Alphonsus O'Brien

Alphonsus Philomena O'Brien (Frank), 87, of Albert Lea died Tuesday, June 17, after a brief illness. He was born to Joseph and Mary Alice O'Brien in Enniskillen, Ireland, on August 2, 1926. Frank graduated from St. Michael's Secondary School. After graduation, he left Ireland for London, England to work in a hotel. From London, Frank emigrated to America in 1948. He was sponsored by Charles Hendricks of Des Moines, Iowa, a soldier who was stationed in Northern Ireland when Frank was a boy. Hospitalized in Iowa, Frank fell in love with the nursing student that cared for him, Ruth Noland. They married in 1949 and had 12 children. He went to work for the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company as an office manager in a retail tire store and worked for them in several towns in Iowa before he was promoted to be store manager in Albert Lea, Minnesota. He owned his own Goodyear store for several years, and many remember the catchy, "Frank O'Brien, the Goodyear man, the tire man from Ireland. Nobody serves you better than Frank O'Brien the Goodyear man. Now here's a word from Frank himself..." After working at Goodyear, Frank worked for Shell Oil and South Minnesota Oil as a sales representative until he retired at age 70. Frank's accomplishments outside of work included acting in many plays with the Albert Lea Community Theater and becoming head of it for a year. He wrote a play called "The Last Days" about the last days of Jesus Christ. Many lined the streets to watch the procession of actors, and people from all of the area churches participated in the production. Crowds of more than 800 filled the church to watch the performances two years in a row. He served for many years as the choir director of St. Theodore's Catholic Church and also sang at wedding and funeral services. His Irish tenor voice will be missed. He was president of the Lion's Club in 1973. Frank also enjoyed distance running after quitting smoking in his fifties. He ran his 6-mile lake route every day for twenty-five years and the Twin Cities and Grandma's marathons several times. He called running his "fountain of youth." Several of his children also enjoyed running with him. He was very proud and uplifted by his family, especially during his last days when he said, "I have never felt so loved in all of my life." He is survived by his beloved wife of 65+ years, Ruth (Noland), of Albert Lea; his sister, Joan Judge, her children and the Mc Auley family of Enniskillen, Ireland; the Brendan O'Brien family of Kettering, England; his children, Brendan O'Brien, his children: Christine Salisbury (Fred) and their daughter Linnea; Amy O'Brien, and Michael (Corrine); Kerry O'Brien and her daughter Alex; Maureen Frydenlund (John) and their children: Angie Bolin and her children Alycia and Boston, Tony Frydenlund (Christian); Brian's children: Joe O'Brien (Jaime) and their daughters Reagan and Riley, Heather (Garrett) and daughter Harper, Ryan O'Brien and Jessica Nicholson; Paddy O'Brien (David) and their daughters Sarah Baldwin and Samantha Williams (Kyle); Laura Kim Forman (Joe) and their daughters Erica and Kelsey Forman; son-in-law Mike Wetzel and his and Kristy's children: Alex Zimmerman (Steve), Katie and Francesca Wetzel; Mary Grundhoefer (Peter) and their son Jackson Faith; Angela Greywitt (Rick) and their sons: Rick(Amy), Michael (Beth), Sean (Ashley) and their son Logan, and Charlie and his girlfriend Mariah; Allison Fauchier (Martin); Shane O'Brien (Amy) and their children: Erin, Sam, and Shea; He is also survived my many nieces, nephews, and friends. He was predeceased by his parents, Joseph and Mary Alice O'Brien, brothers Joe and Brendan O'Brien, sister Pauline Mc Auley, sons Brian and Kevin O'Brien, daughter Kristy O'Brien-Wetzel, and son-in-law Chuck Faith.
Visitation will be between 4:00 and 7:00 PM. Friday, June 20, at Bonnerup Funeral Home on Main Street in Albert Lea. A prayer service will begin at 6:45 PM on Friday at the funeral home. On Saturday, June 21, a 10:30 AM Mass will be held at St. Theodore's Catholic Church on Clark Street, with an hour visitation before the service.