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 Matt Freed, Post-Gazette |
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An honor guard stands at attention beside the casket of the late Mayor Bob O'Connor yesterday afternoon at the City-County Building, Downtown. |
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh's annual Labor Day Parade, usually a festive celebration, started on a somber note today because of the death of Mayor Bob O'Connor.
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 Annie O'Neill, Post-Gazette |
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People continued to come to pay their respects throughout the day to the late Pittsburgh Mayor Bob O'Connor. The mayor's flag-draped casket will lay in state in the great hall of the City-County Building, Downtown, through 10 p.m. today. |
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FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS Visitation:  Today through 10 p.m., City-County Building, Downtown. Tomorrow, Wednesday. John A. Freyvogel Sons Inc., 4900 Centre Ave., Shadyside, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Funeral: In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to the Caring Foundation, S.I.D.S. Alliance and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Doubts surround how long Ravenstahl can be mayor Video: Bidding Mayor O'Connor farewell Slideshow: The mayor lies in state Photojournal: The city mourns
Fittingly, City-County Building is 'redd-up' once more for mayor Squirrel Hill quickly feels Bob O'Connor's absence Editorial: Favorite son / In Bob O'Connor, the city lost more than a mayor Brian O'Neill: Remembering O'Connor's first pitch Ravenstahl's political roots go deep on the city's North Side City law department says Ravenstahl gets full term, serving to 2009 Slideshow: The Mayor Guestbook: Read remembrances and condolences from readers and add your own message Obituary: His enthusiasm for Pittsburgh was unbounded Reaction: Friends and local leaders share their memories of late mayor |
Prominent state and local politicians and labor leaders, arrayed behind a black banner with white letters bearing the words "In Memory of Mayor Bob O'Connor," turned to face the building.
Some of the spectators along the route wept during a moment of silence. And then the Pittsburgh Firefighters Memorial Pipe Band played Amazing Grace.
The head of the parade was dominated by prominent Democratic politicians, including Gov. Ed Rendell and state Treasurer Bob Casey, who are campaigning for election in November. They were joined by Mr. O'Connor's successor, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl; Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato; state Treasurer Jack Wagner; U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle; labor leaders Rich Trumka, Bill George and Jack Shea; and Bishop Paul Bradley, administraor of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh. Republican Congressman Tim Murphy also joined the parade leaders.
The city's official mourning period began yesterday in the City-County Building.
The mourners, some wearing their Sunday best and others wrapped in the comfort of their Steelers sweatshirts and jeans, each paused for a moment alongside the late mayor's flag-draped coffin before turning to express prayers, sadness and best wishes to his widow, Judy, and O'Connor family members.
The procession began promptly at noon with a playing of "Amazing Grace" by the Greater Pittsburgh Police Pipes and Drums Corps. Then, amid an honor guard of police officers and representatives of the city's Fire Bureau and its Bureau of Emergency Medical Services, members of the O'Connor family approached the coffin.
Mrs. O'Connor, ushered to the front, wept quietly as she leaned her head down to the casket, the palms of her hands spread flat on the surface of the American flag. There, in the hallway full of spectators, she spent almost a minute alone in her thoughts of her late husband.
Nearby, grandchildren sobbed, young couples hugged each other, and policemen standing at attention wiped away tears.
After the O'Connor family members each had time beside the coffin, they gathered behind velvet ropes to greet the Pittsburghers -- all of them friends, whether they knew them or not -- who followed.
Jim and Angelica Bartos, of Bellevue, among the first in line, came straight from church with their three sons, Joshua, 13, Anthony, 6, and Christopher, 5.
"We explained to them how important this day was today, that the mayor was laid out in state," said Mrs. Bartos, who never had a chance to meet the mayor. "Even though we didn't know him, we felt like we did.
"All the good deeds he did for the people. I feel he was a great guy. He did everything he could for the people. It's so tragic.
"I still can't believe he's gone."
Mr. O'Connor, 61, died Friday night of a rare form of brain cancer after serving in office only eight months. He had been hospitalized for two months.
"He was such a family-oriented, people man," Mrs. Bartos said. "He didn't care if you were black, white, or what neighborhood you lived in.
"I wish I would have met him. I would have told him I was from Germany."
As sad and somber as the procession was, however, it also was a place for smiles and making new friends. People greeted each other with embraces, kisses on the cheek, firm handshakes and good, strong pats on the back. They shared stories of where they lived, what they did for a living, and how the mayor touched their lives.
Even at more than a hundred-people long, the wait wasn't much more than 20 minutes, and one person after another said the time seemed to pass quickly.
Delia Parks, of Squirrel Hill, brought her 11-year-old daughter, Olivia, so she could honor the man to whom she had written in the spring suggesting that the city's homeless residents could be housed in some of its abandoned buildings.
Mayor O'Connor's personal response arrived a few weeks later.
"He said he would take my idea into consideration and thanked me," said Olivia, who brought flowers to the visitation and gave them to Mrs. O'Connor.
Six uniformed members of the emergency police came to the visitation after helping with traffic and crowd control at the Steelers' 5K race yesterday morning. Deputy Commander Rick Cerminaro said members of the 40-year-old volunteer organization, which assists law officers with noncriminal police functions and civic events, felt as if they'd lost a friend.
Although they hadn't had a chance to officially meet with him as mayor, he said, they all knew him. Whenever there was a festival or parade in the city, Mr. O'Connor would be there, a part of it, greeting them and everyone else.
"The mayor appreciated us," said Cmdr. John Guinther. "It was just a feeling we all had."
Former county Commissioner Larry Dunn said he'd known Mr. O'Connor throughout their years in politics, but his fondest recollection of the mayor was a personal one.
"He coached my son in Little League," Mr. Dunn said. "My son played second, and [Mr. O'Connor's son] Corey played shortstop for a couple years together.
"Bob's family was always at the games. It was a real family thing."
Mr. Dunn went on to predict that while Mr. O'Connor's stewardship as mayor was brief, his impact would be lasting.
"He was really very special," he said. "His friendliness, the positive attitude he had ... it was so infectious. He came at the right time, with the right message for Pittsburgh. That was the important thing. His enthusiasm was really turning things around for the city.
"The city will be changed, no matter what happens, it'll be changed. That's the legacy he's going to leave. People are much more positive about the city."
Just after 1 p.m., Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato, accompanied by his wife and three children, arrived and, rather than be ushered up to the front, got into line with everyone else. They were standing along the railing when the city's new mayor, Luke Ravenstahl, happened by for a handshake.
A little while later, a family spokesman invited Mr. Onorato and his family to the front so they could greet members of the O'Connor family before they left.
Mr. Ravenstahl continued along the line, thanking people for coming and accepting their blessings and best wishes. Later, he politely deferred an opportunity to speak with reporters.
"I'm not going to do anything guys," he said softly. "I just want to make sure the focus is on Bob. The next few days are all about Bob, and we'll have ample time to talk about the future after Thursday."
But when asked how he'd been received by those outside the City-County Building, he couldn't help but acknowledge the warmth and optimism that they had shared.
"They have been [supportive.] Very cordial," he said. "And that's the way Pittsburghers are."
Norma Turner, of Green Tree, who works for the Housing Authority, said she came because she knew Mr. O'Connor. She was joined at the visitation by Debra Martin, of Bellevue.
"We just lost a wonderful person," Ms. Turner said. "He was just what the city needed to uplift the neighborhoods. He was everywhere. People thought he cared. I certainly did."
"I think he would have been proud of today," Ms. Martin said. "I think he would proud of the way people came out.
"It was a wonderful coming together. It's a sad time, but people are together."
At the end of the line, after passing the coffin and greeting the O'Connor family members, mourners were invited to sign books of remembrance. They also were given small photos of the mayor, showing him posed with a rolled document in his hand, smiling broadly.
On the back was printed a quote from poet Ralph Waldo Emerson saying, in part, "To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better ... This is to have succeeded."
Mrs. O'Connor and family members left the building at 2 p.m.
Hours later, the line and the wait were much shorter. But the stream of visitors was steady.
Visitation in the great hallway of the City-County Building continues until 10 tonight.
Visitation will continue tomorrow and Wednesday at John A. Freyvogel Sons Funeral Home, 4900 Centre Ave., Shadyside, from noon to 8 p.m.
The funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m., Thursday, at St. Paul Cathedral in Oakland. Former Pittsburgh Bishop Donald W. Wuerl, now archbishop of Washington, D.C., will celebrate the Mass.
Correction/Clarification: (Published Sept. 5, 2006) The honor guard for the visitation of the late Mayor Bob O'Connor at the City-County Building on Sunday included representatives of the city's Bureau of Emergency Medical Services, as well as firefighters and police. EMS was omitted in this story as originally published Sept. 4. 2006
