Bryan O’Keeffe celebrates 67 years of service

Born in 1936 in Koroit, Bryan O’Keeffe grew up in Crossley, halfway between Port Fairy and Warrnambool. His mother cared for Bryan and his five siblings while his father worked on the railways. Today, at 89, Bryan is the last of his siblings remaining – a living link to a generation of hardworking families in western Victoria.

Work and family

Bryan spent two decades at Stephens Store on Liebig Street, Warrnambool, before managing the Murray Goulburn trading store in Koroit until retirement. 

In 1958, he married Jean McGrath and together they raised three sons – Mark, Peter and Michael. Sadly, Mark has since passed away.

Bryan recalls his Catholic schooling days, walking miles to class and finishing at year eight, then called “intermediate.”

Joining St Vincent de Paul Society Victoria

Bryan’s journey with the St Vincent de Paul Society Victoria began not long after his marriage. 

While bedridden with illness, he was visited by Pat O’Shea, who invited him to join. Encouraged by Father Downs, Bryan became a founding member of the Our Lady’s Conference in Warrnambool East.

“You get to know them – they're like brothers and sisters to you really,” Bryan says of his fellow members. “They’re always there if you need anything.”

Changes over the decades

Bryan has witnessed enormous shifts in how the Society operates:

• Funding: In the early days, money came from collection plates and even fines placed in the “poor box” by magistrates.
• Operations: Initially, men delivered food parcels at night. Bryan helped involve wives, making deliveries more flexible and family oriented.
• Support: Beyond food, volunteers delivered wood for cooking and heating, ensuring families could meet basic needs.

Stories of compassion

Bryan recalls helping a mother whose husband abandoned the family after taking their children overseas. Volunteers became her friends, mowing lawns and offering companionship.

He also worked in the local Vinnies Shop, sorting clothes with a simple rule: “If you wouldn’t wear it yourself, why should anyone else?” Discarded items were baled and sent to Melbourne by freight train.

A True Vincentian

For Bryan, the most meaningful part of volunteering has always been helping people in need:

“People were worse off than what I was. I didn’t have a great life, but I met people who were in a much worse situation than me – some didn’t have anything.”

His 67 years of service reflect not charity from abundance, but solidarity from shared experience. Bryan’s kindness has touched countless lives in Warrnambool East, embodying the Vincentian spirit of compassion and community.