On Wednesday 2nd December, after almost 42 years in ESB, Seamus Hughes was sent home by his colleagues in ESB Telecoms Ltd. because it was his retirement day. We are losing a beacon in the world of towers, since Seamus was a major driving force for almost 15 years behind the building of ESB Telecoms and the nationwide construction of a large number of towers that are erected for ourselves and our customers. The celebration in the main ESB staff restaurant was very well attended with a large number of pensioners turning out to thank Seamus for his enormous achievements. His wife and three daughters shared in the limelight and all of them were presented with flowers and words of gratitude. Seamus will be missed, but as he said himself, "This is not a goodbye, just a new focus".

There was a special guest speaker at Seamus's function. Daniel Stoppa from the German company EuroPoles / Pfleiderer came over from the UK in order to honour Seamus's contribution as well as his fostering the warm and professional relationship with EuroPoles. Daniel praised the excellent vision of Seamus in explaining the needs of the Irish tower market and thanked Seamus for his input and co-operation during the design of the successful type, that is now known as the "Birdcage". He presented Seamus with a specially commissioned scale model of the Birdcage which may just be a bit too big for the mantelpiece. No doubt a suitable and fitting location in the Hughes household will be found. After the speeches there were drinks and a reception where many people from the Telecoms industry came to congratulate Seamus and wish him a long and healthy retirement. Seamus, and his enormous contribution will be sadly missed.