Tributes paid to shop owner and former railway worker

ONE of the last links with the age of the Great Northern Railway in Omagh has ended with the death of Michael Gilheany.

Aged 97, he was laid to rest in Drumragh Cemetery following Requiem Mass in the Sacred Heart Church on Tuesday.

A native of Ballinamore in Co Leitrim, Mr Gilheany moved to Omagh in 1944 to work on the railway – and he would remain in the town for the rest of his life.

It was while working here that he met his wife, Patsy, who was a native of Lislap. She pre-deceased Mr Gilheany a number of years ago after more than 50 years of marriage.

The couple wed at St Mary’s Church in Knockmoyle and lived on the Derry Road. Following the closure of the railway in 1965, Mr Gilheany opened a grocery store shop on the Brookmount Road, and later on the Derry Road beside the family home.

He also farmed for a while on a small-holding in Beragh, and was closely associated with the GAA in Omagh over many years.

Among Mr Gilheany’s proudest achievements was becoming chairman of the Omagh St Enda’s Park committee, which oversaw the development and opening in 1972 of what was to become Healy Park.

He also held the role of vice-chairman from 1977-1978 and was a member of the Grounds Committee from the mid-90s through to 2000.

But Mr Gilheany’s name was to become synonymous with the role of ’Transport Officer’ which he held every year from 1982 through to 2001.

Club chairman, Conor Sally, paid tribute to the immense contribution that Mr Gilheany had made to St Enda’s.

“His cheerful disposition and appealing personality made him a very popular member of the club and his years of long service was recognised in 1986 when he was enlisted into the honorary position of vice-president, before he was named president in 2003,” Mr Sally said.

Mourners at Mr Gilheany’s funeral heard how he had lived a life full of love and dedication to others, had a generous spirit and remained calm in the spirit of challenge and trauma.

Mr Gilheany was a former Eucharistic Minister in the parish of Drumragh and his Funeral Mass was also told of how he cared for his wife, Patsy, during her illness and the loss he felt when she died.

Over the years he enjoyed keeping in contact with friends and relatives in his native Leitrim and some of them travelled to Omagh for the funeral.

Mr Gilheany was pre-deceased by his wife, Patricia (Patsy), and is survived by Declan (Rita), Barry, Mairead (Desie), Sheila (Raymond), and Roisin. He is also pre-deceased by his late son-in-law, Eamon, Gus, Monica, Maureen, Eileen, and Josie.