The bar in The Bounty, formerly The Bounty Lounge, is built into the replica pirate ship that is the centerpiece of the Holiday Inn's large function room. (File photo)

Sharing fond memories of life’s good times, perhaps swapping sometimes little-known anecdotes from the poignant to the humorous, can often be the soothing salve that eases the hurt, the pain, the loss we all feel over our lifetimes.

And, as any visitor, whether sporadic, occasional or regular, to that iconic little pub encased within Nashua’s Holiday Inn can tell you, that sense of loss, on rare but special occasions, applies to inanimate objects as well.

Indeed, these days Killarney’s Irish Pub, as one longtime regular put it, “is in hospice care,” breathing its final breaths as the hours count down to the moment the pub, as well as the entire hotel – including The Bounty function hall and its famous pirate-ship centerpiece – is padlocked for good.

Word is that a firm called Lyon-Waugh Auto Group, which owns the Porsche Nashua dealership, has either purchased or is in the process of purchasing the property and plans to build a new dealership there.

But whatever the site’s future, the important part of the equation is the impending demise of a pair of super-popular venues that, until now, have been able to navigate sometimes treacherous economic and demographic waters.

Some of the many Killarney's patrons who attended Wednesday's grand finale for the pub and hotel socialize and grab photos during the event. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

“I grew up in that hotel, got married, raised two kids and made THE BEST friends,” retired longtime bartender Kathie Lavoie wrote in a Facebook post.

Lavoie, as did fellow retired bartender and server Mike Kilty, came out of retirement for Wednesday night’s good-bye soiree, a raucous event at once melancholic and celebratory with a class-reunion feel rife with handshakes, hugs and hoarse shouts of “I’ll miss you so much!”

Historically, the Killarney’s we know today came about somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 years ago. The Holiday Inn itself was built in the late 1960s, and longtimers seem to remember the original pub was a replica rail car.

One of the building’s several renovation projects over the years added a couple of large function rooms on the west side of the building, along with an even larger space destined to become a nightclub.

Whoever came up with the idea to build the bar into a giant replica pirate ship – sail masts, roping and all – should be commended for such creativity.

Dennis Vincent, a Killarney's regular for many years, wore the leprechaun suit he's worn every St. Patrick's Day for years to Wednesday night's grand finale party. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

Sure, the thick ropes dangling from the masts inevitably became attractive nuisances for the occasional young club-goers with high blood alcohol contents and testosterone levels, but minor adjustments successfully discouraged such activities.

Some years ago, The Bounty ceased operating as a nightclub, instead becoming a function room that hosted everything from holiday parties and fundraisers to wedding receptions and corporate socials.

Killarney’s, meanwhile, had been expanded a couple of times over the years. Upgrades like new carpets, new furniture and the lengthening and sprucing up of the bar itself took place, an indication that the owners were willing to invest in the place to keep it looking good.

Amid all the changes and adjustments, the most constant of all the constants has to be the pub’s number one entertainer, the singer of all things Irish and then some, Kieran McNally.

Fittingly, McNally was in his designated spot Wednesday night, belting out song after song as he’s done for, yes, 42 years.

Longtime Killarney's bartender Kathie Lavoie has retired, but she returned for Wednesday's grand finale party. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

Some notable “do you remember” events over the years: Monday Night Football, with a free buffet of hot dogs and beans along with the so-called lingerie “fashion show” at halftime. Indeed, the buffet outlasted the “fashion show” by years.

Free popcorn, and the endless parade of new machines that lasted a week because they were inexpensive, household models not designed for commercial use.

The football interactive game “QB1,” one of the first internet-based, play-prediction games, and its companion trivia contests.

The time probably 25 years ago when, just before St. Patrick’s Day, fire officials ordered the “thatched roof” decorations be removed and all the dollar bills signed and stapled to the ceiling be taken down, citing fire hazards.

When the sitcom “Cheers” debuted, more than a few Killarney’s regulars likened the show’s premise to that of “their Cheers.”

A Killarney's patron wears one of several different T-shirts handed out at Wednesday night's grand finale party for the pub. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

One is Jenn Lewin, who called Killarney’s “our neighborhood Cheers,” adding that “the memories will last a lifetime.”

“I still can’t believe it. So many great memories and awesome people,” wrote Patty Steeves MacLeod.

Karen Grenier, one of the musicians who played when McNally wasn’t said she is “forever grateful to be part of the Killarney’s family. Singing at Killarney’s was like singing in my living room for friends who felt like family.”

Wrote Jess Lippe: “So many memories … I will miss Killarney’s so much but the connections will still remain.”

Cheryl Walley recalled having her daughter’s Sweet 16 party at The Bounty some years ago.

One of several posters available for Killarney's customers to sign at Wednesday night's event pays tribute to longtime entertainer Kieran McNally. (Telegraph photo by DEAN SHALHOUP)

Laura Parcell said she threw her husband a surprise 50th birthday party in The Bounty, which was “turned into a Yellow Submarine” with the “entire room decorated in a Beatles and 1960s theme.

“We will surely miss Killarney’s and The Bounty.”

Brenda Gordon said she is “so thankful for so many years of laughs, love and friendships from Killarney’s. I have been going for almost 40 years.”

Kilty, the retired bartender, joked that he retired “but never left. It’s like the Hotel California: You can check out but never leave.”

Kathy Peterson said she “left crying a bit. So many dances, Halloween parties, weddings, political events … and (after work) Friday nights for years and years.”

Robyn O’Neil perhaps said it best: “They can tear down the building, but can never remove the memories made there.”

Dean Shalhoup’s column appears weekly in The Sunday Telegraph. He may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

Dean Shalhoup