ARCO regrets to inform its members of the death of Commandant Traolach Sweeney Caherdaniel, County Kerry and formerly of Newbridge, County Kildare who passed away as the result of a tragic road traffic accident on Thursday 11th July 2024. Survived by his wife Ena Sweeney (nee Kelly, Myshall, Co. Carlow), his daughter Aislinn, his son Peter, son-in-law Martin, daughter-in-law Divya, grandchildren Apolline and Crispin, his brothers Commandant Pádraig and Domhnall, brother-in-law Michael, sisters-in-law Breda and Anne-Maire, nephews and nieces, David, Richard, Cliona, Cáit, Éanna, Fionntán, James, Beatrice, cousins, relatives, Defence Forces comrades and friends. Predeceased by his parents, Domhnall and Phil and sister-in-law Cora.
May he rest in peace
Traolach Sweeney was born on 31st May 1950 in Newbridge, County Kildare, the eldest of three sons of Colonel Domhnall and his wife Philomena, two of whom would serve as officers in Óglaigh na hÉireann. Following service in An Fórsa Cosanta Áitiúl, Traolach became a member of 45 Cadet Class on 20th October 1970. Commissioned as an infantry officer on 25th September 1972 he was posted to 3 Infantry Battalion in the Curragh Command and attended University College Galway where he was awarded a Bachelor of Science Degree. Among the units Traolach went on to serve with were The Cadet School, The Army Ranger Wing, where he undertook training with the GIGN, the elite tactical unit of the National Gendarmerie of France, and with 12 Infantry Battalion. Before retiring in January 1997, he was Officer Commanding 15 Infantry Battalion FCA and Barrack OC, Ballymullen Barracks, Tralee. Overseas Traolach served in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon with C Company, 45 Infantry Battalion and with C Company, 56 Infantry Battalion.
Traolach possessed a diverse set of interests and was an accomplished mountaineer, braving some of the most challenging climbs around the world. A fluent French speaker he was a qualified military interpreter, skilled abseiler, military parachutist, sailor, skier, and scuba diver. To round off this diverse set of skills, Traolach was a talented violin player.
On retirement from the Defence Forces he settled with Ena in Caherdaniel where, despite having no previous experience, he co-founded SCC Broadband Limited. The company provides broadband in South Kerry to stimulate enterprise in a rural and disadvantaged area and was set up at a time when the main providers were unwilling to provide this essential service. To accomplish this, he built a wind and solar powered radio gateway on the side of a local mountain, carrying the components up its slopes over several weeks. Traolach’s ability to successfully take on this new challenge came as no surprise to his many friends and comrades. During all of this he found time to act as an election monitor in Chad, in very difficult conditions.
Reposing in Saint Crohan’s Church, Caherdaniel on Thursday evening from 5.00pm to 8.00pm. Funeral mass on Friday at 12 noon. Burial afterwards in Derrynane Abbey Island Cemetery. Mass will be live-streamed via this link: https://www.churchservices.tv/caherdaniel
Family flowers only, donations, if desired, to Crumlin Children’s Hospital, thank you – https://www.childrenshealth.ie/donate/
Members may wish to leave personal messages in the ‘Condolences’ section of Traolach’s death notice on rip.ie – https://rip.ie/death-notice/commandant-traolach-sweeney-kerry-caherdaniel-562322
