Father’s farewell to his flock
Reporter: by Marina Berry
Date published: 22 July 2009
A POPULAR parish priest will carry happy memories of Saddleworth with him as he heads for pastures new.
Father Joseph Falloon is due to pack his bags and return to his Irish roots after more than 15 years at Sacred Heart Church, Uppermill.
The 81-year-old will live in a retirement home for priests in Dublin, after handing over the reins of the church to Father Jimmy Stubbs.
Father Falloon will be remembered throughout time by a stained glass window installed in the church to mark his 80th birthday. And the memory is just one of many which will remain with him after he has left.
Becoming a priest was something Father Falloon had always expected he would do.
He was just one of many students of a Belfast school who went into the priesthood, and he came to England in 1970 to do what he described as “priestly work.”
His longest stint as a parish priest was in Uppermill, and he said in his last few days in the village: “It feels like home.
“It has been a very nice place to live, people are thoughtful and the Whit Friday Walks will in particular stick in my mind. It is a tradition I hope never dies out.”
Father Falloon is helping Father Stubbs “learn the ropes” before he leaves for Ireland.
It is Father Stubbs’ first position in England, after 37 years work with the church in South Africa.
