Politician Mary O'Rourke's family life, 40 years of marriage, illness and proudest moment

The political powerhouse had a career spanning across a number of decades, and the Westmeath native made a huge impact on Irish society, but ultimately her proudest achievement was her family

Politician and beloved figure-head Mary O'Rourke has sadly passed away on Thursday, October 3rd.

The political powerhouse had a career spanning across a number of decades, and the Westmeath native made a huge impact on Irish society, being known wherever she went and fondly thought of as 'Mammy O'Rourke' over the years.

During her career, Ms O'Rourke served as ministers for education, heath public enterprise.

Read more: Mary O'Rourke struggled to start a family after marrying husband Enda

Read more: Mary O'Rourke says she still dreams of beloved late husband Enda

While her work and career is well documented, she has had an incredible personal life too, with a family who is no stranger to politics.

Family Life

Mary was married to her husband Enda, who sadly passed away in 2001. She and Enda had two sons - Aengus and Feargal - and six grandchildren.

Aengus has served as mayor of Athlone, while Feargal is a Managing Partner at PriceWaterHouseCoopers.

Her son Feargal paid tribute to her in a post on X.

He said: "My mum passed earlier this afternoon. To many she was a former teacher, politician, broadcaster, author but to myself and @CllrAengusOrour she was our mum.

She loved us to bits, taught us to respect everyone, to be honest , to work hard and study hard, to love our family."

Politics was in her blood, as she hailed from prominent Athlone political family, the Lenihans, and her brother Brian was also a long-standing Fianna Fáil minister.

A number of her family members have also followed in the family footsteps, as her nephews, Brian and Conor Lenihan, were also TDs.

Brian served as Minister for Finance from 2008 to 2011.

Mary said that her family is her proudest achievement in life.

"My proudest achievement of being a woman would have to be having my family" she told RSVP.

Marriage

Mary's husband retired businessman Enda was just 65 years old when he took ill at his home and later died in the Mater Hospital in Dublin in 2001.

They married in 1960.

Mary previously told RSVP how she thought of her husband often after his passing. "I was dreaming of Enda the other night."

"The older I get, I am more inclined to think back to married life with him."

"How happy we were. Weren’t we so lucky to be so happy? So many people aren’t now, but thank God we were and we had two lovely sons and six lovely grandchildren."

She also opened up about their wedding. Speaking to Brendan Courtney on RTE’s Keys To My Life about how she fell in love, Mary said: “He was good looking, I always liked his looks. I was first of all physically attracted, you have to be that, with anyone."

“I can’t remember if he said will you marry me, I think he said, ‘We’ll be together won’t we, forever?’ I might be adding that bit on!

“We got married in 1960. We were children when I think about it but you had to get married to have sex with your would-be husband. We skated towards it quite a lot! But we didn’t plunge in, no.”

Mary also praised Enda for being incredibly supportive of her career in politics.

She said: “I had a very loving home life and he always, always there for me. I’d come home battered and bruised from Dublin and he’d always take my side. He would say, ‘Oh yeah, don't mind them, you’re right.’"

“He was the love of my life. I miss him so much.”

Illness

In August 2022, Mary returned home after spending months in hospital “very ill”.

Mary’s son Aengus shared the news that the former Fianna Fail politician has made a great recovery in recent weeks and was well enough to be discharged home in the care of her family.

Taking to Twitter, the Westmeath Councillor shared a snap of Mary, writing: “After months in hospital, at times very ill, mam has made a great recovery in recent weeks.

“Thanks for all the good wishes, prayers and support, we really appreciate it."

It has been reported that she may have been unwell in the run up to her passing.

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