Devoted life of service to the church

Robert (Bob) Buckley, who died in hospital on February 13, was a dedicated member of the All Saints’ Parish Church congregation in Larne, and had served the church and wider parish in various capacities over the years.
Robert BuckleyRobert Buckley
Robert Buckley

In a tribute to the Linn Road man, the Rector, the Rev Phillip Benson, said that Mr Buckley was “a man of faith, a faith that was worked out in a life of practical service to God and his church”.

He paid tribute to a lifetime of dedication and service to the parish by Mr Buckley.

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Born on the family farm at Lower Ballyboley Road on January 30, 1933, Robert Hugh (Bob) Buckley was the son of Thomas and Mary Buckley and grew up in a family of five children, his sisters being Sadie, Lila, Irene and Joan.

Bob attended Ballyboley School, which he enjoyed and upon leaving at age 14, began work as a mechanic in Ballyclare. He went on to become the site service manager in Barton IndustrialEngineering, until he retired at the age of 60.

While working in Belfast he was to meet his one and only sweetheart, Sheila, in Smithfield bus station, and romance blossomed, with the couple being married in Ballynure Presbyterian Church on June 1, 1957.

The couple lived for six months at Carnmoney before moving to Larne in 1958, and, two years later, settling at Linn Road, which would be the family home.

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They lived a short distance from All Saints’ Church, which was built in 1962, and became active members.

Bob Buckley served the church with devotion and was a member of the committee that agreed to the formation of the new Parish of Kilwaughter and Cairncastle with All Saints’.

He was a member of the All Saints’ working group, when the church hall was being built in 1972, and a member of a working committee when the hall was renovated several years ago. During the renovation, he was there on a daily basis, paint brush in hand, until the job was complete.

When the new parish was created in 1992, he was elected as parish treasurer, a position of trust he administered with professionalism, until ill-health forced his retirement in 2015.

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He also represented the parish for many years at the Conor Diocesan Synod.

He was on the committee that organised a flower festival to commemorate the 25th anniversary of All Saints’ Church, a job that he replicated 25 years later, to commemorate the church’s 50th anniversary.

Bob was a founding member and a great supporter of All Saints’ Bowling Club, enjoying the companionship on match and training nights – winning many matches and trophies along the way. At the end of the 2017 bowling season, club members held a special evening for Bob, at which, he was made a lifelong member of the club and presented with a crystal bowl in recognition of his work and support.

Even when poor health severely restricted his involvement, he still had the interests All Saints’ at heart, and was on hand to assist however he could.

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Rev Benson said: “Although Bob’s title was parish treasurer, his duties extended far beyond financial boundaries, anything that needed doing in All Saints’, Bob was in the middle of it.

“Robert was a man of faith, a faith that was worked out in a life of practical service to God and his church. Bob will be greatly missed in All Saints’ and we will always appreciate his lifelong dedication to this parish,” the rector said.

He was keen on sport, particularly football and gardening, tending to his flowers, vegetable patch and greenhouse.

He was a keen local historian and a strong supporter of Ballyboley Pipe Band, as well as being a member of Larne Royal Blue LOL 70. He was a Past Master of the lodge and served as the treasurer of the lodge since 2004, holding office at the time of his death.

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A proud family man, he and his wife were delighted at the arrival of their daughter, Amanda, and in his later years her marriage brought his son-in-law John into the close-knit family circle. The birth of his grandchildren, Sophie and Saskia, opened a new chapter in his life and both became the apple of their grandfather’s eye.

Mr Buckley was predeceased by his beloved wife Sheila in 2010 and demonstrated great courage in dealing with her illness and death as well as many medical problems which he unfortunately experienced; including diabetes, cardiac disease, renal carcinoma, the requirement of a pacemaker and multiple falls. A recent fall led to his final illness and he died in the Royal Victoria Hospital on February 13.

At the funeral service mourners were told that Robert Buckley made an impression on everyone who met him, none more so than the staff who cared for him in the various hospitals and care homes that looked after him. Thanks were expressed on behalf of the family to those involved in his care. The service was held in All Saints’ Church of Ireland, with interment afterwards at Larne cemetery.