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Son dies on 10,000-mile trip to see sick mum
Peter O' Leary who died whilst visiting town of Preston from Australia to see his sick mother
A man, who travelled more than 10,000 miles to visit his sick elderly mother, collapsed and suddenly died.
Peter O’Leary, who grew up in Preston and was the brother of former city mayor Christine Abram, suffered a heart attack during a visit to his home city from Australia.
Today, his mother, Olive, was attending her son’s funeral at Blessed Sacrament Church in Ribbleton.
And, in another tragic twist, former Blessed Sacrament pupil Peter was getting ready to meet his sister when he collapsed at a friend’s home.
It is the second holiday tragedy to strike the family.
Stuart Cave, 33, who was the boyfriend of Ruth Abram, youngest daughter of Christine and husband Norman, died of a massive heart attack during a family holiday in Tenerife on New Year’s Eve in 2006.
Speaking before the funeral of her brother, Coun Abram, who lives in Cottam, Preston, paid tribute to the man known as Pete The Pom by his Australian friends.
She said: “He was very, very generous.
“He kept his friends all his life. He had lots and lots of friends, but he always kept in touch with people. Nobody has a bad word to say about him.
“He was always letting people stay (at his house when they visited Australia).
“He liked his football – every Christmas, mum had to send him a Man United calendar.”
Christine had taken their mother to the doctors last Tuesday, August 24, and was due to meet Peter when she got a phone call from her husband.
She hadn’t seen her brother since his arrival in the UK four weeks earlier as she had been visiting her eldest daughter, Kate, in Canada.
Peter had been touring the country from Scotland to the Lake District and the south, visiting family and friends. He had been in good health and had seemingly recovered from a stroke 18 months ago.
Christine said: “It’s like he did ‘the rounds’. Everybody got to see him.
“We’re just overwhelmed by the messages from Australia. I knew when we went out there how popular he was, but it’s nice to know how much people out there did love him. People have been wonderful.”
When keen climber Peter left Preston Catholic College as a teenager, he started training as a chartered accountant.
But his love of the outdoors meant he soon traded it in. Instead, he got an HGV licence and started a new career.
Coun Abram, who was due to read a poem at the funeral, said: “He had to be out and about. He wasn’t conventional, he was a character. He loved climbing and he had a lot of friends in the climbing fraternity.”
He spent a lot of time in Ambleside in the Lake District and would often say: “With a tank of petrol and no money, let’s go up to the Lakes for the weekend”.
He had his fair share of scrapes. Once, he fell down a quarry and also ended up in hospital in Wales after a fall and was read his Last Rites.
He emigrated to Australia in the 1970s and settled in Brisbane but “kept his Lancashire accent”. He married Louise, but the couple later divorced.
His friends will be having a wake at the Irish club in Brisbane tomorrow.
Recently retired self-employed driver Peter, who was in his 60s and had no children, also leaves another sister, Pamela.
The funeral was taking place at 11.30am today, followed by a cremation and then Irish stew at Blessed Sacrament Club.
The family has requested donations to CRY, Cardiac Risk in the Young, a charity they have supported since Stuart’s death.
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Weather for Preston
Tuesday 07 February 2012
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Temperature: -6 C to 4 C
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Wind direction: South east
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