RIP Paul Kavanagh
It is with great regret I have to write that due to a freak accident whilst yachting my friend sustained a freak fatal accident resulting in his untimely demise. Most painful of all was he had retired as CEO of his company just six weeks prior and we actually spoke for some time the day before his accident and discussed his many plans of spending more time on projects with his family and when time allowed out on the water which he loved.
Paul became a close personal friend of mine several years ago having taken over the company reins from his predecessor Jim Steele and like Jim he was a great supporter of FFF. He was a very accomplished yachtsman having sailed the high seas for many years and he participated in many gruelling yacht races every year the “Fastnet” to name one. He was a highly respected member of the yachting fraternity.
He once foolishly invited me to go out with him and when I asked “how many oars has your boat got” the reply I think was in Gaelic along the lines of “Bloody Philistine” and the invite was promptly withdrawn in the nicest possible way of course.
I once made the mistake of commenting on the “madness of battling huge waves and high winds out there” and with an enigmatic smile his gentle reply was “no sillier than crawling on your hands and knees throwing a feather at a fish”. As usual I could not top his logic and when we stopped laughing we moved on to other subjects putting the world right.
He had the uncanny knack of not only making me feel very welcome and at ease each time we met to play catch up and I always came away with the feeling of having been in the company of a very warm and genuine person.
He has sadly left a void in a countless number of people’s lives especially his family who have my most sincere condolences. His fellow workers and the construction industry as a whole is reeling from the shock.
Wherever you are Paul may you always have the wind at your back and gentle seas as you will be sorely missed for a very long time by myself and so many who were privileged to share your world.
Bill Howell
Founder
Fishing For Forces
Paul became a close personal friend of mine several years ago having taken over the company reins from his predecessor Jim Steele and like Jim he was a great supporter of FFF. He was a very accomplished yachtsman having sailed the high seas for many years and he participated in many gruelling yacht races every year the “Fastnet” to name one. He was a highly respected member of the yachting fraternity.
He once foolishly invited me to go out with him and when I asked “how many oars has your boat got” the reply I think was in Gaelic along the lines of “Bloody Philistine” and the invite was promptly withdrawn in the nicest possible way of course.
I once made the mistake of commenting on the “madness of battling huge waves and high winds out there” and with an enigmatic smile his gentle reply was “no sillier than crawling on your hands and knees throwing a feather at a fish”. As usual I could not top his logic and when we stopped laughing we moved on to other subjects putting the world right.
He had the uncanny knack of not only making me feel very welcome and at ease each time we met to play catch up and I always came away with the feeling of having been in the company of a very warm and genuine person.
He has sadly left a void in a countless number of people’s lives especially his family who have my most sincere condolences. His fellow workers and the construction industry as a whole is reeling from the shock.
Wherever you are Paul may you always have the wind at your back and gentle seas as you will be sorely missed for a very long time by myself and so many who were privileged to share your world.
Bill Howell
Founder
Fishing For Forces
