OBITUARY

New Zealand Tablet, 26 June 1913, Page 29

OBITUARY

SERGEANT THOMAS, O’GRADY, OAMARU. By the death of Sergeant O’Grady bn • Monday, June 16 (writes our Oamaru correspondent), the Catholic community of Oamaru has lost a staunch -and'loyal member of the Church, and the ' town . a genial and' popular r citizen, who was probably the best known figure on its streets for the past quarter of a century. Mr. O’Grady was a man of great zeal and- enthusiasm where any matters connected with the welfare of the Church were concerned, and could always be relied upon to do his full share of the work that was required. He was more particularly interested in movements where the improvement of the young men was the goal, and, as president of the Catholic Club from, its inception, did yeoman service in advancing that society ; by - precept and example. No night was too cold or wet for the Sergeant to attend a meeting or function, and his witty speeches were always a feature of the evening. . His sound and practical advice .will be greatly missed in matters of parish business, and in Federation affairs he was also deeply interested’. The deceased was born in County Clare, Ireland, in 1840, and while still a young man, came to New Zealand, arriving at Lyttelton in 1862. Possessed of a genial disposition .he made a host of friends, to whom he never tired of relating his almost life-long experiences as "a police officer. Sergeant O’Grady joined the police force immediately after his arrival in New Zealand, and was afterwards stationed in different parts of the Dominion. He was transferred to Oamaru about twenty-five years ago, and on his retirement from the force on superannuation, was superseded in his police duties by Sergeant King. Afterwards he was appointed Inspector of Factories, a position which he held until a rearrangement of the duties- pertaining to that department forced him into private life. The late Sergeant O’Grady had attained the age of 73 years. He is survived by Mrs. O’Grady and four sons and three daughters, to whom the sympathy of the community will be extended in their bereavement. A Requiem Mass was celebrated on Wednesday, and the funeral left the Basilica at 2.30 p.m., followed by a large and representative gathering of citizens, who had come to pay their last respects to one who had helped to preserve order among them for so many years.-

MR. EDWARD J. RODGERS, CHRISTCHURCH. ■lt is my particularly sad duty (writes our Christchurch correspondent) to record the death, in the prime of manhood, of Mr. Edward James Rodgers, head of the Maintenance Department, and latterly Inspector of Bridges, on the Canterbury section of the Bluff-Hurunui Railway. The deceased was third son of the late Mr. William Rodgers, who was also a very old railway servant of the Dominion. The late Mr. Rodgers passed away, after a brief illness, leaving a widow and four children to mourn their loss. He was a devoted member of the Cathedral congregation and a prominent member of St. Patrick’s branch of the H.A.C.B. Society. He was attended in his illness by the Cathedral clergy, the last Sacraments being administered by Rev. Father Long. A Requiem Mass for the repose of the soul of the deceased was celebrated in the Cathedral on last Monday by Rev. Father Long, .who also officiated at the interment in the Linwood Cemetery, assisted by Rev. Father Murphy, B.A. ; The attendance in the Cathedral and at the funeral was very large, the railway service and Hibernian Society, being numerously represented. Mrs. Rodgers and family were the recipients of telegrams and letters of sympathy in great -numbers, whilst the respect and esteem in which the deceased was held have been widely expressed.—R.l.P.