Maurice Hayes (Independent)

I would like to associate myself with the remarks about Lady Valerie Goulding that have been well made by other Senators. She restored real meaning to the title of "Lady" and to the terms "courtesy", "dependability" and "compassion and regard for others". She was one of the people who caused the foundation of the Ireland Fund and I knew her quite well through that organisation. She remained a member of the fund's committee until her death.

I met her at a meeting towards the end of May, when she was as alive and alert as ever. She was deeply interested in what was going on in the North. Somehow one could see, in her willingness to meet people and to act as an intermediary between different groups and classes of people, the spirit of the teenager who carried messages during the abdication crisis in the UK.

Her greatest monument in this country is the Central Remedial Clinic and the work that continues to be done there. She called attention to the needs of those who use the clinic. She rolled up her sleeves and started to work to help people. The best tribute that can be earned by anybody in public life is that they made life better, even for a small number of people. This is particularly true in respect of a group of people that had been disregarded or devalued by society until that time.

The former Taoiseach, Mr. Jack Lynch, demonstrated wonderful imagination in nominating her to the Seanad in the first instance. She exemplified the sort of person Yeats had in mind when he spoke of the original Seanad and the function of this House. I hope the sub-committee examining the future of the Seanad will bear in mind the contribution made by people like Lady Valerie Goulding. Room should be left for the nomination of such people in the future.