Loving farewell highlights strength of an American family
It’s sometimes difficult to describe an experience, even for skilled communicators. It’s not just searching for the right words, but often, a scenario encompasses more about what you believe that what you may have witnessed.
Like most of you know firsthand, the last three months have been horrific. We haven’t read nor heard about what we know is the best about our country, community and people.
News coverage has been about violent self-serving political protests, media hype and national media ratings. None of which serves the interests of our country.
As a matter of fact, all this artificial rhetoric on both political sides has only undermined America’s national reputation and security. What American workers and military servicemen and women have achieved over the years through courage and self sacrifice, the national media has inaccurately and even recklessly handed over to our nation’s enemies on a platter. They have distorted the moral values we hold as a nation and substituted them for self serving, narrow ideological opinions.
Recently, I got a perspective of how an average American family feels about the challenges that we all face everyday, and how we must deal with them. It wasn’t at the opening of a Hollywood movie, but at the wake and funeral of a member of one of the Boston area’s most respected families. It took place at Gormley’s Funeral Home in West Roxbury and moved to one of America’s most renowned houses of prayer, Holy Name Church.
It’s a church with a reputation as prominent as the one my family was honored to attend almost daily for five years — St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Rev. George Evans presides over a group of parishioners just as dedicated and committed as far as I am concerned, as any at Gate of Heaven or St. Brigid in South Boston — my parishes — or any other Catholic churches.
The beautiful funeral Mass was celebrated for Patrick A. Timilty, and the sincerity of his life could not have been illustrated more beautifully than by his brother
Greg Timilty. I only wish that my longtime friend Sen. Joe Timilty could have been sitting next to labor legend Tommy McIntyre of the Bricklayers Union and me.
After the funeral Mass, my wife Kathy and son Ray walked across Centre Street to catch the T to Forest Hills Station to head back home. But just then, a West Roxbury friend of the Timilty’s who attended the Mass, recognized us waiting for the bus and graciously offered us a ride back to Southie. We didn’t want to inconvenience Lou Murray, but he was so kind, and it was so helpful to our tired old bones.
It was a beautiful scene — a great West Roxbury neighborhood, the Timilty family and a wonderful church.
And to Pat — your mom, Elaine Benson Timilty, whose father Billy was my baseball coach in the Senior Park League and of course your dad, Joe, had to be proud of your courage in overcoming any challenges. Your two children, Olivia and Patrick, sat in the front row of the Holy Name Church and must have been as proud as we were.