Finian Rowland, 89, was born May 13, 1927 in Bofeenaun, at the foot of Nephin Mountain in northwest Co. Mayo, Ireland, and he died in Seattle on June 25, 2016.
There will be a recitation of the Rosary at 7 pm on Friday, July 1 at Hoffner Fisher and Harvey Funeral Home, 508 N 36th St, Seattle. The Funeral Mass will be at 10 am on Saturday, July 2 at St. John Catholic Church, 7916 1st Ave NW, Seattle, followed by a reception, and internment afterwards at Calvary Cemetery.
Finian came to Seattle directly from Ireland in January, 1950 and worked first in construction and then with Pacific Northwest Bell for 34 years. At the Telephone Company, everybody knew him as "Irish" and during his time there he made many lifelong friends.
Finian also made numerous friends in Seattle's Irish community. From the time he arrived in Seattle, he has been actively involved in Seattle's Irish organizations, serving as President or on the Board or as an active member of the Gaelic Club in the 1950s and 1960s, of the Irish American Club in the 1970s and 1980s, and in the Irish Heritage Club since then. He was also a strong supporter of the Seattle Gaels Gaelic Footballers and of the Seattle Galway Sister City Association, and served as Honorary Grand Marshal of Seattle's St. Patrick's Day Parade in 1987. Finian was a strong backer of anything Irish and a wonderful friend to all, Irish or not. His passing truly marks the end of an era.
Finian is survived by his wife Sally, his children Ann (Rich) Bitzer in Oregon, and Kathleen, Teresa (Stewart) O'Leary, and Patrick in the Seattle area, a brother John in Lynnwood and another brother in Ireland, to all of whom we offer sincere condolences. In addition, he is survived and will be missed by the countless friends whom he made and cherished during his long life.
