‘Philip had an astounding impact on those he met’
THE grieving family of Ballyhooly student Philip Leahy who died while on a J1 visa to the United States has paid tribute to their local community for the tremendous support that they have given them since the tragedy earlier this month.
Addressing the congregation at Philip’s funeral mass his older brother William paid tribute to all who had helped their grieving mother Ann, himself and his older brother Patrick in trying to come to terms with the tragic death of Philip.
William Leahy began by thanking all the medical staff in the United States, from the paramedics who responded to the emergency call that went out at Ocean Beach to the staff at Atlantic General Hospital for their care of Philip and their kindness to the Leahy family.
“Anything that could have been done by the team at Atlantic General Hospital for Philip was done, – the level of care there was superb - from the paramedics to the emergency department to all in the ICU, the consultants, the neurologists and the nurses who were so understanding to our needs.”
William Leahy also paid tribute to Philip’s fellow students on J1 visas - people whom they would never have got to know but for the tragic accident which befell Philip – who had shown extraordinary generosity of spirit and consideration to the Leahy family.
“We would have never got to know you but for this tragic accident – from the day of the accident, you never left Philip’s side – it was all about helping us and helping Philip, it was easy to see how you were friends – you are a credit to your parents.”
William also paid tribute to the undertakers, Burbage’s in Ocean City and Ronayne’s in Fermoy and to local priests, Fr Pat Scanlan and Fr Donal Broderick who were so hugely supportive of the family from the moment they learned that Philip had suffered a serious cardiac arrest while swimming.
“Finally to the people of Ireland and more importantly the people of Ballyhooly and the wider Ballyhooly community, what I can say – you have gone above and beyond with your level of support over the last few days ,” said William.
“There are no words to say how much we appreciate what you have done – from the prayer vigil in the GAA pitch on Friday and the huge crowd that turned out last Tuesday night for the prayer service and we weren’t even in the country.
“And then since we came back - you have catered for our every need, from making food to looking after the farm at home to being there with us and showing us how much you cared for Philip – and to Ballyhooly GAA who shouldered him up the street last night – it was a lovely gesture.”
And in a poignant eulogy, Patrick Leahy recalled how just three short years earlier, Philip had stood at the same spot at the rostrum in the Church of the Nativity and delivered a eulogy to their late father, Philly after he took ill suddenly in April 2014 and passed away.
Little did he think that he would be standing in the same spot delivering a eulogy for his younger brother so soon afterwards, said Patrick as he went on to recount the bonds that developed between all three brothers and their parents after Philip’s arrival in 1994.
“Philip was born on November 8, 1994 and one of my first childhood memories was going up to the hospital with dad and William to see who this new addition was and why he was getting all the attention. You could soon see why,” said Patrick
“The blonde bombshell was now the baby of the family. A bond was made immediately with all of us and that will never be broken. We were more than just brothers, we were friends. There was never an issue that arose that couldn’t be sorted between us, the family always triumphed over adversity.”
Patrick recalled his brother’s huge determination and will to win and that was reflected in the commitment he showed to Ballyhooly GAA when he captained the club’s footballers to its first ever county success when they won the Cork County Junior B championship in 2016.
“GAA has always been a huge part of Philip’s life, but he is also been involved in soccer, running, and of course, computers - It was in the last few years the GAA really took over, from getting the most improved player award in 2011 to captaining Ballyhooly in last year’s victorious county football final.
“I guess it is a testament to Philip, his character, hard work and sheer determination that he captained an adult football team at the tender age of 21 - you would be doing well to find that anywhere else.”
Patrick recalled his brother always had a smile on his face and was always looking to chat to people and whether he knew someone just a day or a year, he always gave them his full attention and from the stories, they had heard in the last few days, he had “an astounding impact on those he met”.
“Philip was obviously fond of a singsong while sometimes rough at the start usually getting him to stop was the problem -at a going away party a few months ago Philip had the whole place in laughter with a song he was making up as he went along.
“It summed up Philip: he would do anything to put a smile on people’s face, never let people down and as he put it himself he was always up for a bit of scutting .... there is a video of him going round singing last year after we were beaten in the hurling final and everyone around him in stitches.
Patrick poignantly recalled that it was less than 12 months since Philip had carried the Cork County Junior B Championship Cup down the main street in Ballyhooly to a tumultuous welcome home and now his teammates were shouldering his coffin along the same route.
“The walk to the church last night was very surreal - I think less than 12 months ago Philip proudly carried the cup down the street followed by his teammates and the selectors and the whole of Ballyhooly.
“And then just last night Philip was carried up the street this time followed by the same teammates and friends - the same street but two very different emotions,” said Patrick before concluding that his brother’s death wasn’t “a good bye, just a see you later”.