WESTWOOD, N.J.—Luke Farrelly held a pint of Guinness in one hand and wiped his eyes with the other. Around him, outside P.J. Finnegan’s, were people who had come to remember his wife, Rose Marie, with whom he’d built the business and so much more.
They brought photographs and stories. They raised their glasses. And they dedicated a green bench beneath the pub’s front window, its plaque reading: “In Loving Memory of Rose Marie Farrelly. Our Irish Rose – Loved by All.”
The sunny Sept. 13 gathering brought family and friends to the downtown mainstay owned by Luke, a place their son Desmond described through its occasions: weddings, engagements, birthdays. People met here, celebrated here, and stayed connected.
His mother had helped build that life with his father.
“She’s built in the walls,” a friend emphasized.
Rose Marie Farrelly, née Teevan, of Emerson, died Jan. 13 at home, surrounded by her family. She was 64. She and Luke had three children—Desmond, Denise and Nicole—and five grandchildren, Luka, Frankie, Zoe, Cecilia and Cian.
Donations were requested to the John Theurer Cancer Center.
Luke said friends had arranged for the bench. Eight months after Rose’s passing, they gathered around it, decorated with pink roses, outside a pub that has welcomed customers since the 1980s.
P.J. Finnegan’s, at 274 Fairview Ave., one of a dwindling class of veteran businesses here, arguably anchors downtown: somewhere familiar to share a pint, a story, and a meal with neighbors or strangers. For those gathered Sunday, the connections were longstanding and personal. It was “a beautifully sad event,” Luke summarized later.
Desmond described friends who became family through his mom. Holding the tribute here, where so many of them had come together over the years, made it especially meaningful. They were celebrating her life, her friendship, and her place in a greatly extended family of choice. “We are not mourning a loss; we’re celebrating a special person, a special friendship, a special life, and a special family member,” he said.
Family friend Doug McKendry drew laughter and tears in toasting a life that had much mattered. He later told Pascack Press, “Sometimes you have cousins and then sometimes you have cousins that you choose, you know.”
He said “Rosie” was known for her charisma, charm, courage, and concerns her friends. “Like if, God forbid you had a hospital stay, she’d be the first one over to visit. And then when you were good enough to come over to her house, she’d serve you her curry and her spuds, she called it, and lots of good cheer.”
The Farrellys lived through a house fire, and came back stronger.
Memories shared included parties, dancing, and moving furniture to make room. Rosie was remembered, too, in framed photos: in full glam at the house on the day of daughter Denise’s wedding (at the pub, amid Covid); she and Luke with their “tribe” on a vacation out West.
Those recollections echoed the portrait her family offered in her obituary. Rose’s home was open to relatives, neighbors, and her children’s friends. She had a meal, advice or a listening ear for someone who needed it.
The family remembered her humor and her readiness to dance, often the first on her feet and pulling others along. Her children and grandchildren were her greatest pride.
On Sunday, red, pink and white balloons rose above the pub into the blue September sky. A sight to remember.
Inside, a pink rose stood in a small glass bottle tied with a red ribbon on the bar.
The bench sits beneath the flower box marked “PUBLIC HOUSE,” with Rose’s name on its back. Luke, Desmond, his twin sister Denise, and little sister Nicole shared the moment inaugurating the amenity, which surely will continue serving guests at P.J. Finnegan’s for years to come.
Luke said it would remain outside the pub, though its spot might change to accommodate the rising tide of a busy Friday or Saturday night.
All was well. It would be fine. “Rose liked to travel,” he said.
