Dr John Dillon, 1951-2008

Dr John Dillon passed away peacefully in May after a long career in medicine and many great sporting achievements — ‘One of the good ones is gone’.
There are many reasons why John would not have wanted this written about him, but high on the list would be his total modesty and reticence to embrace the limelight. Many very high achievers claim, or have it claimed about them, that they are humbled by their successes, but in John’s case, I firmly believe it to be the truth.

At his funeral mass, among the shocked congregation in a packed church in Rathgar, I heard it repeatedly said that ‘one of the good ones is gone’. That is totally true, he was indeed one of the good ones, but what surprised a great number of the mourners was hearing about some of his many achievements detailed in a moving oration by his old friend and colleague, Dr Patrick White.
I myself had the privilege of knowing John for more than 25 years, and have been on many holidays with him, but I was astonished to hear that he still holds athletic records from his days in Trinity – apparently, nobody has bettered his times, either for the 100 metres or the 400 metres, since then. His 400-metre hurdles record was unbroken for more than 11 years. I had no inkling of this – he had never said a word. That was typical of the man.
John came from a medical background. His father William ran a very successful general practice between Chapelizod and Ballyfermot. He graduated with distinction as a Trinity Scholar in 1974, but did not seem destined to become a GP.
Having effortlessly secured his MRCPI, he was being groomed and steered towards a career as a nephrologist when, to the surprise and, it must be said, disappointment of his hospital colleagues, he made the decision to turn his back on hospital medicine and join his father in the Chapelizod practice.
He embraced this with enthusiasm, innovation and a good deal of hard work. He expanded and modernised the practice, became very involved with the medical education of both students and vocational trainees, but all along was a caring and compassionate doctor to his many patients.
It was at this time that John met his wife Zita O’Reilly, when she was on an attachment to the practice, and it was a case of love at first sight. I clearly remember John, at that time, telling a small group of his friends that he had just met someone very special. It had to be very, very special and true, because he was always slow to discuss these matters with us, but he was totally correct.
They were married the following year and blessed with three wonderful children – Luke, Jane and Rosie. Both Luke and Rosie have followed their father into medicine, while Jane is currently spending an Erasmus year as a student in Sweden. After her vocational training, Zita joined John in the practice, at first part-time and as the children grew older, as a full-time partner.
No matter what sport John participated in, he excelled. He was a winger on the Trinity rugby team virtually all through college, while still finding time for his glittering athletic career. He was a first-class horseman, somewhat regretfully dropping that sport because of time pressures. He represented Ireland at windsurfing in the European Championships, and was an accomplished and enthusiastic sailor. He was an enthusiastic tennis player both in Fitzwilliam and Brookfield tennis clubs.
He was a first-class skier, but eventually saw the light and changed over to snowboarding ten years ago. His love for sailing was a major influence when it came to building a second home in Baltimore, West Cork, where the family set down roots in both the holiday and local communities and enjoyed many years of the good life there.
In 2003, John developed a malignant melanoma. He struggled through two major surgeries and further treatment without one moment’s complaining, no expression of victimhood, only a determination to get on with his life. He returned to the practice, working virtually full-time, and even managed to get back to many of his sporting interests — even skiing and snowboarding.
He had four very good and fulfilling years with his family, his colleagues and his friends until, shortly before Christmas last, the tumour returned. John bore his terminal illness with braveness and his always-present dignity. It seems almost a cliché to say here that he was helped all along by his family, but that would be a gross understatement.
Zita and the children were a tower of strength in a time of great personal tragedy and suffering, and John Dillon passed away peacefully, in the company and presence of his family, in his own home on the night of Saturday, 10 May.
I think that I can truly speak for his many colleagues and friends when saying that we are immeasurably poorer without his calmness, his quiet wisdom and his support in our own problems.
To reiterate what was said above, one of the good ones is gone. Along with Zita, Luke, Jane, Rosie, with John’s parents, his brothers and sisters, we salute the memory of a remarkable doctor and man.
— Dr J O’K