wearing a Tara Brooch.
Hillery in The Netherlands in 1986
Born
Mary Beatrice Finnegan

(1924-08-14)14 August 1924
Sheffield, Yorkshire, England
Died10 January 2015(2015-01-10) (aged 90)
Blackrock, Dublin, Ireland
Resting placeSt. Fintan's Cemetery, Sutton, Dublin, Ireland
NationalityIrish
Alma mater
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1955⁠–⁠2008)​
Children2

Maeve Hillery (née Finnegan; 14 August 1924 – 10 January 2015) was an Irish anaesthetist who was the wife of the 6th President of Ireland, Patrick Hillery.

Life and family

Mary Beatrice Finnegan was born on 14 August 1924[1] in Sheffield, Yorkshire. Her father was a builder from Galway, and her mother was half-Irish. Hillery would holiday in Ireland as a child, and, during World War II, she attended a boarding school in Galway for a year. She entered University College Galway (UCG), and qualified as a doctor. She then attended University College Dublin (UCD), where she studied to become an anaesthetist.[2] It was here that she met her future husband, Patrick Hillery, who was also studying medicine.[3][4] She worked in Jervis Street Hospital, St James' Hospital, and in Sheffield.[5] The couple married on 27 October 1955.[1] The Hillerys practised medicine together in Milltown Malbay while her husband was a TD.[2] Together they had a son, John, and an adopted daughter, Vivienne. Vivienne died in 1987[1] from leukemia.[2]

Hillery died in Dublin, on 10 January 2015.[6] She was buried in St Fintan's Cemetery, Sutton.[3]

Career

Hillery's husband served in a number of political roles, including foreign minister and European Commissioner. After the completion of his term as a European Commissioner in 1976, he contemplated leaving politics and returning to medicine. Instead, Hillery was asked to become the sixth President of Ireland.[7] The woollen cloak she worn to her husband's inauguration as president is now held in the collections of the National Museum of Ireland at Collins Barracks.[8][9] She used a number of Irish designers during her 13 years in Áras an Uachtaráin, highlighting Irish design and materials.[2][10]

During the few rare interviews Hillery gave she spoke about the enormous upkeep and maintenance the presidential residence required, its unsuitability as a family home, and undertook the restoration of parts of the house. Due to her husband's career, Hillery did give up practising medicine, but she undertook a course in public health at University of Louvain, and a diploma in child care.[2][5] She maintained a particular interest in children's mental health, was part of a research committee at St Michael's House, and worked with Dr Victoria Coffey on her study of Down Syndrome. She also learnt Irish Sign Language.[5]

Hillery served as the patron and president of a number of charities and voluntary groups including the Ana Liffey Drug Project,[11] Care Alliance Ireland,[12] Femscan,[13] the National Association for the Mentally Handicapped, and the Association for Deaf Children.[5] She was among a number of prominent Irish women who contributed recipes to a book, Welcome To Our Kitchen, which was produced by Femscan to raise money towards Ireland's first mobile breast cancer screening unit.[14]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Maume, Patrick (2014). "Hillery, Patrick John". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Prendiville, Norma (14 July 1990). "Portrait of a Lady". Irish Farmers Journal. p. 52.
  3. 1 2 McGann, Colin (12 January 2015). "Dr Maeve Hillery dies in Dublin". The Clare Champion. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  4. ↑ Carroll, Steven (12 January 2015). "Maeve Hillery, wife of late president Patrick, dies". The Irish Times. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Hynes, Ita (25 October 1986). "The First Lady". Irish Independent. p. 8.
  6. ↑ Calnan, Denise (12 January 2015). "Dr Maeve Hillery, wife of former President Patrick Hillery, dies aged 91". Irish Independent. Dublin. ISSN 0021-1222.
  7. ↑ "Tributes, State Funeral for Hillery". RTÉ News. 12 April 2008. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  8. ↑ Kelly, Emma. "The Way We Wore". The Costume Society. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  9. ↑ "Sounds like love | Magill". magill.ie. 12 October 2005. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  10. ↑ Hynes, Ita (19 December 1976). "Mrs. Hillery takes over the Big House". Irish independent. p. 12.
  11. ↑ "Ana Liffey Drug Project Annual Report 1993" (PDF). Ana Liffey Drug Project. 17 May 1993. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  12. ↑ "Care Alliance Ireland 2008 Annual Review" (PDF). Care Alliance Ireland. 2008. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  13. ↑ "Femscan" (PDF). Maynooth Newsletter. May 1988. p. 30. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  14. ↑ Dillon, Willie (14 December 1988). "Boost for cancer scan pot!". Irish Independent. p. 12.
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