This article is one of a series about people who have died with coronavirus in Ireland and among the diaspora. Read more at irishtimes.com/covid-19-lives-lost. If you would like a friend or family member included in the series, please email liveslost@irishtimes.com
RICHARD BRADY 1954-2020
An Post employee Richard Brady met his future wife Margaret in the mid-1980s when his work on the mail train brought him to Cork. Margaret was in a troubled marriage and Richard offered her and her five children the chance of a new life in Dublin.
She took a leap of faith and the couple were together for over three decades until his passing from Covid-19 at the age of 66 on May 6th. They married and went on to have two additional children.
Their youngest daughter, Caroline, said her father was a “real man” who stepped up the plate for the whole family.
“Mam was in a volatile marriage and my dad offered to take her and the five kids up to Dublin. So she took that chance. The kids were all under the age of 8. All of the kids called him ‘Da’. He was their dad. He was just the kindest man.”
Richard was born into a family of four on the North Circular Road on February 9th, 1954. A hard worker, he was employed by An Post for 30 years. Margaret and Richard raised their children in Blanchardstown.
Tragedy
Tragedy struck for the couple in 2002 when their daughter Louise and her partner died in a house fire. Margaret suggested moving out of Dublin and in 2004 the family set up home in Co Wexford.
Richard had family connections to the county and they initially settled in Wellington Bridge before moving to Courtown in Gorey.
Caroline said life wasn’t always easy for the family. However, her father was their rock in times of need.
“My brother Shane killed himself the November we moved down to Wexford so it hasn’t been an easy ride for any of us. Dad had a very big heart. He felt it was his role to hold it together.”
A quiet man, Richard loved his walks and a few pints on Sunday. Caroline said he had a good sense of humour and adored his nine grandchildren.
“He and my eight-year-old daughter Ava Lily were inseparable. He collected her from school every day,” said Caroline. “She was supposed to be making her Communion the day he got cremated. Him and my mam were supposed to be going to Portugal for a month in April. He is a huge loss to us all.”