Memorial services will be held Friday for a Hemet couple whose fate has become a modern love story.
Mark O'Leary died Nov. 10 of apparent heart failure after administering CPR to his wife, Deborah O'Leary. She suffered an apparent asthma attack, lost consciousness and died later that week at Hemet Valley Medical Center.
The couple left behind an 11-year-old son, Kenny O'Leary, and three adult children from previous relationships. Deborah O'Leary's daughter, 22-year-old Cassandra James, was with her mother at the time of the asthma attack. She and her sister, 20-year-old Kayla Remily, will care for Kenny.
"It's tragic. It's so horrible," said the couple's longtime friend, Neal Brown. "This is stuff in the movies type of thing.
"It doesn't happen that one person dies trying to save the other. Their kids lost their parents. Everybody lost in this."
Deborah and Mark O'Leary both were 44.
Brown met Mark O'Leary during their teen years in Hemet. They were roommates around 1995 when Deborah came to the home on a vacuum sales call. The couple fell in love. Brown was the best man in their wedding 12 years ago. O'Leary and Brown worked side jobs together as bouncers at the Main Event in San Jacinto.
He said Mark O'Leary was an imposing man who many people loved once they got to know him. He said at 6-foot-7 and 290 pounds. O'Leary could be intimidating. He was an electrician by trade and worked odd jobs at the time of his death to make ends meet. Deborah O'Leary was a homemaker.
"He was a very, very likeable guy," Brown said. "If he considered you a friend, there was nothing in the world he wouldn't do for you.
"Debbie was extremely likeable. She had a great personality. She was always laughing, joking around. I don't know anyone who didn't like her."
Mark O'Leary was about to begin his maintenance duties at Sweet Baby Janes restaurant in downtown Hemet when Cassandra Remily called to say her mother was suffering an asthma attack. He rushed home and began CPR. Paramedics arrived and took over.
O'Leary, who had a history of heart disease, moved out of the way, apparently suffered a heart attack and was pronounced dead at Hemet Valley Medical Center. Deborah O'Leary died later in the week.
The Riverside County coroner's office is awaiting the results of tests before officially announcing causes of the deaths.
Brown said friends and family members will gather at 11 a.m. Friday, Nov. 30, at Hemet Valley Mortuary, 403 N. San Jacinto Street, Hemet, to remember the couple.
At age 20, Kayla Remily, a pragmatic young woman, said she is up to the task of teaming with her sister to care for their younger brother, Kenny, who attends Dartmouth Middle School in Hemet. She already was busy. She works in Hemet at two places, Angie's Diner and Sun West Village, an assisted-living retirement home. She also is a part-time student at Mt. San Jacinto College.
She said she tends to take a practical approach to problems, much like their late father. She said the deaths are tough on her sister, who she said is more emotional, like their mother and is devastated by the deaths.
"It's rough," she said. "You just got to take it and go with it. I'm the type of person who wants to put all the plans in place. I'll grieve later."
Brown, the longtime friend of the couple, said he would be happy to put people who went to help in touch with the family. His phone number is 951-255-8470.
Contact Bob Pratte at 951-763-3452, bpratte@pe.com or 3400 Wentworth Drive, Hemet, CA 92545. Find Bob's blog at blog.pe.com/bob-pratte and follow him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PE.BobPratte and Twitter: @bpratte
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