Late George remembered for his talent for IT and love of motorbikes

The late George McDonagh, who died following a road accident at Lissoy earlier this week, was remembered at his funeral mass today as the “first son and the elder brother who was always there leading the way”, a man with a talent for IT and who had a “great love of getting out on his motorbike”.

Celebrant Fr Padraig Kelliher, who was joined by Fr Peter Burke, Parish Priest in Ferbane, and Fr Declan Shannon, Chaplain in Custume Barracks, where George's father was once based, also had a special mention for his late brother John, whose fourth anniversary was on Wednesday last.

Mr McDonagh of Fair Green, Ferbane and Athlone, passed away after the motorcycle he was driving was involved in a collision with a car on the N55, just before 6pm on October 9.

Speaking about George at the beginning of the service in Our Lady Queen of Peace Church in Coosan on Friday, Fr Kelliher said he and his mother Kitty were no strangers to the church, coming there to visit where John was buried and doing so in their own inimitable way.

He recalled that they would arrive outside and Kitty would come in first to say some prayers and light candles, while George would be outside. When she had finished George would come in and in that way they “passed the baton of faith” between them.

His brother Shane had told him his brother “was the brains not the hands” and while he started out working on machines, he later worked with An Post before returning to school in Moate Business College to develop his flair for technology and IT.

George later worked with Apple, the RSA and most recently the Irish Prison Service in Longford, where he coming home from on the way to Ferbane to his mother when the accident occurred.

Sadly, the funeral heard he was going to collect a card for a niece , who has made her life in Australia, where his female relatives were travelling the following day to see her, and a new baby. Fr Kelliher remembered in a special way his family in Australia who had gathered and were watching the service online.

The priest also spoke about the great sense of freedom and passion George enjoyed from motorbikes and the great memories that all of the brothers shared from their love of biking.

George, who lived in Dunmore for many years, was also the go-to person in the family if there was a problem with a phone or a tablet, the funeral also heard.

For the family, the priest said he hoped there would be some consolation in the fact that John and George would now be reunited and that the sense of them being together would be some consolation.

Fr Kelliher thanked the emergency services on behalf of the family and everyone who looked after George on Monday, and all who had offered their support and help in the last few days.

Thanking Fr Peter Burke from Ferbane and Fr Declan Shannon, Chaplain in Custume Barracks, for concelebrating the Mass, Fr Kelliher concluded with a special mention for all of the Irish soldiers serving in South Lebanon and Golan Heights.

“We are keeping the soldiers in our prayers. It is a difficult mission in a troubled part of the world,” he said.

George McDonagh was predeceased by his brother John. He will be sadly missed and fondly remembered by his parents Catherine and John, brother Shane, sisters-in-law Amanda and Sinéad, nephews, nieces, Róis, and many friends.

Following the funeral Mass in Our Lady Queen of Peace Church, Coosan, Mr McDonagh was buried in nearby Coosan Cemetery.