Search

22 Apr 2026

Longford and Roscommon mourns lady who had a heart of gold and a wonderful singing voice

Late May O'Connor (née Rudden), St Mary's Terrace, Ballyleague, Roscommon / Longford / Ballyconnell, Cavan

Longford and Roscommon mourns lady who had a heart of gold and a wonderful singing voice

Late May O'Connor (née Rudden), St Mary's Terrace, Ballyleague, Roscommon / Longford / Ballyconnell, Cavan

Reporter:

Joe O'Brien

15 Aug 2024 3:33 PM

Email:

Lanesboro correspondent

It was with great sadness that we learned of the death in the care of the staff at the Sacred Heart Care Home, Roscommon on Sunday, July 21 of Mrs May O’Connor (née Rudden), St Mary’s Terrace, Ballyleague.
May, who was 96 years old, was a native of Ballyconnell, Co Cavan and she was predeceased by her husband Jerry.
In her younger Ballyconnell days, May, who had the singing voice of a songbird, travelled Ulster and beyond entertaining many many people. She had a great love of music, the cinema, reading and she could not be beaten for her taste in style.
May was a warm and friendly lady, an obliging and excellent neighbour who was always available to assist anyone in their time of need or support. She had a heart of gold, a broad beaming smile and greeting would warm up even the coldest of hearts.
She had a tremendous devotion to her faith which was first and foremost for herself and her family.
May was a proficient bookkeeper and after a couple of places of employment she came to Longford to work in Davis shop where she was to meet her Kerry man husband Jerry.
They settled and raised their family of two boys and two girls in Ballyleague where Jerry was working in Lanesboro with ESB in the power station.
May’s passing is particularly marked with extra sadness as on May 1 her son in law Sean Hanley, passed away and on July 1 her son Jeremy passed away. It has truly been a harrowing seven weeks for the O’Connor family. To those of us that knew and remembered May, our hearts are filled with sadness on her passing.
Her remains reposed in Smyth’s Funeral Home on Tuesday evening, July 23 and following Mass of the Resurrection in the Church of the Holy Rosary, Ballyleague on Wednesday, July 24, burial took place in Cloontuskert Cemetery.
To her loving daughters Betty Hanley and Eileen Hughes, son Bernard, sister Kathleen Campbell (Longford), son-in-law Garry, daughters-in-law Mary and Cora, her 10 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren, nieces Caitriona and Annemarie, nephew Larry, extended family, neighbours and friends we extend our sincere sympathy. 

To continue reading this article,
please subscribe and support local journalism!

Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles.

Subscribe

To continue reading this article for FREE,
please kindly register and/or log in.

Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites. You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news!

Register / Login

Most Popular

Sponsored Content

Multimedia

We've got Donegal Covered...

Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie

Buy a paper

Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.

Buy Now
Get the news

Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.

Register Here
Iconic Media is Ireland's largest independently owned regional newspaper and media group, with an unrivalled audience in print, online and mobile. We have 19 regional newspapers and 21 digital sites.

Iconic Digital Titles

  • Carlow Live
  • Clare Live
  • Derry Now
  • Donegal Live
  • Éire Bheo
  • Inish Live
  • Ireland Live
  • Kildare Live
  • Kildare Now
  • Kilkenny Live
  • Laois Live
  • Leitrim Live
  • Letterkenny Live
  • Limerick Live
  • Longford Live
  • Louth Live
  • Mayo Live
  • Nenagh Live
  • Offaly Live
  • Tipperary Live
  • Waterford Live

    • Iconic Print Titles

  • Clonmel Nationalist
  • County Derry Post
  • Derry News
  • Donegal Democrat
  • Donegal Post
  • Dundalk Democrat
  • Homes in Donegal
  • Inish Times
  • Kilkenny People
  • Leinster Express
  • Leinster Leader
  • Leitrim Observer
  • Letterkenny Live
  • Limerick Leader
  • Longford Leader
  • Mayo News
  • Midland Tribune
  • Tipperary Star
  • Tullamore Tribune

    • This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.

    © 2026 Iconic Media