Born: June 12th, 1970Died: August 5th, 2026June O’Connell, who has died aged 56, was a dynamic and inspirational businesswoman who in 2019 left the law and finance to set up the Skellig Six18 distillery in Cahersiveen, Co Kerry.She was inspired by the place from which she came and by the Irish language. Having forged a successful career in South Africa and in Dublin, she was wont to respond to questions about herself by saying: “I’m from Cahersiveen, but I’ve been exiled in Dublin the last 30 years.”She drew strength from the notion of muinín, an Irish word that suggests, as her son Séan noted at her funeral, “a quiet but unwavering confidence that worthwhile things are possible, even in places others overlook”.Both place and the language inspired her – so much so that each bottle of whiskey produced in the distillery bears the slogan Ní neart go cur le Chéile – translated as “there is no strength without unity”.She lived life with a lustful enthusiasm – for place, for her family and for other people – and was undaunted by challenge.She told her children: “Get a little bit comfortable sitting in the dark ... which means,” said her son Séan, “that sometimes it’s okay to not know what’s coming next.”June O’Connell was born in Cahersiveen in June 1970, one of six children, to father Haulie and mother Noreen (née O’Shea). Haulie worked for Eircom, while Noreen was the homemaker. In Cahersiveen, the family was known as “the Andys”, after June’s grandfather Andrew. The nickname was used to distinguish them from the town’s other O’Connell families and it became attached particularly to June. To many people throughout her life, she was known as Andy as much as she was June.She attended the local Presentation Convent and went on to study law at University College Cork. After college, she went to South Africa, to Cape Town, where she worked for a law firm and for fellow Kerry native Xavier McAuliffe.She returned to Ireland and, in 1997, joined one of the leading law firms, William Fry. There, she specialised in mergers and acquisitions, was a partner and joint head of the firm’s venture capital sector.“She was a great people person which helped make her a particularly good lawyer,” said Stephen Keogh, William Fry’s current managing partner. “She was inherently funny and great company. She’d always have a smile on her face. She worked a lot with retailers and tech companies. Where she really shone was advising founders. She was really entrepreneurial even when she was a humble lawyer. She had fantastic drive and ultimately brought that to Kerry, where her heart was.”She went out on her own in 2008, while maintaining a relationship with William Fry, ultimately setting up the distillery in 2019 with her husband, Patrick Cooney, former head of wealth management at financial services firm Davy.As founder and chief executive officer, Skellig Six18 was to her much more than a mere distillery. Named after the 618 stone steps built into Skellig Michael by monks in the sixth century, it encapsulated her wish to blend place, heritage and enterprise. By setting up a regenerative business on the Skellig coast, she hoped to tap into an ancient well of strength and resilience which, she believed, also characterised the people of the region.“Skellig Six18 was never simply a business to her,” the company said in a statement after her death, “it was her way of expressing faith in this landscape, its people and its future. June saw the 618 steps of Skellig Michael as a symbol of character, perseverance, humility, resilience and strength, and this inspired her vision.“June wanted to create something lasting, something that would bring visitors here, create opportunity and give future generations another reason to be proud of where they come from.”Skellig Six18 initially produced gin, while batches of whiskey matured in barrels. Distilling success was capped in 2022 when visitor centre tours of the distillery received a double gold award at the International Spirits Challenge Awards.[ From the archive: Kerry distillery to invest €4m in business this yearOpens in new window ]For O’Connell, Skellig Six18 was a long-term project, not an enterprise for personal enrichment, and was intimately tied to regional development and employment. This saw her actively involved in business, tourism, cultural and community initiatives across south Kerry.O’Connell met Pat Cooney in 1998 in Waterville when he was playing golf there and crashed a wedding in which she happened to be a bridesmaid. They dated and married in 2001, parenting four children, Seán, Sadhbh, Liam and Cathal.Family life was divided between homes in Kenilworth Square, Dublin, and Kerry. Interests outside of work included the arts (opera and theatre), nature, sports of all types but especially GAA, and books. Last year, she was appointed to the Advisory Board of UCC by the college president, John O’Halloran.Speaking at her funeral Mass, her husband said she “had a lot of old-fashioned values, shaped, no doubt by her parents, but, also by the very special bond she had with her grandparents”.He continued: “There were values such as curiosity, which led to a lifetime passion for reading and learning; community – she was a fantastic brand ambassador for Cahersiveen; she was stuck in everything. She was a townie through and through; she loved everything about Cahersiveen and Iveragh. “She was interested in people – and always looking to help them, in culture and nature. She had empathy, compassion and kindness – she was full of kindness, always ... These values served June well, as she navigated through life, succeeding academically, professionally and more importantly, making deep friendships wherever she went. I have never known someone, with so many close friends. She had time for everyone and, boy, could she talk.”Her son Séan told mourners his mother taught her children “how to live”.“She taught us to be brave. To be generous. To have confidence in ourselves. To take chances. To keep going,” he said. “Now it’s our turn to live those lessons for her ... We’ll keep going. We’ll take the opportunities. We’ll have the muinín. We’ll look after each other. And when things get dark, we’ll remember what you taught us.”O’Connell was diagnosed with cancer of the spine in October 2025. She was cared for by medical staff at St Vincent’s and the Mater hospitals in Dublin and by the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire.Her husband described her as “a fantastic human being”.“She lived 40 lives; full of energy; full of goodness ... but it was her personal qualities that made her so special. She had this irrepressible energy; she never stopped; always on the go; always trying to help the next person. She wasn’t just a force of nature; she was a tornado.“Her magnetic personality saw her friends transcend across all age groups and generations; she was especially empathetic to the elderly.”June Andy O’Connell’s removal and funeral took place in Dublin and Cahersiveen. More than 5,000 people paid their respects, including the Taoiseach’s aide-de-camp, who attended the funeral Mass. She is survived by her husband Pat Cooney, their children Seán, Sadhbh, Liam and Cathal, her parents Haulie and Noreen, sisters Lorraine, Sharon and Michelle, brothers Michael and Cathal, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews.