A TRIBUTE TO FATHER TIM McCARTHY

A group of relatives and friends gathered at the Church of the Sacred Heart, Castletownbere, on Monday evening, August 21, for a Memorial Mass for the late Fr. Tim McCarthy, formerly of Church Gate, Castletownbere, who died recently at Bexhill on Sea, England.  August 21^st would have been Fr. Tim's 94^th birthday.  Mass was celebrated by two Castletownbere born priests, Fr. Sean O'Shea and Fr. John Batt O'Sullivan.

During the Mass, Fr. Sean O'Shea paid many tributes to the Fr. Tim.  Following the Mass, a small but intimate gathering met at Harrington's Bar, Church Gate, which was at one time owned by Fr. Tim's parents and is the house where he was born.

During the reception, Terry Spillane, who has many connections with Beara,  a great friend of Fr. Tim's and who was named as executor of his will, spoke of the life and times of the Castletownbere Priest.  He said that Fr. Tim was unique and was a very private person.  He was a traditionalist priest who faithfully read his daily Office in Latin.  An only child, he was born in this house and six months later his mother died.  At the age of six, he was sent to boarding school, Dominican Convent at Cabra, Dublin, and later went to Clongrowes Wood College, where he finished his general education.

DUNBOY

There was also a vocation and a desire to do good.  His father died when he was 18 and when he came in for his inheritance, his intention was to bid for Dunboy Estate and the Puxley Mansion which was put on sale in 1926.  His intention was to turn it into a boarding school and give it to a religious order to run.  However, his executors tried to dissuade him from spending his inheritance and restricted his bid to £2,000 and another bidder acquired the property for £2,100.

When the call to the Church came, he tried the Dominicans for a short while.  There followed a tour of some European countries studying Classical Pianoforte and the Arts.  It was then his true vocation was revealed and he like many others from Beara joined Wonersh Seminary in Southwark Diocese, going on to the Ven Bede College in Rome, and his ordination in 1938 or 1939 at Wonersh.  His first Curacy was in Eastbourne, where one of the celebrants of his Memorial Mass, Fr. John B. O'Sullivan, spent many years.  Fr. Dan Moriarty, Fr. Barry MacCarthy and Fr. Colm Spillane also served in that diocese along with his first cousin, Fr. Joe Kelly.

Fr. Tim had itchy feet however, and moved to Nottingham Diocese with his friend Bishop Ellis who would come to Castletownbere with him nearly every year to fish in Glenbeg lake.  However, Tim wanted to work abroad and spent some stints in France and Italy, but returned to England to another great friend, Gordon Wheeler, then Bishop of Leeds.  He served there for a short time before his retirement after which he moved about quite often, spending two years or more at Dun Laoghaire where he became well known and travelling to favourite haunts in Ireland.

 TO BEXHILL

During the last few years, his travels were less frequent, but he always returned to Sussex and to the Bexhill area where local priests kept an eye out for him.  It was in a retirement home at Bexhill that he died on Tuesday of Holy Week and was buried on Thursday of Easter Week in accordance with his often expressed instructions - nearest graveyard, cheapest plot, cheapest coffin, a one-celebrant Mass and under no circumstances music or hymns.  Mgr. Heskin, VG of Leeds, celebrated the Mass. 

Terry paid tribute to and thanks to the people who organised his Mass and lovely function especially Anna Harrington for the use of Tim's former house, and John Murphy for the wonderful selection of sandwiches, etc.  He also thanked those who cleared the grave of Tim's parents at Foildarrig Cemetery, North Road.

Mai Houlihan, who is a cousin of Fr. Tim's, also thanked all the people for their help.  She said that her first memory of Fr. Tim was when she heard him called "Timothy Mary".  However, as the years passed, she discovered Joseph Mary Plunkett and Gabriel Mary Byrne.  So, Fr. Tim was among the famous.  She said that he got an excellent start in life as he was reared on Derrymihan milk, which was delivered by herself to his home, this house, every morning on her way to school.

Ar Dhéis Dé go raibh a anam.