Fr Willie on his famous Raleigh bike which was his usual way of moving around the town during his years in Mullingar from 1961 to 1988. He was moved to Kilcormack as parish priest in 1988 and a year later he was made parish priest of Tullamore. He died in 2015.

Fr Willie Cleary remembered

Fr Willie Cleary served in Mullingar Parish from 1961 to 1988 and was by any standards an extraordinary priest who made a difference to the lives of many in Mullingar. His official title was Monsignor William Cleary PP VG but he never liked status and always wanted to be known simply as Fr Willie.

His contribution in Mullingar was recalled at a simple tree planting ceremony in his memory in front of St Paul’s Church on Sunday week last.

Fr Joe Deegan welcomed groups and individuals from the various strands of community life in which Fr Willie was involved during his 27 years in the parish.

Fr Cleary came initially as a young Chaplin to St Loman’s Hospital in 1961 and straight away he set up The Patients Comfort Fund, supported by bingo every Friday night and an annual St Loman’s Pantomime in The County Hall.

All that changed the type of place St Loman’s had been until then.

Fr Willie loved tennis and was an accomplished tennis player.

Along with Michael Creighton, Fr Willie was instrumental in re-invigorating the local club and putting it on the path to where it is today.

Soon after his arrival in Mullingar, Fr Willie became acutely aware of the need to provide social and sporting facilities for young people, and again along with Michael Creighton, he set up The Boys Club – which immediately became a hit with all the young people of ’60s Mullingar.

In 1968, along with Fr Willie MacNamara and Fr Sean Fay, he set up Mullingar Choral Society – which has now evolved into the largest choral society in the country and has contributed to the cultural life of Westmeath through the years.

During his time in Mullingar, Fr Willie had responsibility for the Walshestown area of the town and he liked nothing better than being involved with Cullion Hurling Club and their various teams and events.

His other great passion was Westmeath football and he never missed out on being tuned in when they were playing, especially when they were involved with Meath.

The Second Vatican Council (1962-65) had a profound influence on the Rathwire native and was to shape much of his priestly life subsequently. As one priest put it after his funeral: “Fr Willie did what Pope Francis is now trying to do, open the Church to the gentle, accepting, forgiving face of Christ by letting the vision of Vatican II live in the day-to-day lives of his people.”

He intensely disliked pomp, pretence, and rigidity and during his time in Mullingar he could be seen on a daily basis as he moved among “his people” on his Raleigh bicycle, calling to every house in his area at least once a year.

He befriended the unemployed, the poor and those with no hope. He worked with Sr Finbar to set up and develop the Women’s Community Project, which since then has made an enormous contribution to the social fabric of the town.

He embraced the new liturgical message of Vatican II with both arms and it was Fr Willie who, along with architect Danny O’Riordan and local stone mason Seamus Gibney, reconfigured the sanctuary area of The Cathedral of Christ The King in order to bring it into line with Vatican II teaching.

A feature of the modernising of the interior of the Cathedral was the creation by Seamus of a new chair and ambo using marble taken from St Patrick’s Cathedral in Armagh.

St Paul’s Church on the Delvin Road will be probably his most enduring memorial. In many ways it was his creation and its simple fan-shaped design represented much of what he felt about church architecture. He was a priest with an instinct for the mission of the church and his focus was on the people he served, and that was behind his thinking when he had St Paul’s designed.

The tree planting ceremony was undertaken by Fr Joe Deegan and took place immediately in front of St Paul’s Church.

It was attended by representatives from various organisations associated with Fr Willie during his time in Mullingar such as, Mullingar Tennis Club, Cullion Hurling Club, Mullingar Boys Club, Mullingar Choral Society, Sr Finbar’s Women’s Community Projects, St Loman’s Hospital; Seamus Gibney was also present.