GILLIGAN Martin Joseph
Obituary
Bon was born in Bulla in 1915 and was the eldest of seven children.
He enjoyed farm life and became an accomplished horseman. Following the death of his father, the family moved to Moonee Ponds.
Bon was a keen dancer and met his future wife Irene Finn at a dance in Sunbury. They were married in 1935 and settled in Moonee Ponds where their first three children, Lawrie, Irene and Ray were born.
Ray suffered from bronchitis and their doctor suggested that they move to the country. Irene's aunty and uncle, Kitty and Jack Finn, suggested they rent their home in Bergins Road and that Bon work with Jack in his new venture manufacturing cement tiles.
Irene started a small kiosk selling jam and scalded cream. The business grew and they decided to build Rowville's first shop about the time of the birth of their fourth child Patricia.
Bon gave up work and turned his hand to baking apple pies and scones - with such success that they had to install a large combustion oven to cope with the demand. Roast chickens were the next successful line and Bon did all the killing and dressing. The business prospered and became the Rowville newsagency and then the Rowville Post Office too! Due to ill health Bon retired a few years before the shop was closed in 1980.
Bon was a keen vegetable gardener and developed interests with his grand children who loved him dearly.
In his later years Bon suffered from a respiratory illness and after three weeks in intensive care at the Dandenong and District Hospital he passed away on June 18th.
Bryan Power
First published in the August 1994 edition of the Rowville-Lysterfield Community News.
Comments
From martin joseph gilligan (04 Aug 2004)
it uncanny reading my namesake/relatives obituary
i was born 11.3.1949 in dublin i left school when i was eleven years old,i learned to play
the guitar and was a member of a dublin ballad group called the parksiders singing irish and american ballad songs.
i married theresa o neill in 1969. i went back to college as a mature student in 1971 for four years and passed the city and guilds certificate for radio & tv servicing
heard the kingston trio singing the M.T.A and new i wanted to play the 5 string banjo like on the record did that and then i heard scruggs the rest is history(i now love bluegrass/oldtime music). 1991 television have become very cheap to buy and i decide to change my career (i had no option).i went back to college again to learn computers passed the usual exams and started working in computers.
my first job was in digital in dublin as desktop support (good morning desktop martin speaking can i help you),it was o.k. until the company started response time with a huge display showing how long callers were waitng for support when it got to 30 seconds i left that was after 18 months so much about me my wife is an excellent cook and very very good at making curtains we both come from a large family six in both we have four children,trevor, graham, david,and miriam. my youngest son trevor is the youngest councillor ever elected in dublin he was 21 on the 21st july and was elected on the 11th of june 2004 to the south dublin county council check the site you will see information about him in the results of the 2004 election
i have lots of stories of when i was young and will mail them to you if you like
regards
Martin Joseph Gilligan
From Bryan Power (27 Aug 2004)
Martin, thanks for your letter which I will pass onto the Gilligan family.
On the same website you will find a story, "Irene Gilligan Remembers" (Irene was Martin's wife).
Also, there should be an obituary for Irene.
From Martin william Gilligan (07 Jun 2005)
All theses storys sound so familiar. I was always led to believe Gilligan's were very uncommon in Ireland. I'm beginning to think there is a possibility i have relatives i never even knew about.
From martin joseph gilligan (28 Mar 2007)
Hello was just gogiling my self and found there was quite a few marty's by the name of joseph gilligans so i thought id add a few lines of me own was born in belfast in 1969 and moved to irvinstown in county fermanagh two years later then enniskillen in 79 i got expelled from school at fifteen signed on thedole at sixteen worked in childrens comunity holliday as a domestic then a gardiner for age concern helped out in a pree school nursery various other voulenteer jobs and have been a shop assistant now with oxfam for ten years have not had long to research this and it late so i'll wish uall '' sunshine on ur shoulders,shamrocks at ur feet a rainbow in ur pocket & friendships ever sweet, angel's to protect u good luck to light ur way till we met in glockamara ur soul to keep i pray blessings to u all toge a bogee