Philomena asked how Pete had managed to get Michael buried in Roscrea, and Pete told the whole story. Mike’s body had been cremated at the Metropolitan Crematory in Alexandria, Virginia, and Pete had written to ask the mother superior of Sean Ross Abbey if she would agree to his dying wish.
Dear Sister Christina,
It is with sadness that I write this letter . . . Although Michael lived a very happy and successful life in the United States, his last wish was to have his ashes returned to the place of his birth . . . Michael’s emotional connection to the Abbey ran deep and I would not feel true to his wishes by burying him anywhere else. Michael asked that a donation be made to the Abbey in his name.
Throughout his life he held his Irish roots very close to his heart. I know he will only truly be able to rest in peace if he returns to the Abbey . . .
Pete explained that the deal had been brokered by an Irish priest called Father Leonard: ‘I’d met Father Leonard socially when he’d been to the States. He was one of those Irish priests who were the core strength of the Irish Church. I said, “I really want to get Michael buried at Roscrea in the grounds, but they don’t have it open for burials.” I said, “See what you can do. I’m ready to donate a big chunk. Tell them I’ll send them a cheque and see if we can make it work.” He called me back the next day.’
The burial took place on 9 May 1996 and Father Leonard officiated. Pete produced a copy of the priest’s funeral oration: ‘We are about to lay to rest the mortal remains of Michael Hess . . . Michael set out from this place in 1955. After a very successful life and career in the United States, he has returned to the land of his forebears . . . He is now at peace.’
All paths in the search for Philomena’s lost child had led back to Roscrea and the convent where his story began.
After speaking to Pete Nilsson, I talked to the other significant people in Michael’s life, including Robert Hampden, Susan Kavanagh, Ben Kronfeld, Mark Braden, John Clarkson and Mark O’Connor, who later emailed me: ‘Martin, one final thought I should share is that while we were young and frivolous back then, and not so serious about relationships, Michael was my first love, with all the intensity that implies. I miss him very much.’
Susan told me Michael’s death had left her bereft. ‘When I think of Michael, I try not to focus on all the end stuff, which is very sad. When I think about him I just think of how much fun we had. It was always, ‘What are we going to do? Are we going to do this or are we going to do that?’ I just remember everything was an event; he always made things special. And I think, God, life has gotten so boring without him.’
Most importantly, Pete put me in touch with Mary, Michael’s sister in life if not in blood. She lives in Florida near her grandchildren and looks back on her odyssey with the little boy from Roscrea with an awareness of how different things could have been. If Anthony Lee had not tugged at the heart of Marge Hess that day in August 1955, Mary would have flown alone on the night flight from Shannon to America; she would have been alone with her new family that Christmas in St Louis, and she would have faced the rest of her life without the support of her closest friend. She has been back to Roscrea herself; she has taken her new husband there; and she is talking of following Mike’s example and searching for her own birth mother. She lives in the certitude that she will one day be reunited with her brother.
‘Michael was my confidant and I was his all through our lives. I have missed him so much these past years since he’s been gone . . . When I was in Roscrea I was talking with the mother superior and I told her, “Really, you know when I die I would like to be brought over and buried here. Is it going to be a problem for me to be buried next to my brother?” Because when Michael was buried there nobody had opened a grave in a hundred years so they had to get special permission to do that. Now, she told me that if I wanted to be buried at Roscrea then I could be buried where the nuns are buried; she said I could be buried in that graveyard, you know, and I kind of thought about it and that would be OK, but I would rather be next to my brother.’
Philomena goes regularly to Roscrea and I have stood with her at her son’s graveside. It is over fifty years since she last talked to him in life, but she talks to him now.
‘Thank God you are home again in Ireland, son. You’re here where I can visit you now . . . But you came here and no one told you anything. No one told you I was looking for you and I loved you, my son. How different it all would have been . . .’
The quest to find Anthony has come to an end, but there is one final thread. On behalf of Philomena, I spoke to the archivists of the Irish government and the Limerick post office in search of a tall dark civil servant named John McInerney. He was in his early twenties when he met Philomena Lee at the Limerick Carnival on the Ennis Road in October 1951. Some lines of enquiry have emerged and are being pursued, but that, as they say, is a story for another occasion.
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List of Plates
1. Entrance to the dormitory for unmarried mothers, Sean Ross Abbey.
2. Ruins of the medieval monastery and the old graveyard.
3. The new newborn babies’ nursery in the 1950s.
4. The babies on the terrace.
5. The children’s dining room.
6. Philomena as a young girl.
7. Philomena after leaving Roscrea.
8. Sister Annunciata in the Abbey grounds.
9. Sister Annunciata with Anthony.
10. Anthony on the slide.
11. Anthony in the convent parlour.
12. Anthony and Mary outside the children’s nursery.
13. Anthony ready to leave for America, December 1955.
14. Marge’s Irish notebook, summer 1955.
15. Anthony’s passport, December 1955.
16. Philomena’s renunciation oath, giving up her son.
17. Arriving at Chicago airport, December 1955.
18. Michael and Mary’s first Christmas in America.
19. Michael’s fourth birthday, July 1956.
20. Doc Hess, Michael, Stevie, Thomas, Mary, James. September 1956.
21. Mary and Michael (front) in the garden in St Louis, with brother Stevie.
22. Michael aged five on vacation in Minnesota.
23. Michael aged seven.
24. Mary’s first Communion.
25. Michael’s confirmation, July 1961.
26. Loras Lane, Pope Paul VI and Josephine Lane in the Vatican, October 1965.
27. Michael and Mary take the oath to become US citizens, 3 October 1968.
28. Michael in Florida, August 1971.
29. With Mark (left) at Michael’s law school graduation, May 1977.
30. Michael with Susan Kavanagh, Christmas 1979.
31. Pete Nilsson, Sally and Michael at the cottage in West Virginia.
32. Official portrait of the Republican Party’s new Chief Counsel, 1988.
33. Michael with Sister Hildegarde at Sean Ross Abbey, August 1993.
34. Mary and Michael, sick with AIDS, in West Virginia, Easter 1995.
35. Mary at Michael’s grave, 1998.
36. Philomena’s first visit after discovering her son’s grave, summer 2004.
Entrance to the dormitory for unmarried mothers, Sean Ross Abbey.
Ruins of the medieval monastery and the old graveyard.
The new newborn babies’ nursery in the 1950s.
The babies on the terrace.
The children’s dining room.
Philomena as a young girl.
Philomena after leaving Roscrea.
Sister Annunciata in the Abbey grounds.
Sister Annunciata with Anthony.
Anthony on the slide.
Anthony in the convent parlour.
Anthony and Mary outside the children’s nursery.
Anthony ready to leave for America, December 1955.
> Marge’s Irish notebook, summer 1955.
Anthony’s passport, December 1955.
Philomena’s renunciation oath, giving up her son.
Arriving at Chicago airport, December 1955.
Michael and Mary’s first Christmas in America.
Michael’s fourth birthday, July 1956.
Doc Hess, Michael, Stevie, Thomas, Mary, James. September 1956.
Mary and Michael (front) in the garden in St Louis, with brother Stevie.
Michael aged five on vacation in Minnesota.
Michael aged seven.
Mary’s first Communion.
Michael’s confirmation, July 1961.
Loras Lane, Pope Paul VI and Josephine Lane in the Vatican, October 1965.
Michael and Mary take the oath to become US citizens, 3 October 1968.
Michael in Florida, August 1971.
With Mark (left) at Michael’s law school graduation, May 1977.
Michael with Susan Kavanagh, Christmas 1979.
Pete Nilsson, Sally and Michael at the cottage in West Virginia.
Official portrait of the Republican Party’s new Chief Counsel, 1988.
Michael with Sister Hildegarde at Sean Ross Abbey, August 1993.
Mary and Michael, sick with AIDS, in West Virginia, Easter 1995.
Mary at Michael’s grave, 1998.
Philomena’s first visit after discovering her son’s grave, summer 2004.
First published 2009 by Macmillan
This electronic edition published 2010 by Macmillan
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Copyright © Martin Sixsmith 2009
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The Lost Child of Philomena Lee (Original Edition) Page 42