Islandeady PP retiring due to ill-health

RETIRING Fr Pat Donnellan

Anton McNulty

AFTER 32 years living in Mayo, Fr Pat Donnellan will return to his native Co Galway after announcing he is to retire from active ministry due to ill-health.
The Parish Priest for Islandeady and Glenisland told his parishioners attending Mass on Sunday that he is to retire as Parish Priest in July after suffering from ill-health for a number of years.
Fr Donnellan, who is 66-years-old, has suffered from Rheumatoid Arthritis since the early 1990s and last year was diagnosed with Erythromelalgia, which is a rare and incurable condition which causes intense pain to the feet and hands.
Speaking to The Mayo News, Fr Donnellan said he did not wish to retire in these circumstances but was no longer able to carry out his duties because of his ill-health.
“I have been suffering from a few ailments and for the last year I have been suffering Erythromelalgia so it was an easy enough decision. I was finding it very hard.
“Every sermon I gave for the last 25 years, I’ve had to sit down on a stool because of arthritis. This last year every wedding, funeral and ceremony has been a painful struggle, so I have to leave the ministry. It is not the way I would have liked but it was an easy decision. I have not been fit to work and my Archbishop understood that very kindly.”
There is currently no cure for Erythromelalgia and at the moment the process in its treatment for Fr Donnellan is about pain management. “Hopefully when I retire, there will be more time to focus on my own health and it will improve,” he explained.
A native of Moylough, Fr Donnellan was ordained in Tuam Cathedral in 1980 and served for a period in St Jarlath’s College in Tuam. In 1985, he was appointed a curate on Achill Island and served there until 1992 before taking a year off on sick leave because of his arthristis. His next appointment was to Killawalla and he remained there until 2001 when he was appointed as Parish Priest in Islandeady-Glenisland.
“I will miss it, very much so. I have been in various west Mayo parishes since 1985 and I love Mayo and its people. They are supportive in every possible way especially anytime I have been sick,” he said of his time in the county. Fr Donnellan has been described as an innovative priest and his retirement announcement was met with sadness in Islandeady over the weekend. He said he is indebted to his parishioners of each of the parishes he served in because without their help he would not be able to perform his duties.
“Because of my ailments I learned to be a delegator and was very blessed that any parish I was in that there have been very willing workers in the vineyard. They knew I was not able to do the work and in this parish we have a wonderful Parish Council and all I really had to do was tell them they were doing a great job. The priest in modern day Ireland wouldn’t be able to manage without the people and we rely on our flock to lift our spirits and help us,” he said.
Despite his 32 years in Mayo, Fr Donnellan has never forgot his roots and continues to serve as the Chaplain for the Galway GAA football team. While he will be cheering on the Tribesmen in Salthill on Sunday, he joked that whoever wins he will be in a ‘win-win situation’.