Extra seating had to be found to accommodate the crowds who had come both to celebrate and to say a fond farewell to Mgr Tom as he retired as Parish Priest.

The Mass was celebrated by Mgr Tom and thirty fellow priests concelebrated with him. In the congregation were members of his family from Dublin and Coventry, a large number of personal friends, Sisters from the local convents and parishioners. The hymns chosen for the Mass were some of his favourites and reflected his great devotion to Our Blessed Lady and his admiration for Blessed John Henry Newman. Also included was Make me a channel of your peace, the prayer of St Francis.

In his homily Mgr Tom spoke of his life and the important role his family had played in the development of his faith and vocation. He told how he was led to the priesthood and reflected on his time in St Francis’ parish. He spoke movingly of Frs Bill O’Brien and Alan Smith who had both stayed with him and been cared for in the parish during their final illnesses. He also remembered particularly Mgr Peter Diem who had spent so much time in St Francis’ and was then murdered on his return to Vietnam. He also spoke of his great pleasure that Fr Gerry Kelly would be succeeding him as Parish Priest. He was especially delighted because before Fr Gerry entered the priesthood he had played a major role in the parish as president of the SVP and is consequently well known to many at St Francis. He thanked all his parishioners for their friendship and help and requested that they pray for him as he would for them.

At the end of the Mass Mgr Moran, the Vicar General, read a personal message from His Grace, The Archbishop, thanking Mgr Tom for the generosity and dedication with which he had served the diocese for the last 52 years. He particularly acknowledged his achievement in building up the annual Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour and the provision of the beautiful Blessed Sacrament Chapel that has enabled parishioners to spend time in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament for 50 hours a week.

The whole mass was a wonderful celebration which will go down in the history of the parish as a well deserved and fitting tribute to Mgr Tom.Fr Gerry Kelly then read a message from the local MP Mr Khalid Mahmood thanking Mgr Tom for his years of service to the community of Handsworth. He also mentioned that Mgr Tom’s doctoral thesis on dialogue between the Catholic Church and Islam was now to be made available to the Local Studies department of the Birmingham University Library for the use of research students. Fr Gerry paid his own tribute to Mgr Tom as a priest who was a father to his parish. He then made a presentation to him from the Parish. Fr Peter Conley congratulated Mgr Tom on his recent birthday and led everyone in singing ‘Happy Birthday’. Mgr Tom thanked Fr Peter for his hard work in arranging the Mass and the celebrations to follow.

The Mass ended with the fervent singing of Hail Queen of Heaven as Mgr Tom, his fellow priests and altar servers processed out of the Church into the bright sunshine. The whole Mass was a wonderful celebration which will go down in the history of the parish as a well deserved and fitting tribute to Mgr Tom.

After the Mass everyone was invited into the St Francis Social Centre which Mgr Tom has worked so hard over the years to build up. A magnificent buffet had been laid on by the staff of the centre and a member of the parish had made him a beautiful birthday cake. One by one a huge number of people filed in to be greeted personally by Mgr Tom. The party then got off to a rousing start as Mgr Tom led the singing with ‘You are my Sunshine’ and ‘Wish Me Luck As You Wave Me Goodbye’. The celebrations continued throughout the day and late into the evening.

When Fr Kelly spoke of Mgr Tom he said it was as ‘Fr Fallon’ that many people still referred to him because it was in his one-to-one care that he was most well known. This was borne out as people waited to greet Mgr Tom in the Centre. Many could be heard telling their stories and sharing their memories recalling his personal care for them over the years. Countless examples were brought to mind of visits to the sick, funerals attended, help given and interest shown in their lives.

As we waited to pass on our congratulations to Mgr Tom there was ample opportunity to reflect on so many things that he has achieved as our Parish Priest. His ministry in Handsworth has been characterised by the warmth and welcome that he has extended to anyone who has walked through the doors of the church. He has been unfailing in his care of people regardless of their situation, especially the sick, the bereaved and the dispossessed. This was never more apparent than in his welcome to the late Mgr Peter Diem and all the other Vietnamese refugees who he supported in establishing their community in the parish. With his help they set up their own Pastoral centre, and have made a major contribution to the life of the parish. The fruits of this work can be seen throughout the diocese in the number of vocations to the priesthood that have been fostered in the Vietnamese community.

Mgr Tom has always wanted his church to be warm and welcoming and he has made many improvements to the fabric of the building to make it a place of beauty to worship in. One of his major achievements in this area has been the restoration of the church to its original Victorian splendour. He went to great lengths to ensure the accuracy and authenticity of the decorations. Visitors to the church are always struck by the beauty of the building. He has always been very proud of the historical associations of St Francis church and presbytery. He was thrilled when English Heritage put up a blue plaque to commemorate the fact that John Hardman (1811-1867), master metal worker and stained glass maker (who worked with Pugin on St Chad’s Cathedral), had lived in the house that later became the presbytery.

Care for people has been at the heart of his ministry. He has worked hard for the whole community and done much to promote the cause of justice and peace. During the early 80’s when there had been rioting in the streets of Lozells Mgr Tom’s familiar figure was to be seen the next morning walking out in the neighbourhood talking to people and working to promote dialogue between different community and faith groups. He has never ceased to work towards this aim during the last 34 years.

Mgr Tom has made a huge impact on the spiritual life of the parish with his encouragement of several prayer groups.He has been an unfailing supporter of our three Catholic schools, St Francis’, St Clare’s and St John Wall. He fought long and hard to save St Clare’s school when it was threatened with closure. The fact it is thriving today is due to his hard work and commitment to Catholic education.

Mgr Tom has made a huge impact on the spiritual life of the parish with his encouragement of several prayer groups, the all night vigil on the first Friday of the month, the twice weekly Novena Masses and above all the establishment of the Adoration Chapel. He has devoted a great deal of time and energy to the embellishment of the Chapel to make it a place that is both conducive to prayer and a fit setting for the Blessed Sacrament. He is very proud of the fact that there are 50 hours of Eucharistic adoration taking place each week.
He has also created strong links with the Jesuit Novitiate in Harborne throughout his time in the parish and their presence has enriched the liturgy over the years.

One of the major spiritual events in the life of the parish has been the annual Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour led by Fr Derek Meskell of the Redemptorists. It was with great pleasure that Mgr Tom was able to say that his successor, Fr Gerry, is keen for this to continue and that Fr Derek will be with us again this May.

There is so much more one could say about Mgr Tom after 52 years of his priesthood but the presence of such a large crowd, the warmth of the applause and the wholehearted singing of ‘Happy Birthday’ illustrates his success as a much loved Parish Priest better than any words. He will be sadly missed and we wish him every happiness in the next stage of his priestly life.

Special thanks go to Vince Thompson of The Harp Newspaper.