Streaming of Funeral Service
After watching the service online, if you can leave a guest message to let the family know you have joined into the service, that would be greatly appreciated.
This service will have a password applied once edited (normally within 3 to 5 days following the service), you will then need to contact the family for the password to access.
Following the service, the footage will be posted and you can watch at a later time if you were unable to watch at the time of the service.
A beautiful and moving tribute to John. We are so glad to have been able to watch this some days later, and sorry not to have been with you all to say goodbye to a dearly loved friend. Thank you.
Sarah and Peter Martin
Dear Sarah,
It was a beautiful and moving celebration of John’s life. Thank you for enabling us to take part from Switzerland!
With our sincere condolences to you and John’s family. A warm hug from afar.
Sebastien and Stephanie
Dear Sarah and Family,
I would have loved to be by your side and say goodbye to a man that was an important figure during my time in Australia.
I am grateful this service was made available to watch from afar.
It’s a beautiful tribute to a man that contributed so much, always with passion. Merci John.
With all my love,
Lucien
Thank you, Rory and Sarah, for letting me participate, long after the event, in your celebration of John and your time together. I am so glad that the many decades from sharing 155 Barry St with John just melted away when you came to Oslo.
Dear Sarah and Family
Whilst we would have preferred to be with you on Monday to celebrate John’s life we are grateful that we were able to watch the service here in Italy via streaming. The tributes were all very different and yet were so reflective of a full and multi-faceted life well lived.
We look forward to catching up on our return to Australia
With our best wishes and deepest sympathy
Sarah and family, such a huge loss to us all, as well as to his family. We will miss those conversations, the boat car and tractor rides, the challenging questions, the great catchups, the questioning of our lives and what we were doing with our time here. And a man of so many talents and skills, I am in awe, and so wish I had just a small part of his ability to fix things and to tinker and work it all out. He contributed so much, to so many, as well as to his family. But he’ll live on in our memories, and in yours. Thank you for sharing the service with us, and such great music! love Peta (in warm Port Douglas)
Today’s streaming of John’s memorial occasion following his death was one of the most heart-rending and heart-warming celebrations of a life well-lived that I have ever witnessed, a tribute not only to him, but to Sally and the whole family. i have known John from his Camberwell Grammar days and thought his amazing maturing as a person and citizen and teacher/headmaster was so comprehensive, not least because he and Sally were a superb and multi-talented and loving couple, and obviously became really caring parents and grandparents. It was a privilege to assist them at some key moments of their lives, and i hope I can go to my own grave refreshed by their ‘carpe diem’ inspiration newly at work. With profound thanks and loving prayers and wishes for all associated with this unique Brenan/Hamer ‘brand’! Jim Minchin
My sincere condolences to Sarah and their family, friends and the communities that he served so diligently and passionately for as long as he could.
I’m humbly reflecting on the past 7 or so years of knowing John following the inception of Clean Energy Nillumbik. I developed a keen fondness for him and really enjoyed both his company and considered opinions on local and worldly matters. I held much respect and appreciation for his well-known, forthright nature for no bulls#!t and no bulls#!tters and his willingness to discuss, challenge and debate opportunities in order to achieve the best outcomes in the shortest amount of time. I learned through his ability to share and teach as quickly as he could learn things himself and, like so many others, I’ll miss having further opportunity to share space, time, ideas, laughs, coffee, wine and wisdom with him.
Indeed, in my thoughts.
Ian
This was a beautiful and moving celebration of John’s life. We learned of many things about John and his life that we never knew before.
Like many others, we will miss him.
When I met John, I immediately felt that here is a person one can trust. He always engaged with whoever he was talking with, and at their level. Always positive.
The day after receiving Bulletin 11, I happened to reach down an ageing Penguin edition of ‘Wuthering Heights’, apparently purloined by Alison; on the flyleaf, “John O’Neill Brenan, Trinity College 6.6.64.” And so the connection continues. It’s been a privilege, John.
Many thanks for streaming the celebration of John’s life. It was wonderful to hear about his life in detail from members of the family.
A beautiful photographic survey and tributes.
My condolences to everyone.
Vicki
Such a beautiful and moving tribute to your dad, April. Sending much love to your mum, Sarah, and all of the family. Love Marilynx
Thank you all for this most moving celebration of John’s life – a rich life, and very well lived.
It was wonderful to see John’s passions, values and expressiveness reflected in his children, and their children.
Thanks to Daniel & Rory, for sharing your letters to John, and to Sarah, Justin & George, plus John’s best friend, for illustrating his life so well.
What a beautiful celebration of John’s life. A wonderful way to cherish and farewell a man who had such a profound impact on so many people’s lives, and who was so loved by so many. Sending all my love and condolences to you, Sarah and family – Jodie
Dear Sarah and your family – such a beautiful celebration of John , whom I never met but was very moved to learn about today .
With blessings of love from Georgie, friend of Julia ️☮️
What a man of so many wonderful talents, and always humble, friendly and a true Lancisti.
Our sympathy to Sarah and family. And a wonderful service
What a beautful celebration of John’s life. A wonderful way to cherish and farewll a man who had such a profound impact on so many people’s lives, a man who was so loved by so many. Sending all my love and condolences to you, Sarah and family – Jodie
A beautiful tribute to a life well lived. We will miss you John and cherish the memories.
Love, Di and David
Dear Sarah,
We will miss John’s friendly welcome and his inevitable interrogation into the recent goings on in our lives.
If you are still heading down to Metung please pop in for a cuppa on the way through. Sorry we couldn’t make it as we have a horse that looked liked he wasn’t going to make it but he has now had a poo and is happily grazing so all good.
Love Mark & Sue
What an honour to join you all – on time and with excellent viewing and sound all the way to Nova Scotia in Canada. It was wonderful tribute to John – and clealy there was far more to this man than our time at Eltham College made clear although I always had a sense that there was so much more to John than the school contacts allowed. All of you did a great job, especially Sarah – what beautiful and caring words. It was great to see and hear Daniel, April and Rory – and to see all those lovely grandchildren. Our love and warmest wishes to you all as you navigate the future without John. Take great care of each other. Monica & Gerry
It was a lovely tribute to John….very moving. Sending ❤️
Dear Sarah,
We will miss John from our Metung Life. Wish we had more time to get to know you both. Hope that we will catch up with you in the future. You are always welcome to stay at Clovelly. Love Peter and Kerrie
The most poignant, moving, relevant, funny and loving celebration that John could not have project managed better. Yes, I’m one of those that John helped when I most needed it, saying nothing emotional or touchy feely, but striking that practical chord (and mechanical blow to my slasher!) to show the love that he (and you Sarah) felt at my most vulnerable time.
And I’m one of the many who loved John too, and hope to be able to contribute as he did and does.
All my thoughts and best wishes go to you from afar.
Joss x
A unique opportunity for family and friends to reflect not simply on the life of John, but on their own lives and collective histories. Please accept our condolences.
Such a beautiful farewell for John. Thank you for sharing your memories and celebrating John’s amazing life with such moving and rich words. It was a privilege to share this ceremony with you all from afar. Embracing you, Sarah, and sending love and deepest sympathy to you all. With love from Erica and Craig
Thank you for making this available online.
A beautiful service and shared with us a number of insights. A wonderful life which influenced the lives of many. A man who will not be forgotten.
Rest in Peace Uncle John,
love pat
Darling Sarah, a magnificent, eloquent and moving elegy – “when we sank our boat, John gave me his life jacket.” much love to you, sorrowfully, Ursula xx
So moving to hear you sharing your life with John Sarah my love Neri
Sincere Condolences
John was an incredibly energetic and passionate contributor to the community, and although he will be missed, I’m sure his legacy will inspire others to continue his great work.