@ Dalymont.
An excerpt from 'Taxi Diares', I hope it helps.
Chapter 31. Eddie Broughal. (R.I.P.)
I'll tell you a story about this old fella I did a bit of 'Good Samaritan' work on,
Edward Broughal was his name and he was from the Acre in Pouladuff, Cork.
Late one evening around the middle of May 2010, while driving the taxi,
I spotted this old fella half-knelling on the ground across the road from
the Evergreen/Mountain bar by the bus stop at about 11.20pm,
I thought he was bleeding from the head as I passed by, so I U-turned
down the road by John Banks tyres and doubled back to check on him,
sure as, he was after getting a dizzy spell and had fallen and busted his face open,
lots of blood, so I went to his aid and got some tissues from the car and dried
him up, I put him into my car and we headed for Eddies home. I brought him out
to his home in Pouladuff, he was a really nice old fella and we had a bit o banter
in the car on the way home, even after his fall, his wit was quick and dry in a true
Cork fashion, just the way I like it.
I knocked on his front door for his son Billy (about 45'ish) to come out,
but the old man (81) was getting weaker by the minute and found himself almost unable
to get out of the cab, so the Three of us headed back into the south infirmary hospital.
When we got there and got him in, the old fella was begging for water in A & E, but no one
was getting it for him, he was very weak at this stage, so I bought it for him in the vending
machine for 1.50 and before I left, I gave his son my number and asked him to ring or text
and let me know if the old lad was OK.
Billy his son promised he would and also he would sort me for the fare another day,
I told him; "There is no fare, cos he didn't flag me down, I was just doing a good deed",
the son Billy rang me a few days later, he told me the old lad was Not too good at all,
he needed many operations because he had broken a bone in his neck with the fall and
he was just too old for all the operations required.
And he went on to Thank me most sincerely for stopping to help when all others had passed by,
I've had a few phone calls since from his family, seemingly he was a most respectable man who
had ran his own business for many years, with a large extended family.
But sadly he passed away on Saturday morning 10/7/10 as a result of the fall he had on that night.
I went to the removal on the Tuesday night, I didn't see the son Billy at first, but I saw an elderly
lady sitting at the front, whom I found out later was Eddie Broughal's sister, I was in full Taxi uniform
and thought I had better introduce myself to someone, so I approached the elderly lady in the front
row and told her who I was, trying to be helpful and without drawing any attention upon myself,
as soon as I said the words "Taxi-driver", Two fellas in the row behind the old lady and Two ladies
in the front row left their seats to come over and thank me for my deed, Two of the ladies kissed
me on the cheek with tears in their eyes, also his son Billy whom I had met on the night brought all
of his Brothers over to meet me and I joked with the brothers how Eddie had been the cause of
much Banter in the base, "As to whether I got the fare or not", and I added;
"It was only just banter, but in the usual, very bad Cork taste",
and his son Billy replied; "That's just the way, he would have liked it" !!
I dropped in a Mass card also the next day to the church at the funeral mass and I was again met
with a similar greeting by his family, I think they all saw him lying helpless and in need of assistance
on the side of the road and I was the only stranger who stopped and helped.
After all the services, Etc. I got a lovely 'Thank you' card delivered into the base and a Voucher for a
chinese restaurant in town from Eddie Broughal's family which I gave to my mother and she was delighted
with it, she took my sister for Two meals on that voucher and I'm very well pleased with that too.
A few months later, I was contacted by the Gardai and I had to call to the Bishopstown station to fill
out a coroners court report for what happened on the night and I received a personal 'Thank you'
from an Garda Siochana for my deed.
And just in case I hadn't been thanked enough, I got a strange phone call a few months later,
a number on my phone which I did not recognize, but I answered it anyway, the voice said;
"I'm Eddie Broughal's Grandson", everything else I was doing was dropped immediately and I
collected a very handsome and intelligent young lad and brought him to his required destination,
he thanked me along the way for what I did for his grandfather, I was surprised how close
grandchild and grandfather can be, but I appreciatively took all of his thanks.
Many months later I received a Memorial card about Eddie from the Broughal family
and that takes Pride of Place in my Home today.
This story is written and presented here with the full permission and Thanks from the Broughal family.
