Perdita
14-11-2008, 10:09
As a grandmother of 172, Maggie Ward had plenty of family to dote on. And when it came to her funeral, they were determined to repay the favour.
Although they have never all been together in one place before, every single one made sure they were at the ceremony to give the 87-year-old a good send-off.
In life, staunch Irish Catholic Mrs Ward and her husband Charles created one of Britain's largest families with 15 children of their own.
All 12 surviving children - Joan, Patrick, Martin, Margaret, Mary, Catherine, Charlie, Bernard, Bridget, Helen, Anne and Lawrence - were at her funeral yesterday.
The vast clan also includes 36 great grandchildren and 18 great-great grandchildren.
At the ceremony in Salford, every one of her grandchildren let off a balloon in her memory. They had travelled from Manchester, Birmingham and Ireland to be there.
Daughter Anne Hudson paid tribute to her mother and told how she never forgot a birthday and every member of her family got a gift at Christmas.
She said: 'Mum was fantastic in every way. She was so devoted - she was there for everyone. Whenever you were in trouble you knew you could go to mum.
'She would never forget a birthday and got everyone a present at Christmas. She bought presents all year round - she would go to markets to get gifts so she could afford something for everyone.
'She was tough but she had to be to keep us all in line. She was very proud of her family.'
She added: 'My mother came from a family of nine and my father a family of 14 - we have a history of huge families. I only have three children myself but some of my brothers and sisters have 10, 11 or even more.
'The funeral was the biggest ever gathering of the family since my father died 28 years ago. But this time there were far more offspring.'
More than 400 people in total attended the service. X Factor star Shayne Ward - a distant relative - was among the throngs.
Mrs Ward moved to Salford from Galway, Ireland, in 1963.
Her hearse, draped in the Irish flag, was pulled by two grey horses and followed by 11 funeral cars.
During the service, readings were given by her eldest grandchild, Margaret Furey, 51, and her youngest, 11-year-old Laura Ward.
Mrs Hudson said: 'The best bit of advice my mother gave me was "Always live for today because you never know what tomorrow will bring".'
Three of Mrs Ward's children have died - Charlie, Marty and Pat.
172 grandchildren :eek:
Although they have never all been together in one place before, every single one made sure they were at the ceremony to give the 87-year-old a good send-off.
In life, staunch Irish Catholic Mrs Ward and her husband Charles created one of Britain's largest families with 15 children of their own.
All 12 surviving children - Joan, Patrick, Martin, Margaret, Mary, Catherine, Charlie, Bernard, Bridget, Helen, Anne and Lawrence - were at her funeral yesterday.
The vast clan also includes 36 great grandchildren and 18 great-great grandchildren.
At the ceremony in Salford, every one of her grandchildren let off a balloon in her memory. They had travelled from Manchester, Birmingham and Ireland to be there.
Daughter Anne Hudson paid tribute to her mother and told how she never forgot a birthday and every member of her family got a gift at Christmas.
She said: 'Mum was fantastic in every way. She was so devoted - she was there for everyone. Whenever you were in trouble you knew you could go to mum.
'She would never forget a birthday and got everyone a present at Christmas. She bought presents all year round - she would go to markets to get gifts so she could afford something for everyone.
'She was tough but she had to be to keep us all in line. She was very proud of her family.'
She added: 'My mother came from a family of nine and my father a family of 14 - we have a history of huge families. I only have three children myself but some of my brothers and sisters have 10, 11 or even more.
'The funeral was the biggest ever gathering of the family since my father died 28 years ago. But this time there were far more offspring.'
More than 400 people in total attended the service. X Factor star Shayne Ward - a distant relative - was among the throngs.
Mrs Ward moved to Salford from Galway, Ireland, in 1963.
Her hearse, draped in the Irish flag, was pulled by two grey horses and followed by 11 funeral cars.
During the service, readings were given by her eldest grandchild, Margaret Furey, 51, and her youngest, 11-year-old Laura Ward.
Mrs Hudson said: 'The best bit of advice my mother gave me was "Always live for today because you never know what tomorrow will bring".'
Three of Mrs Ward's children have died - Charlie, Marty and Pat.
172 grandchildren :eek: