Obituary of John B. Sheehan III

John B. Sheehan III , born January 4 1967 in Queens NY. Deceased Jan 27, 2020 in Amityville. John moved to Selden in 1970, attended Middle Country Schools and graduated Comeswogue HS in , attended Nassau Community College, and worked at Transdev in Garden City. His passion was music, he was a lover of many genres, playing guitar and several other instruments. He was an especially talented singer, singing lead for Strange Embrace and then Remedy with lifelong friends. A singular performer, he had many fans and was often asked to perform as a guest singer, walk-on and other gigs. Wake Thursday Feb 6 2-4 and 7-9 at Law funeral home Massapequa. Mass Friday February 7, 10 AM Maria Regina RC Church, Massapequa Entombment to follow services. John leaves behind his mother and stepfather, Rosalie and Cliff Mackin, of Farmingdale, his father and stepmother Joseph and Rosalie Sheehan of Leesburg FL His three sisters and their families, Colleen and Shawn Barnes of VA, Kathleen Sheehan of NC, and Tracy and Charles Mercurio of East Setauket In lieu of flowers, please send donations to: https://donate.bbrfoundation.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&id=1 Reply Forward Funeral Homily for JOHN BARTHOLOMEW SHEEHAN At Maria Regina Church, Feb 7, 2020 by Reverend James Coy Francis Sheehan, Jr. So, we are here (after sharing at least some stories!) … probably not wanting to be here—and the dark, dreary weather is changing all the time. So are we ...changing. I am aware that we all come to this holy spot of mystery from different levels…family, mother, sisters, priest cousin, John’s music family, drinking partners, co-workers from the bus repair shop of Nassau County, neighbors, the good people from the Parish Bereavement Group …here,,, there.. everyplace. John Bartholomew Sheehan is whispering to us, asking for attention—and we of him – and our Higher Powers. As a priest of 40 yrs, I really only make 2 points at a Funeral Homily. We need each other—and we need God We begin with each other… This is a marrying family …several of us like falling in love so much we get married more than once!! This is a family that is blessed by new kinds of love, and a family that can face our demons pretty well. It is not all about prayer; On Saturday, I went to Al-anon—again-- so as to get help in areas that even prayer can’t reach. Ours is a family where we can channel our intelligence to choose to communicate outside of drama. We have archetypes—real working class examples --if not heroes of stability and even nobility. Grandpa John is revered by us, as well as the free-spirited Aunt Agnes from Peru. I remember Rose’s parents who were so proud and joyful at the different markers of faith…baptisms, communions, weddings And now we have John! John …who has the name of the beloved disciple, and he is beloved—if not even spoiled by his sisters -- Colleen, Tracy, Kathleen! And Batholomew. Bartholomew is an apostle who was flayed alive by life’s challenges and those who resisted the light. Somehow, BOTH the people of India and the Armenians see him as the Patron Saint of Neurological Diseases. The simple people know that the more open we are, the more we can face our natural nervousness, addictions and diseases, including alcoholism, the more we can be light to each other. John in his kind ebullience cannot be pinned down. His love of music will be heard throughout this Mass, and later on. What kind of song do we bring to him and our families? Is it as transparent as it needs to be? When someone dies at 54, it’s a wake-up call from the pagan world to seize the day.”Carpe diem!”... John’s life is stronger than a text, He begs us to do what Paul’s Letter from Captivity to the Ephesians says to do…”To stop all bitterness...to openly say “Thank you” “I’m sorry,” and yes, “I need you!” John asks us to be authentically open; that is real, and yes, painful wisdom. How DO we do that? When do we start again doing that? The 2nd reality is God – a reality that we often leave in the memory bank of childhood…Is it God we leave behind, or a false image of a gigantic computer recording our sins and all too human foibles. There’s nothing of that distant God in the clumsy Gospel that the family chose to read from in Mark 10. Clumsy because the beggar on the side of the road did NOT know his place. He caused a scene with the wandering Prophet and Healer who is Jesus. Clumsy, because we see in the Bible again and again a Jesus as the Son of God who does not stay distant but throws himself into a healing, heart to heart, eyeball-to eyeball conversation with a hurting needy fellow human—like us… Clumsy because the ball is in our court now. We are to give witness to the lessons of John’s life—both those clear and those not so clear. When do we begin? Wow! That’s something to sing about, celebrate about, and pray about.