FORMER BUSINESSMAN and kidnap victim Don Tidey paid tribute to a fallen soldier who made the “supreme sacrifice” while assisting in his rescue from a gang of Provisional IRA kidnappers almost 30 years ago.
Pte Patrick Kelly – the first Irish soldier to die on active service on home soil since the Civil War – was posthumously awarded the Military Star at a ceremony in Custume Barracks, Co Westmeath, yesterday.
The 35-year-old from Moate, Co Westmeath, died alongside trainee garda Gary Sheehan (23) when an IRA gang opened fire and threw a grenade at them in the Derrada Woods in Co Leitrim on December 16th, 1983.
Mr Tidey, who attended the ceremony with his wife, Barbara, said: “I am very honoured to be here. I was very honoured to be asked by the Minister for Justice.”
He praised Pte Kelly’s late wife, Katherina, who died in 2010 and said he had no doubt both parents would be proud of their sons, David, Andrew, Patrick and Michael.
Mr Tidey described Pte Kelly’s death as “a supreme sacrifice” and said: “You can’t get higher than that, and medals are medals, but this is a wonderful recognition for a man who did his duty bravely.”
Pte Kelly’s son David made headlines last year when he confronted Sinn Féin’s presidential candidate Martin McGuinness, seeking the names of those who had killed his father.
“It looks like we will have to accept and try and draw a line under the fact that no one will be prosecuted for it,” Mr Kelly said. “There is nothing we can do about that, so we have to try and move on and reflect on the positive things about my father’s legacy.”
Mr Kelly and the other family members have been inspired by their father. “We look to the positives, what our father represented: his good personality traits, his positive attitude, his can-do attitude – and that inspires us to carry on in our lives.We are just so proud of him, we really are, and I think his spirit is here with us on this special occasion.”
Another brother, Andrew, a corporal in the Military Police serving in Custume Barracks, was inspired to become a soldier on hearing of his father’s bravery.
“At a very young age I asked my mother, who was my father and what did he do?” said Cpl Kelly. “She said your father was a soldier, he died saving a man’s life, he was a hero. Straightaway I wanted to be a soldier.”
Cpl Kelly said the ceremony was tinged with sadness for the family, who would have loved to see their mother collect the medal.
According to Minister for Defence Alan Shatter, “Mr Don Tidey have lost his life, there was great bravery shown by everyone involved, unfortunately there was a great tragedy with two deaths.” Describing the award as “very appropriate”, Mr Shatter presented Cpl Kelly with the Military Star medal while David Kelly received a framed citation at the ceremony in Kelly Square, which is named after his father.
Fatal shoot-out: The Tidey kidnapping
Pte Patrick Kelly (35) and Garda Gary Sheehan (23) were killed during a joint Army-Garda operation to free kidnapped businessman Don Tidey.
On November 24th in 1983, Tidey, the supermarket executive living in south Co Dublin was kidnapped by armed men posing as gardaí.
The kidnappers, members of the Provisional IRA, snatched Tidey from his car as he was dropping his 13-year-old daughter to school.
They manhandled him into another car and drove him towards the Border where he was to be held for more than three weeks.
The kidnapping sparked one of the largest search operations in the history of the State, involving the Army and Garda and Garda trainees. The operation ended with a shoot-out between the kidnappers and their pursuers at Derrada Wood near Ballinamore, Co Leitrim on December 16th.
While searching the wood on December 16th, Pte Kelly and trainee garda Gary Sheehan came across the kidnappers, who opened fire without warning.
The kidnappers also flung a grenade and the two men died as a result of their injuries.
Tidey managed to free himself in the commotion and was picked up by members of the Army and Garda. During the chaos, all of the kidnappers escaped from the wooded area.
No one has ever been convicted in connection with the deaths of Pte Kelly and Garda Sheehan.