Shock at sudden death of Cobh councillor Claire Cullinane

TRIBUTES have been paid to Cobh-based Cllr Claire Cullinane (Ind) who has died suddenly. 

County Mayor Cllr Seamus McGrath expressed his shock and sympathy on hearing of Cllr Cullinane’s death on Wednesday morning.

‘On behalf of the elected members of Cork County Council, and from a deeply personal level, I would like to offer my sincerest condolences to Cllr Cullinane’s family, especially her children Kate and Chris, and to all her friends and colleagues, who are all in deep shock at this time,’ said Cllr McGrath.

Claire, who was in her 50s, was elected to the Cobh Municipal District in 2014’s local elections and she was also a member of a number of Council committees, including tourism, environment and coastal management committees.

Council chief executive Tim Lucey also paid tribute to Cllr Cullinane and said she was ‘incredibly dedicated to her role as a public servant, was passionate about Cobh and represented the people of Cobh, her Municipal District and county admirably.’

The Independent Grouping on Cork County Council, of which Claire was a member, paid a heartfelt tribute to her.

‘Claire was a wonderful fun-loving character and had a great love for her community, in particular Cobh and East Cork. Her stamp and energy, her good humour and positiveness are written all over the work she did as a local representative since her election in 2014,’ the group said in a statement.

‘Claire was well known for her stance on the side of the people, be it developing the movement for democracy in Ireland, or in assisting people in need who are under pressure from banks and other financial institutions,’ the statement added.

Dunmanway-based Cllr Declan Hurley, spokesperson for the Independent Grouping on Cork County Council said: ‘We are all devastated with the news of Claire’s untimely passing.’

‘Claire had a great vision for the development of Cork County with a particular keen interest in her beautiful town of Cobh,’ he said. 

‘She was a great advocate for the tourism and heritage potential that the ‘Great Island’ of Cobh holds, along with Cork harbour.’

‘She will be an immense loss to us as colleagues and to her constituents in the Cobh Municipal District. I want to offer my deepest sympathies to Claire’s family on her passing and offer our thoughts and prayers for Claire and her family during this sad time.’

Cllr Cullinane was also well known for her modelling agency, Illusive, as well working as an image consultant and a founding member of the Cobh Animation Team.

The Team gained national – and international – recognition as it brought history to life with its period costumes, and she and her fellow members were always a colourful attraction at numerous local and national events, most notably the Lusitania commemorations in 2015. 

Only in April of this year Claire and her team visited Bantry as part of their presentation of 1916 where they told the story of Cumann na mBan and their roles in 1916. 

Claire’s funeral will take place on Saturday December 17th after 12 noon Requiem Mass to St Colman’s Cemetery in Cobh.