Young at heart Peg Maher was a joyful, resilient soul
PEG MAHER (née Ryan), Knockmullen, New Ross, died on Monday, November 12, in her 94th year after a short illness.
Peg was born in Bonnybrook, outside Thomastown, into a dairy farming household, on January 28, 1925, to Andy and Ellen Ryan (née Cuddihy).
She was the middle child of three, her brother Sean who died in December 2016 was two years older than her and Maura, who died on November 19, 2018, was five years younger than her.
Peg’s early life featured stories of her uncle Tom Ryan’s involvement in the War of Independence and her mother’s trans-Atlantic travels and work experiences in Albany, New York.
Peg’s schooling started in Inistioge National School where her aunt Mrs Áine Roche of Coolrainey taught and continued in the Mercy Sisters School in Thomastown. During those years the family’s mode of transport was a horse and cart (for casual travel) and pony and trap for more formal occasions such as going to mass on Sunday. Work on the farm was equally non-mechanised, the young Peg contributing throughout her youth in both the dairy and the field.
In her late teenage years and into her twenties she socialised across County Kilkenny with her brother Sean developing their acting and singing skills with one act plays in parish halls, hotels, GAA clubs and even in people’s living rooms.
She also attended dances with various friends especially Maura Whitty and cousin Bridie Mahon across the county. During this time she met Peter Maher from Sheestown, Co Kilkenny. Shortly after they met he purchased the farm at Knockmullen.
Peg cycled everywhere. As the courtship with Peter continued, she routinely cycled to New Ross to get her hair done and would often call for tea at the farm in Knockmullen. She claimed she could do the 14 mile journey in an hour and a half and still keep her hairdo intact.
Peter and Peg married in October 1951 and Peg immersed herself in the role of farmer’s wife. She kept chickens, helped rear calves and pigs, milked cows and made butter as well as keeping house. While they were still milking cows by hand they sold milk by the pint around New Ross.
Being the early fifties mechanisation didn’t yet extend beyond the horse. This meant a lot of local labour was hired and the custom was that all were fed.
Peter assumed this was natural and wouldn’t necessarily have advised Peg she might have eight or nine men in for dinner at short notice. No matter how many presented she ensured they all ate heartily. That was her hallmark, a brilliant cook and baker, no matter what was thrown at her she coped with a smile.
The economics of small dairy farming at this time proved very precarious and farmers were encouraged to modernise and mechanise. With the new milking machine they were able to produce volumes that could be collected by the creamery. This was the start of building the herd which exists to this day.
Peter and Peg had nine children. Naturally parents hope to be buried by their children. Sadly this was not to be the case. In the 1960s two full-term babies didn’t get a chance at life. Then in 1972, their eldest daughter Marian died aged 17. This was followed by the death of their youngest son Peadar in 1983, aged 23.
These tragedies caused immense sadness in the family, especially for Peter and Peg. However, Peg’s instinctive response was to consider the remaining children she had left and she worked hard to nurture and care for them. As grandchildren started arriving in the late Seventies they proved a great distraction from these losses as she busied herself with their care.
She was again left devastated by the death of her beloved Peter in March 2000. And sadly in 2009, a further blow, saw the third youngest, Breda (Bree) pass away, aged 50.
While she endured these many tragedies she never let them define her.
By now Peg’s family included great-grandchildren. As each new child was born it was a joyful celebration for her. She had a great relationship with the younger generations because she was so young at heart. She was involved in their lives and enjoyed their company, taking great pride in their various achievements from the eldest to the youngest. She always dressed elegantly and readily accepted new fashions given by her granddaughters. She still sewed, and when one of her grandchildren decided to start making patchwork quilts as a family project for new arrivals, Peg contributed like everyone else. She will always be remembered for her raspberry jam, apple tarts and brown bread. Up until her recent illness she was baking her brown bread twice a week and she has passed this tradition down through the generations.
She travelled aboard many times, particularly from her late seventies onwards. She made numerous trips to England visiting family and holidayed as far as France and Spain. She loved to eat out with family and her final such outing in September was to attend the function for her newest great-grandchild’s christening.
Peg enjoyed watching her soaps and kept up with current affairs, in latter times using a magnifying glass to read the Standard and the Sunday Independent. Television coverage of hurling was a big part of her Sunday afternoon especially if her adopted county of Wexford was playing, although she never lost interest in the progress of Kilkenny. Rugby was another great distraction for her, always arranging her Saturday hairdressing appointment around whatever match might be of interest.
Her relationship with God was always very important to Peg, attending Sunday Mass and receiving communion in the parish church up to recent years and since then listening to the parish mass every morning on the radio. On Sundays she also watched whatever service was on television. Her favourite prayer was The Prayer to St Anthony.
Peg was blessed with good health right up to her recent illness. She lived a long independent life and saw scores of changes in her lifetime. She was interested in many subjects and had her own opinions about them but she was not a person to make grandiose statements. Her life centred on her family and was one of kindness, patience, quiet resourcefulness, resilience and love and care. How she lived her life was her statement.
Peg is survived by her children David, Ann, Andy and Mag; their spouses Kathleen, Gerry, Deirdre and Cyril; her daughter-in-law Margaret; son-in-law Alan; 16 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren, nephews, nieces and extended family. Peg was also survived by her sister Maura who sadly passed away on November 19.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a n-anam dilis.