Our father, Dominic Mulholland, who has died aged 83, was a pioneering forester in Northern Ireland and also a stalwart of the Irish League of Credit Unions. Dominic was pivotal in ensuring that Bannvale Credit Union, of which he was treasurer, celebrated its 50th anniversary last year with new imposing offices and a new motto: "For people, not for profits."
Dominic was born into the Catholic community in Larne, County Antrim, where his family ran a butcher's shop. At grammar school he discovered a lifelong passion for rugby union – he was considered for selection for Ulster. After becoming a trainee forester with the Northern Ireland ministry of agriculture, Dominic went to Gwydyr forestry school, in Capel Curig, north Wales, in 1954. A frontier spirit surrounded this public service, as young foresters developed plantations from scratch.
He met our mother, Ita, a teacher, after his posting to start a forest on the slopes of Cuilcagh mountain, Florencecourt, County Fermanagh, and they married in 1961. When he created a viewpoint in Lough Navar forest, he was reprimanded for it by his superiors. Today the place is a major attraction and thought by many to give the best view in Ireland.
In 1972, Dominic was posted to Portglenone, Co Antrim, where he managed with great care the local recreational woodland until his retirement in 1993.
His other big interest in life was in promoting credit unions. The success of the Irish League of Credit Unions is largely due to the determination of unpaid activists such as Dominic. He was a founding member and treasurer of one of the first unions, in Derrygonnelly, Co Fermanagh, in the 1960s. He became an active member of Bannvale Credit Union in Portglenone in 1973 and remained involved in the movement for the rest of his life. He was president of Bannvale for a time but his key role was that of treasurer, a post he held from 1994 until December 2013. He was also very active in credit union regional structures and ensured that many staff gained equivalent pay and conditions to public-sector staff and trade-union recognition.
Renowned for his steadfast adherence to the founding principles of the movement, Dominic was firm but fair in debate and full of warm humour.
He is survived by Ita, his sister, Colette, five sons, four daughters, 18 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.