TOIBIN, Colonel (Ret.) Colum Patrick, age 88, passed away peacefully during the morning hours of January 17, 2020, at Marion Manor Retirement Community in Virginia Beach, Va. Colum was a man of considerable wit and humor who will be missed. Although he has passed on, he will remain a loved and admired father, grandfather, and friend to all those whose lives he positively touched in his own unique way.
Colum was born as the youngest child to Sean Toibin and Siobhan (Sullivan) Toibin on December 2,1931 in the City of Cork, Ireland. In the early-1950s, he emigrated from Ireland; first to England and then to the United States. He met the love of his life, Maureen Mary McGroarty, in Philadelphia, Pa. and they were married in that city on October 24,1959.
Colum had a distinguished medical career that began as a nurse in England in the mid-1950s. Shortly after their marriage, Colum’s medical career accelerated when he joined the United States Army as a nurse anesthetist at the rank of First Lieutenant in 1963. His military career led them to many assignments around the world; San Antonio, Texas, Columbia, S.C., Chinon, France, Frankfurt, Germany, and Fort Belvoir, Va.
In 1970, Colum was permanently assigned to McGuire Veterans Hospital in Richmond, Va. where he worked as a highly regarded member of their medical team for over two decades. He would retire from the military in 1991, and from the VA Hospital in 1993, at the rank of full Colonel.
Left to honor and remember Colum are his surviving children, Brian, Una, son-in-law Brad Hamilton; his four adored grandchildren Andrew, Katie, Aidan, and Liam (who all called him Gag); and an extended family throughout Ireland and the United States. With his passing, he rejoins his beloved wife Maureen, his sons, Kevin and Brendan, and his siblings, who all preceded him.
Colum’s personal and professional life was peppered with examples of him defending the less powerful and marginalized. He did this by extending respect and receiving it in return. He always rooted for the underdog and strived to help them whenever possible. At his best, he fulfilled the Lord’s directive that whatever you do to the least of these, you do unto me. He loved Ireland, his hometown of Cork, and spoke fondly of both. Throughout Colum’s life he enjoyed jokes, stories, laughs, conversations, debates, gardens, bible study, and birds.
He handled his health challenges with grace and a deep faith. We have been blessed beyond measure to have such a remarkable man at the center of our lives. Thank you for everything dad, we love you.
Funeral services will be held Friday, January 31, 2020, 10:30 a.m. at St. Edward Catholic Church, 2700 Dolfield Dr., Richmond, Va. 23235. Visitation will be available for one hour prior to the service. An additional memorial service will be held Saturday, February 1, 2020, 10:00 a.m. at the Marion Manor Retirement Community Chapel located at 5345 Marian Lane, Virginia Beach, Va. 23462.
The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Salvation Army, the organization that sheltered and cared for him when he was stranded in Philadelphia at the age of 15, after the merchant ship on which he was a cabin boy broke down and was unable to return to Ireland for an extended time.
