ELISH LOGUE
I was working in a chip shop in the Waterside
Top of the hill. I was serving a fellow and chatting
away to him when I saw two ambulances with their
lights and sirens going up past the shop. I turned and
said to the fellow, “I wonder what’s wrong, it must
be serious when there are two ambulances”. I never
for one moment thought it would have something to
do with me. The next thing another fellow came into
the chip shop and said, “you had better close up the
shop, Gerald (Bogie as friends and family knew
him) has been shot,” A gun had gone off
accidentally. At the time I really didn’t believe it was
him. I thought he was watching the children in the
house but I later found out that he had got one of his
sisters to baby sit. So I was thinking to myself there
must be a mistake. It wasn’t until I got to the house that I started to realize it was him,
and then when I got to the hospital and saw him for myself that it sunk in.
I was told before Gerald went to the theatre that it could go either way. When
he came back from the theatre he was given seven pints of blood. Unfortunately
complications set in. Even if Gerald had pulled through he would never have been the
same. I was with Gerald at the end although he never regained consciousness.
The thoughts going through my mind were, how am I going to cope without
him. We had been married over five years with three children one was four and a half,
one was two and a half and one was a year and three months old. Like other couples
we had made plans, I thought I would never be able to go on in life without him.
Throughout the wake the R.U.C kept up a very heavy presence around the
house. I took the children in to see their father. They were all very young and didn’t
really understand what was happening. My oldest son has some memory of the wake.
I was afraid that there might be trouble so I sent them over to stay with my mother in
the Bogside My fears turned out to be right. It was a disgrace that I couldn’t take my
children to their own father’s funeral.
On the morning of the funeral the R.U.C. were out in force and in full riot
gear. The coffin was closed and I was preparing myself to bury my husband. Which is
not an easy thing to do under normal circumstances. Gerald’s coffin was taken out of
the house only to be brought back into the house as the R.U.C. had taken the keys of
the hearse. It was a nightmare. People were been battered by the R.U.C. outside the
house and I didn’t know what was going to happen. At one point I thought I would
never be able to go through with this. I was really terrified to go to my husband’s
funeral. It took hours to get Gerald’s coffin to the Long Tower Chapel. People were
being attacked along the way and we had to keep stopping the cortège. I would not
wish it on my worst enemy. To this day I am still terrified of the R.U.C. after seeing
what they are capable of doing.
My mother brought the children over to Westland Street as the cortege was
passing by. They went into hysterics when they saw me. They wanted me to stay with
them. They were afraid something was going to happen to me especially my oldest
son. It was hard looking at your children screaming and crying for you. Obviously
they didn’t fully understand what was happening. So I had that to try and cope with
that along with everything else that was going on around me.
It was getting dark when we buried Gerald. That shows how long the R.U.C.
held up the funural. The mass was to be at ten o clock that morning. At the graveside I
was handed Gerald’s beret and gloves. They were not removed from his coffin even
though the R.U.C. did their best to have them removed by force.
After the funeral I never went back to live in the Waterside. I moved in with my
mother. I just couldn’t go back to live in the house without Gerald. To be honest I
didn’t think I was strong enough to look after three children on my own. My mother
made me face up to my responsibilities. At the time I thought she didn’t understand
but years later I know what my mother did was for my own good.
My youngest son has little or no memory of his father but I always talk to all
my sons about their father .His picture hangs and always will in my living room. My
sons have a great relationship with Gerald’s family. His brothers always tell them
about things Gerald would have done. I am glad that they have that bond.