Patrick Dundon

Patrick Dundon

Patrick Dundon, formerly of Borris Co. Carlow, Ireland, and of East Shore Drive, Alameda, has died only months before his 100th birthday. He served in the Irish Army and also in the US Air Force. He was the last remaining child of Dr.Edward Dundon of Borris who was involved in the Easter 1916 rising and the Irish War of Independence.
Born on September 27, 1920, Pat joined the Irish army in 1941 and left in 1946 with the rank of Lieutenant. He came to live in the US in 1949. The pride of country he felt from his father's involvement in the Irish independence movement now transferred to his adopted country. That was his reason for joining the US Air Force in 1950. He became a US citizen in 1951. He served in Korea from 1952 to '53. While stationed in Sacramento, on July 4 1951, he met a young Californian called Theresa Drage at a party in Alameda. They married less than two months later on September 1st.
After leaving the Air Force Pat went to work for Sears department store in Oakland and stayed with the firm until he retired in 1988. Although he was regularly made salesman of the month or the year, he made little of that. He was a man who believed in friends and family . Work, he said, was just something to put food on the table. An interview he did for a job soon after arriving in the US shows his priorities. He was asked in a questionnaire what he wanted to have most in the world and was given a choice of a boat, a Cadillac or a house. Pat wrote down that what he really wanted was to have a good singing voice. He didn't get the job.
While fiercely proud of being an American citizen and of serving in the Air Force, he identified what was wrong with the American Dream. In 1993, he said:'We are to have everything, the boat, the two cars, the house, but they forgot to put in the joy. There is no place for joy because the American dream is just things. This dream is invented by the advertisers.'
He was someone people felt comfortable sharing their problems with, and he helped out many family members and friends, and people at St. Joseph's Church in Alameda where he worshipped. He volunteered for years with the local St. Vincent De Paul, delivering furniture, food and help to the elderly and poor. He did this well into his 80's. He also delivered food with Meals on Wheels and then, in later years, received his meals from the very same group.
Pat got into running when he was 60. In a short time he started competing in the senior Olympics where he won many medals. He also ran three marathons. His best time was on the Oakland Marathon in 1984 with a time of 3:34. He loved the outdoors and had happy family outings to Yosemite National Park. He made regular visits back to Ireland and never lost his soft Irish accent. After his beloved wife, Terry, died he lived on his own for twenty years. He was fiercely independent.
Patrick Dundon died on March 28th 2020 at Carlton Senior Living Pleasant Hill, California, just a few months short of his 100th birthday. He was predeceased by his wife Terry, his sister Mary O'Leary of Borris, Ireland, his brothers Monsignor Eamon Dundon of Sydney, Professor Jim Dundon of Dublin, Ireland and Derry Dundon of Alameda. He is survived by his children, Patrick, Sheila, John and Chris, by his grand children Kate, Rian, Will and Zane; by his great granddaughter, Mazie, by his daughters-in-law, Martha and Marianne, and son- in- law, Dale; by his nieces and nephews, grand nieces and grandnephews in the US, Ireland, the UK and EU.