Member's statement: Gerry McLaughlin

Member's statement by Mr Maurice Bradley on 17 September 2024.

MLA

Mr Maurice Bradley

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

17 September 2024

Type

Member's statement

Business

Members' Statements

Heading

Gerry McLaughlin

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4536819

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I will speak about the sad loss of a friend and former council colleague, Gerry McLaughlin, who was laid to rest on Friday. The nature of this place and the short time available in which to organise meetings and deal with constituency matters greatly impinges on our ability to attend funerals and ad hoc events. Nevertheless, I record my sadness at his passing and my gratitude for having known Gerry for many years, long before he or I became councillors. Gerry McLaughlin is etched in my good-memories bank. I knew Gerry when he worked in Diamond sawmills and in the old Department of the Environment, long before I became a councillor. In fact, Gerry was the first person to shake my hand on the day that I was elected in a by-election. He had a reputation for helping his fellow workmates, while his record of working for all as a councillor was well known and appreciated. He was a tireless community worker. In his younger days, he was a leading member of Windsor Boys' Club in Coleraine, where he educated children in the art of boxing alongside the late Billy Murphy and the late John Harte. His love for his wife, Bernadette, and his family was unending. Bernadette was a shining star in his life, closely followed by his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I was privileged to play a small part when he and Bernadette renewed their marriage vows on their 50th wedding anniversary.

Gerry's late father served in the First World War and was severely injured, but, thankfully, he survived that terrible conflict and returned home. Gerry, in memory of his father, was one of the first, if not the very first, SDLP councillors to attend Remembrance Sunday. When he and I attended our first official Remembrance Sunday together in 1996, we also travelled to the Somme battlefields. Gerry McLaughlin was a kind, loving, loyal man whose word was his bond, and his integrity was beyond reproach. He was a gentleman, a family man. He had so many qualities, and I was proud to have known him as a friend. I have fond memories of our times in council. As two working-class guys, we had much in common and a friendship that rose above all else, especially politics. A few months back, Gerry and his daughter Stephanie visited my office. Right away, Gerry, despite his illness, adopted a boxing pose. We had a good laugh, a bit of craic, and, again, another memory was made that will never fade. Gerry will be greatly missed, not by just his family but by the many constituents whom he helped over the years. I, too, will miss Gerry. My life has been much richer for having known him, and I extend my deepest sympathy to his wife, Bernadette, children Donna, Cathy, Gerry, Colette, Dominic, Gemma, Stephanie, Gary, Richard, Amy and the late Louise and the immediate and extended family circle.

488 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not qualifying

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:06 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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