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Considered a “legend” by his loyal customer base, Pat Dockery, the longtime owner of Deer Park’s popular dive bar Uneeda Rest, has died. He was 82 years old.
The Rosscommon, Ireland, native passed away on April 18 at the Westchester Medical Center. At services held earlier this week in Deer Park, Dockery was remembered for his warm and generous nature.
His friend Michael Fortini said Dockery was the driving force toward Fortini becoming a bartender.
“30 years ago standing in Uneeda Rest … he needed a bartender, walked over to me and said ‘Laddie, I need a bartender Friday night,'” Fortini wrote in a heartfelt Facebook post. “I told him I wasn’t a bartender, he said ‘you have a personality, you’ll be fine,’ and I’ve been bartending ever since.”
Among the many memorable moments over the years at Uneeda Rest, perhaps one of its greatest was the time in 1981 that a New York Islanders trainer, who was a regular customer, brought the Stanley Cup into the tavern. The Isles had just won their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship, and Dockery, a big fan, had a blast with his customers hoisting, holding and posing for photographs with the trophy.
In addition to his success in the hospitality business, Dockery also did well as a real estate developer.
Dockery is survived by his wife Anne Dockery and their children, Thomas, Richard and Raymond Dockery and Andrea Miller, and 10 grandchildren.
A funeral Mass for Dockery was held Monday, April 22, at Saints Cyril & Methodius Roman Catholic Church in Deer Park.
Top photo: Pat Dockery on the right (Facebook)
