Tributes paid to 'gentle giant' Seymour Crawford

Tributes have been paid to the former Fine Gael TD, Seymour Crawford, whose funeral will take place tomorrow (Tuesday, October 23), following his death at the weekend.

Mr Crawford (74), served as a TD for the constituency of Cavan-Monaghan from 1992 – 2011, and was also a member of Monaghan County Council for more than a decade, before he retired from politics at the 2011 general election.

Mr Crawford passed away on Saturday last, October 20, with his funeral service taking place at Newbliss Presbyterian Church on Tuesday before burial afterwards in Drumkeen Church graveyard.

An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and President Michael D Higgins were among those leading tributes to the late local representative.

Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys TD also expressed her “great sadness” at news of “gentle giant” Mr Crawford's death.

“Anybody who knew Seymour will know that he was a gentle giant. He was extremely good natured and he would always go above and beyond in his efforts to help his constituents.”

Senator Joe O'Reilly added that Mr Crawford was an “absolute gentleman” who during his time as an elected representative “devoted” his life to public service.
“He brought real compassion and empathy to his dealings with people. He was gentlemanly in approach and always humble. He had an innate shrewdness which served him well in getting good outcomes for people and communities. At all times Seymour was diligent committed and honest in his work.”

Fianna Fail TD Brendan Smith meanwhile stated that Mr Crawford was an “extremely hard working and committed” public representative who gave “great service” to the people of Cavan/Monaghan. “He had a great knowledge and understanding of rural Ireland and was a strong advocate for rural development.”