TRIBUTES have been paid to Mary Heffernan (née Walsh) from Monkstown, Cork, who sadly passed away peacefully after a short illness in the Cork University Hospital on October 27th. A former chair of the Highland Lodge Riding Club and most recently chair of the Riding for the Disabled, she was hailed as a “remarkable and tireless volunteer”.

Hitchmough’s Equestrian Centre wrote a lengthy tribute to Mary, saying: “We’re shocked and deeply saddened by the sudden passing of our dear friend and colleague Mary Heffernan, and we extend our deepest condolences to her husband, Aidan and her children, Jill and Robert, extended family and wide circle of friends. The sheer force of her spirit and her expertise will be intensely missed, leaving an undeniable void in the local equestrian community here at Hitchmough’s.