50 years on: Cork couple celebrate golden wedding anniversary at their home

A Cork couple celebrating 50 years of marriage marked the occasion at the front garden of their home with a blessing on Wednesday afternoon.

Patricia and Timmy O’Mahony were married in the Church of the Ascension on December 30, 1970.

The couple were due to celebrate their golden anniversary by renewing their vows at the Commons Inn Hotel on Wednesday but Covid-19 restrictions did not allow for the celebration to go ahead.

Instead, they received a blessing at their home on Cathedral Road from family friend Fr Dave O'Connell, with some of their children and grandchildren present to give them their gifts, all socially distanced from each other.

Mr and Mrs O’Mahony have four daughters and one son, eight grandchildren, one of whom, Jamie Kenny, is serving in the army overseas, and one great-grandchild, with five generations on Mrs O’Mahony side of the family.

Her eldest daughter, Tracie Drohan, told The Echo that although they couldn’t go ahead with the surprise party that they had been saving up for as “it all went pear-shaped because of Covid”, that the blessing at their family home was special.

She said the day was as perfect as they could make it and that her parents were happy with how it turned out.

“We just wanted to mark it because it's a big occasion and they’re fantastic parents who would do anything for us. We are blessed with the parents we have and if we could give them the moon we would,” she said.

Ms Drohan said that her parents’ wedding reception was held at her grandmother’s house and that they had no honeymoon but instead went to the cinema.

“Mam looked so young that they wouldn’t let her in to see the movie because she had no ID with her, so they had to come home. She was mortified, but it’s a funny memory” Ms Drohan said.