Sitrep 1 An email from Mac’s daughter Clare
Sitrep 2 Laurences’ family has had another major loss, please do not contact them at the moment, see below
Sitrep 3, Funeral Arrangements,
It is with so much sadness I report that First Radio Officer Laurence (MAC) McElroy RFA(Retd) Crossed the Bar and went Silent Key at his home in Weymouth on Saturday 5th January 2019 aged 74 .
Sitrep 3. Mac’s funeral will take place at 0915 on Friday 18th January 2019 at Weymouth Crematorium (HERE for their website and HERE for a map) Old shipmates and colleagues will be most welcome to attend and will be invited to join the family for refreshments afterwards.
Family Flowers only but donations in lieu and if desired should be made to the RNLI and will be coordinated by the Funeral Direcotors, please endorse the back of any cheques “In memory of Laurence McElroy”
The arrangements for Mac’s funeral are being made by Cotton and Son – Independent Funeral Directors Weymouth. ( HERE for their Website and HERE for a map)
On behalf of the RFA Association I offer our sincere condolences to to Jacky, children Clare, Richard and Nicola and his brother Graham McElroy and all their family.
If you have any remembrances of Mac please email it to me at captain.pat@rfaa.uk and I will post them on this page. I am also looking for photographs of Mac for this piece and the RFA Association Gallery and Archive, If you have one please email it to me.
Sitrep 1, an email from Mac’s Daughter.
Hi Peter
Thank you for your kind response, I know Laurence was involved with the Wray Castle reunion as his friend Rod Webb has let me know. I know that Dad would have loved the idea of the RFA flag, the arrangements are all being handled by Cotton & Son Ltd, Milton House, 1 Milton Road, Weymouth, Dorset, DT4 0AZ, tel: 01305 767676, e mail:
office@cottonfunerals.co.uk. The funeral has been provisionally booked for Jan 18th at Weymouth Crematorium at 16:00. As far as we are aware the coroner will release his body to Cotton & Son in the next few days.
Laurence (Mac) McElroy was born on 04/01/1945, in Glasgow and died the day after his birthday on 05/01/2019 aged 74, at home in Weymouth, it was his wish to be at home and he was surrounded by the family on his birthday which was lovely. He was diagnosed with advanced Pancreatic Cancer in April and right up until December he was still mobile and getting around having chemo etc, he unfortunately became very ill in December and spent time in and out of hospital, returning home for his final sleep on the 4th January on his (and mums ) birthday.
Laurence is survived by his wife Jacky McElroy and children Clare, Richard and Nicola and his brother Graham McElroy.
Since retiring from the RFA a few years back he served for a few years at Bulford, comms centre, he then retired but got bored, and in recent years he volunteered for the RNLI and Nothe Fort in Portland, so he was never far from other seafarers even in retirement.
Laurence was very proud of his time in the RFA and served on more ships than we can remember, he (and we) had particularly fond memories of his time on RFA Engadine when she was Portland based as it meant he was near home, and also of accompanying the H.M. Royal Yacht Brittania in 1982 and attending a reception on board given by The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh whilst it was in Tarawa.
His rank at retirement was First Radio Officer.
Mum has also received a phone call today from Pat Thompson from the association and we have said we will confirm funeral details once they are set in stone.
Kind Regards
Clare Lanes
Sitrep 2. The family suffered another loss of an immediate family on Friday 11th January 2019 with the death of Jacky’s son Richard. On behalf of the RFA Association I offer the family our very sincere condolences for their loss.