Bay Area Country Dancer No. 62 Winter 2001
Mary O'Connell, a longtime BACDS dancer, died suddenly on April 22, 2001. Mary had been a regular in the Bay Area dance scene for decades. In the 1980s she was an early member of Berkeley Morris, and for over twenty years was often seen at East Bay contras and other dances.
She was also well known in the local Irish dance scene. In the 1970s she was one of the founding members of the Monday night Irish dances at the Starry Plough in Berkeley, out of which came the Rinnce Mor Dancers of which she was also a founding member. People often associate the Starry Plough dances with the late Terry O'Neal, since he strongly led them for many years. However, few know that it was Mary O'Connell (along with Trish Smith, now Trish NicGabhain) who taught Terry how to do Irish ceilidh dancing in the first place. This is just one illustration of how Mary was always quietly there to help. You could always count on her to make her part come off efficiently and gracefully, whether informally teaching newcomers, volunteering at events, or just keeping an eye out for the other dancers in her set to make sure the figure came off well and everybody had a good time.
She wasn't happy with where she was in her life, and was thinking a lot about new options, looking to find a change that would carry her through. The change she chose will surely sadden her many friends; we can only hope she is now at peace.Â
- Barry Smiler