A strong man and a real adventurer is how the late Bob Maher, an islander to the core, will be remembered following his passing earlier this week.

Described by his daughter as a “hugely strong man”, it is believed that it was due to his sheer physical strength, honed from a life of sailing and kayaking on Lough Erne, that Bob survived 22 hours in the wilds of Fermanagh after his dementia caused him to become disorientated and wander off in July, 2017.

At the time, one of the emergency personnel who knew Bob well and aided in his rescue said: “If anyone was going to survive the night, Bob was.”

Talking about her father’s battle with dementia, Bob’s youngest daughter, Christine, explained that the syndrome started creeping in on him around 10 years ago.

“Then it culminated five years ago. He was getting so much worse and then he ended up getting lost [in 2017]. But his health was good right up until September, 2022.”

Robert Oswald ‘Bob’ (82), late of The West Island Cottage, Belle Isle, Lisbellaw, passed away peacefully on Sunday, October 30, at the Slieve Na Mon Care Home, Omagh.

Born in Dublin, Bob came to live in Fermanagh as an evacuee during World War II in 1941. “His parents were living in London at the time, and his mother was born here on the West Island. She was a Cathcart, so he came to stay with her brother, with his uncle and aunt,” said Christine.

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After the war, Bob continued to stay on West Island, he was raised here, because his aunt and uncle didn’t have any children.

“It was an unusual upbringing but a happy one,” explained Christine, noting that as an adult, her father moved to the old school house a few miles down the road, but following his retirement, returned to live on West Island.

As a teenager, Bob attended Portora Royal School in Enniskillen. During his time at school he was a champion marksman, and a rower. From school, he went on to study teaching at Stranmillis in Belfast.

“Lisnaskea High School was his first job, in 1964, and he stayed in the school over 30 years until he retired,” said Christine, commenting that as a teacher her father was regarded as “an absolute legend”.

“He was just adored in Lisnaskea High School, where he taught Art and Design, and Careers. He also ran a chess club and a fishing club.

“He was a really enthusiastic teacher, ahead of his time,” she said, adding: “He’s retired well over 20 years, but you would not walk down a street in Fermanagh without meeting someone he taught, and who remembered him with great fondness as a teacher.”

Bob met the love of his life, Dorothy, whilst he was a student in Belfast.

“They met at a ‘hop’ as they called it then, in Belfast. Dorothy was studying at Queen’s [University] and then they got married a year later. So they lived in Belfast for a year and then they came home here to the West Island,” said Christine.

Together, Bob and Dorothy had three daughters: Rosemary, Elaine and Christine.

“He was a wonderful father; a real family man. He was very outdoorsy, into fishing and boating,” said Christine, noting that he instilled a love of adventure in her and her sisters from a young age.

“That was the thing about dad – he had three daughters but there was none of this ‘princess’ thing. There was no question that we could be whatever we wanted to be; he was incredibly encouraging of us as strong women, which I think was ahead of his time, raising girls in the 1970s,” she added.

Bob was “a real adventurer” who loved the sea and the lough. “He was never happier than when he was at the tiller of a boat.

“He was a sailor at heart, and a Fermanagh Cathcart Islander to the core,” said Christine,

“He was a black belt in judo, an archery champion, and a whitewater kayaking champion. He did marathons and he completed the Border Trek, the 200-mile cycle, a couple of times.”

Talking about her father’s warm and welcoming personality, Christine noted: “He was very polite and always interested in people.

“He loved meeting strangers and just having conversations. There’s nothing he loved more than just talking to people.

“No-one who met him would ever forget him.”

Arranged by Marcus Madill Funeral Director, Bob’s funeral took place on Wednesday, November 2.

The funeral cortège made one final journey to West Island, his beloved home. Many local people lined the avenue to say their final goodbyes as he left the island for the last time.

A much-loved husband of Dorothy, and a devoted father of Rosemary, Elaine and Christine, a dear brother of Joe Maher and Carrie Pullinger, and a very special grandfather to his ten grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, Bob will always be loved and fondly remembered by his family and all the family circle.