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Longtime Blazer Pub Owner Rita O'Leary Dies

NORTH SALEM, N.Y. -- The Blazer Pub announced that its owner, Rita O'Leary, has died. 

The Blazer Pub in North Salem.

The Blazer Pub in North Salem.

Photo Credit: Tom Auchterlonie
A notice announcing the passing of Blazer Pub owner Rita O'Leary.

A notice announcing the passing of Blazer Pub owner Rita O'Leary.

Photo Credit: Tom Auchterlonie

O'Leary, who split her residential time between Bedford and Cape Cod, was 86 and died this weekend, according to Jacque Wilson, who has worked at the restaurant for 16 years.

O'Leary owned the North Salem mainstay since she and her husband, Richard, purchased it in 1988, according to an historical overview section on the restaurant's website

The Blazer Pub was founded in 1971 by Tom and Emer Heavey, the historical overview notes. 

The restaurant is still owned by the O'Leary family, Wilson said. She noted that O'Leary's daughter, Alice, is its manager. Other family members have in involved in the Blazer Pub's management over the years, according to the restaurant's historical overview.

A notice acknowledging O'Leary's passing was posted inside the restaurant. It notes that the Blazer Pub will be closed for lunch on Friday, July 17 and will reopen that day at 4 p.m.

Discussing the restaurant's history of family ownership, Wilson noted its homely feel and longtime tenure of employees.

“We know most of the customers’ names when they walk through the door,” she said.

O'Leary's obituary can be read here.

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