Leitrim man who died in Ukraine laid to rest

Leitrim man who died in Ukraine laid to rest

23 February 2022

THE funeral of a Leitrim man who helped to bring Gaelic football to China took place on Saturday.

Kevin Gregory died suddenly from heart failure in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev on February 12.

He had been recently reunited with his long-term partner, Noza Yuldasheva, in the city after they had been being separated for more than a year due to the pandemic.

The 31 year-old English teacher had formerly played for Liatroim Fontenoys GAC, where his brother Conor still plays on the senior team.

He helped to found Shunde Gaels in Guangdong, where he worked as a teacher, with friends and fellow Down men Sean Brogan, Philly Brennan and Ciaran McCann.

Hundreds of mourners joined Mr Gregory’s parents Kieran and Lisa, along with his younger brothers Conor, Declan, Aodhán, Domhnall, Fionntán and Anton for the funeral service.

Father Peter McNeill told mourners at St Mary’s Church in Dechomet: “We are not here to worship Kevin but to acknowledge him, the inspiration he offered at different times to different people, was it a word, a helping hand, or ‘come join the team’?”

“How can so much be packed into almost half of my lifetime? The fun, the connection be it through the sport, whether that was soccer, the Gaelic or the hurling.

“I wonder if some of the clubs he was part of reforming or starting up, when they mark their centenary, they’ll hold on to the four names that started them up.

“Be it Kiev, Moscow, Shanghai, Qatar, wherever, he was he was himself, he was that energy.

“Hold on to your memories of him but don’t canonise him, hold on to all the good stories but hold on to the human ones as well.”

Fr McNeill said Mr Gregory’s family and friends were “so relieved” that his girlfriend was able to be there for the service after getting approval to travel from Kiev at short notice.

Prayers and thanks were also offered for the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust which helped his family bring his body home, despite the current tensions in Ukraine.

Almost £26,000 was raised from a crowd funding page set up by the Gregory family to help pay for Mr Gregory’s repatriation.

The family have promised to donate the balance of the money to the Kevin Bell Trust after funeral expenses. 

Conor Gregory said the family have "never known loss like this before".

"He's always been far away but no matter what, he would always come home. Christmas time was important for us because Kevin came home. 

He was the cornerstone of everything.”

Mr Gregory and his brothers were raised in Belfast before moving to the Castlewellan area.

A former student of St Malachy's High School in Castlewellan, Kevin graduated with an Irish degree and as an English teacher from St Mary's University College, Belfast in 2013.

He travelled to work as a teacher in China on a program run by the British Council and worked in three cities — Foshan, Jinan and Tianjin.

Shunde Gaels paid tribute to their “lost brother” after learning of his tragic sudden death.

“We would like to first send our condolences to Kevin’s girlfriend Noza and his family at home who have been massive in supporting our club from day one,” the club posted on Facebook.

“He was one of the founding members of the Gaels and a best friend to all of us. He left a lasting impression on everyone he met and the hole that has been left in our hearts will never be filled.”