This is a listing of notifications the Parramatta Marist Old Boys Union has received of the passing of Old Boys. “Vale” is latin for farewell and “Fortior Ito” means go forward with strength.
Click on the Old Boy’s Name for further details and a brief biography.
If we do not have the date of passing then the last day of the known month or year is used.
Please use the comments section at the bottom of the page or the contact form on this website to provide further details.
You can search surnames alphabetically. Click Clear Search on the right-hand side to return to the complete list
The tables immediately below are sorted by Class Year and Year of Passing respectively.
Sorted by Class Year, latest to earliest
Sorted by year of passing, latest to earliest.
Peter Robert Joseph McKay, OAM, 1954
Biographical Info
VALE: Peter McKay OAM (Class of 1954). The Old Boys Union would like to extend its condolences to the family of Peter McKay who passed away on 14th July. A much loved family man, classmate and member of the Winston Hills community. In 2014, Peter was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his service to the community. As reported in the Port Stephens Examiner at the time:“Mr McKay’s service has spanned more than 50 years, starting in the 1960s at Winston Hills, near Sydney, where he visited the sick and elderly. He was the accountant for the Winston Hills’ parish for 18 years, from 1970, and was on the committee for 30 years. Between 1976 and 1980 Mr McKay was the accountant for the Lewisham and Parramatta Westmead Hospitals. He became director of administrative services at Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children, now the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, in 1980. After seven years, he took the role of commissioning officer, then general manager at Fairfield Hospital. Between 1987 and 1998 Mr McKay moved between roles at the Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital. Shortly after retiring to Tea Gardens with his wife, Helen, who died in 2008, Mr McKay became treasurer of the Myall Coast Catholic Parish, a role he recently gave up after holding it since 1999.”
May you go forth with strength into the next life Peter. Fortior Ito
Categories: Vale
Chris was a good friend when I attended parramatta Marist. I used to run into him around the courts, he never seemed to change always a gentleman.
I’ve got Vale John Cassidy’s picture but how do I email it to you ????
Frank O’Sullivan
Vale John Cassidy LC 1962 Died 28th August 2019
John Cassidy and I worked on a religious organisation in our days at Marist Brothers Parramatta. It was to spread the message of Our Lady of Fatima that is, world peace through prayer, the Blue Army. It was a very strange coincidence that it was one of Cardinal Gilroy’s pet projects, but we didn’t know that at the time. The cardinal had set the organisation up in Sydney under Professor F G Coleman Sydney University and Father Cameron head of the Augustinian order in Sydney.
From 1959 – 1962 I did latin classes at St Mary’s Cathedral, late on Friday afternoon in preparation to enter, my studies for the priesthood. I ran into Cardinal Gilroy on many occasions as he did confessions 5pm to 6pm and I trapped him either going/coming in the presbytery grounds. So the long and short of it all is, that I dragged our John C along with me to say Hi and explain the difficulties we were having with Monsignor McGovern in conducting our Blue Army prayer meetings in St Pats at Parramatta. He smiled at us both & said would we from time to time give him a progress report on our work with the Blue Army. John and I had a few brief encounters with the cardinal & strangely we never had any further problems with the cranky old monsignor.
John Cassidy was a very humble man and would never have repeated this story but having been befriended by a cardinal, lived in a village named after the cardinal and being buried from the chapel on Friday 6th September 2019 that bears the cardinal’s name, I felt it appropriate to tell the story.
Frank O’Sullivan