Sunday, October 17, 2010

Reverend John J O'Brien

I will be shifting away from the financial markets over the next week. Thank you.

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The catholic priest Reverend John J O'Brien died on Friday October 15h, 2010 with his family and fellow priests and nuns around him. Reverend John O'Brien was a Passionist priest and beloved by so many. There are so many things to write about Reverend John O'Brien but for now I will just write information here about the wake and funeral:

The wake is for Tuesday October 19th, 2010 from 3:30 PM to 8 PM.

The funeral is for Wednesday October 20th, 2010 and begins at 11 AM.

Both the wake and the funeral are in Jamaica Queens at the Passionist monastery. The address is 8645 Edgerton Blvd, Jamaica, NY 11432.

For directions please visit the Passionists web site:

http://www.bishopmolloy.org/id87.html

Thank you,

Tom Henderson, (nephew of John O'Brien)

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January 10th 2011

I have thought quite often of my uncle over the past few months and continue to come up with so many ways to describe him and the work he did. I have heard so many kind words and eloquent eulogies about my uncle. So I thought I would compile a list of things about Uncle John that made him unique that I knew of and some of the great stories that my family have heard over the past few months. Over time, I will continue to add to the list. This will be a running list of the works he did and the ways he helped so many people by living as a holy catholic priest. We still receive letters from all over the country about his great works.

- He lived the life of doing God's work in everything that he did. Always put others before him. The sick, the infirm, the elderly, people in hospitals; anyone who lost a loved one. He always had the time to sit with people and listen to their problems. When he was called to do a funeral of someone he did not know too well he would sit for long periods of time listening to the family members tell stories. How did you know that John was listening? Well at the funeral mass he would recite all of the stories he heard. One woman wrote us that people who heard Father John speak at the funeral thought that he was a lifelong family friend. But often times he knew the family only in the days before the funeral. he got to know the family of the deceased so well that he " was one of the family."

- There was a story told at the funeral of a person who lost his sister in a car accident over 20 years ago. Some how Father John found the right words to console the family. But that was not all. In the ensuing years he would reach out to the family on the anniversary of the death. EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Father John would call, write a letter or in recent years email the family. Always remembering their difficult time from 20 years earlier. Amazing.

- I heard a story of a man who lost his child less than 10 years ago. This person told us that Father John had this amazing ability to console them. As I listened to this story I thought how could anyone come up with the right words followign the death of a child? I listened as this person told us how Uncle John was very unique even among priests with his ability to console. To this day I have no idea what Father John said and what he did to help the family. I can only think that it was absolutley the perfect thing to say.

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