Graham's uncle, Joe McAuliffe, passed away early this morning at the age of 96. Actually, he was just a month shy of being 97. Joe was the oldest, and only surviving, of four children, the youngest of whom was Graham's mother. He set the example for two of the other three who loved the world of music. Joe traveled all over the world with his music, playing in numerous bands when he was well into his eighties.
Here is a link to a website set up by Joe's niece and her husband where they share their memories and photos of their beloved uncle. In the days ahead they will add more of their personal tribute to Joe. Graham and his siblings have a multitude of memories as well. One incident stands out in my mind about Joe. I bet you will find it as peculiar as I do.
In 1998 Graham was recruited to go on a mission trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, with a friend and former Greek teacher to bring Bible messages to pastors in the region. After agreeing to go, he set about the task of securing his passport. He filled out all the forms, got his birth certificate from the safe deposit box, wrote his check and mailed the contents to the proper agency, then sat back to wait for his passport to arrive in the mail.
What he got, however, was a letter explaining that, since his name was not recorded on his birth certificate, they could not issue him a passport. Panic set in immediately, but soon he was able to ask some questions and discovered that, if there was one living relative who witnessed his birth, an affidavit could be obtained and would be approved for the issuance of said passport.
Here, however, was the problem: Graham's parents were both deceased, he was the oldest of his siblings, and there was only one relative who might have been around at the time of his birth - Uncle Joe! After several phone calls he was able to track down Joe who was more than happy to verify that his little sister's baby boy was indeed named Harry Graham Wilson Jr. He wrote out the affidavit, had it notarized and sent off to the State Department, and helped Graham get that passport just days before he left for Russia!
A strange story, yes, but just one example of the interesting life of Joseph P. McAuliffe. When we were in Ireland last spring, Graham asked at every stop about the McAuliffe clan. The best we could determine is that they were located up in Tipperary, even though Graham had always thought they were from Cork. Given a few more days, he might have been able to track them down. We shared that bit of information with Joe just a month ago while he was visiting his niece, Suzanne. Happily, he and Graham were able to share a few laughs and a lot of memories. He will be missed.
Here is a link to a website set up by Joe's niece and her husband where they share their memories and photos of their beloved uncle. In the days ahead they will add more of their personal tribute to Joe. Graham and his siblings have a multitude of memories as well. One incident stands out in my mind about Joe. I bet you will find it as peculiar as I do.
In 1998 Graham was recruited to go on a mission trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, with a friend and former Greek teacher to bring Bible messages to pastors in the region. After agreeing to go, he set about the task of securing his passport. He filled out all the forms, got his birth certificate from the safe deposit box, wrote his check and mailed the contents to the proper agency, then sat back to wait for his passport to arrive in the mail.
What he got, however, was a letter explaining that, since his name was not recorded on his birth certificate, they could not issue him a passport. Panic set in immediately, but soon he was able to ask some questions and discovered that, if there was one living relative who witnessed his birth, an affidavit could be obtained and would be approved for the issuance of said passport.
Here, however, was the problem: Graham's parents were both deceased, he was the oldest of his siblings, and there was only one relative who might have been around at the time of his birth - Uncle Joe! After several phone calls he was able to track down Joe who was more than happy to verify that his little sister's baby boy was indeed named Harry Graham Wilson Jr. He wrote out the affidavit, had it notarized and sent off to the State Department, and helped Graham get that passport just days before he left for Russia!
A strange story, yes, but just one example of the interesting life of Joseph P. McAuliffe. When we were in Ireland last spring, Graham asked at every stop about the McAuliffe clan. The best we could determine is that they were located up in Tipperary, even though Graham had always thought they were from Cork. Given a few more days, he might have been able to track them down. We shared that bit of information with Joe just a month ago while he was visiting his niece, Suzanne. Happily, he and Graham were able to share a few laughs and a lot of memories. He will be missed.
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