Maura McKenna R.I.P. It is with sadness that we announce the death of Maura McKenna, Emy, Emyvale, which occurred peacefully at her residence surrounded by family members. Approaching her 96th birthday, Maura was in good form until very recently when health deteriorated and she passed away on the late evening of Tuesday, January 5th. May she rest in peace. Maura, nee Hoban came to the North Monaghan area from Corha, Castlebar, and worked for Mr. J.J. McGlone, the auctioneer. At a social event in Mullan she met with Mick McKenna, who was employed in Mullan Mills. They were married in 1951 and moved in to the current home at Emy in 1953. They had eight children and both she and Mick played major roles in the community life of the area. Maura had a sharp mind and was a great reader and her advice was sought by many as she was regarded as a very sensible and knowledgeable person. She was also a great home maker and loved to welcome visitors to her home. She was the Queen of Emy. She loved Irish music and indeed passed on this love of all things Irish to her children, who are all very musical. She was employed by Emyvale District Credit Union for a number of years before her retirement and was a popular and efficient member of staff. Maura has been predeceased by her husband Mick. Maura’s funeral Mass will be live streamed from St. Patrick’s Church, Corracrin, on Thursday morning at 11.00am and Burial will take place in the family plot at St. Patrick’s. The link HERE We offer our sincere sympathy to her family: Patrick, Monica, Bernie, Norah, Margaret, John, Vincent and Gerard and their families and her 20 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren and her nephews and nieces. She will be sadly missed by all her friends and neighbours and Emy Corner will never be the same but she will be missed mainly by her loving family and close friends. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h-anam naofa Due to current restrictions and HSE guidelines, Maura’s house, funeral and burial will be strictly private. Obituary:MAURA MCKENNA, EMYVALE. RIP. The people of North Monaghan, Emyvale in particular, and indeed much farther afield, were saddened when the news of the death of Maura McKenna, Emy, Emyvale, became known on the evening of Tuesday, January 5th 2021. She was the second eldest in a family of ten children born to Pat and Marie Hoban in Corha, Rahins, Co Mayo on the 15th of January 1925 and passed away just ten days short of her 96th birthday. She had been in good health until a short time before her death and, as her health deteriorated, she faced the end with fortitude and resignation, and passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family. Maura was pre-deceased by her loving husband, Mick McKenna, Ballagh, and she will be mourned by her sons: Patrick (Corinne Garcia), John, Vincent (Susan Ryan), Gerard (Annie Quinn); daughters: Monica Earley (Noel), Bernadette, Norah Ryan, Margaret Kiernan; sisters: Ann Heffernan, Sr. Paul Hoban and Josie Jennings; sister in law: Margaret Deery; 20 grandchildren; 11 great grandchildren; nephews; nieces; extended family and friends. Her remains were brought to St. Patrick’s Church, Corracrin, on Thursday, January 7th, where her Requiem Mass was celebrated by Fr. Hubert Martin, PP Donagh, and it was live-streamed on-line due to Covid19 restrictions. Sacred music and hymns were proffered by Paula McAree. Burial took place in the adjoining cemetery at Corracrin. Crowds, social distancing, lined the Mullan Road and Main Street as a mark of respect as her remains were taken to the Church, which was an indication of the high esteem in which she was held in the area. Since Maura’s death her sister, Kitty Hoban, has also passed away, which means that Maura and three of her sisters have gone to their eternal rewards during the past two years. Maura had a great love of her native countryside and the people of Corha and Mayo in general. When Mayo were playing an important game in Croke Park, she would have the Mayo flag flying at her home for all to see. She received her education in her native area and excelled in shorthand and typing. However from a very early age she was a writer and won many awards for the quality of her stories. When her old National School was celebrating an important anniversary, she wrote a story for them recounting her school days there and it was a ‘must read’ for all who knew the Cornanool school in Islandeady, near Castlebar. On another occasion she was in the USA visiting one of her sisters, Sr. Margaret, and learned of Len O’Connor, a great Chicago Broadcast journalist, who had a famous show but he was a man not known to read out correspondence to him. However, when Maura arrived home, she wrote to him telling him of her visit and asking him to express her thanks to all the people she met while there and it ran to almost 100 names including the local Fire Brigade and everyone, who made her visit special and Lo!! he read the entire letter out and took up the entire programme with it. He praised the writer and there were hundreds, who praised him for doing what he did and many contacted Maura to thank her too. Stories like these abound as do stories of her many contacts with people but in all of them Maura shines through as a concerned, helpful and lovable lady. Not only was Maura a great writer, who should have published her stories but she was also a great story-teller and entertained everyone, who visited her home with her memories and stories. Maura had a very receptive mind and added to her knowledge at every opportunity. She also had a great interest in the human condition and was very much aware of its imperfections and weaknesses as well as its strengths. She watched and listened to programmes, which expanded her knowledge, but Countdown on TV and Edelle’s Sundown Sessions on-line were two programmes, which could not be missed right up to the days prior to her passing. Her first employment was in Kilbane’s Hotel on Achill Island but she wanted to experience the world further afield. At the age of 19 she answered an advert in the Irish Independent looking for a Secretary/Office manager in Emyvale, Monaghan, and she was appointed and could start right away. So she arrived to work for a local Auctioneer/Rate Collector called John Joe McGlone, who had his offices on Main Street, Emyvale, and she was looking forward to the challenge. It was a long journey then on that first Sunday evening with a train to Dublin and a bus to Monaghan where she stayed overnight. Mr. McGlone had an office in Monaghan each Monday and it was there that she met her new Boss and her first day of work for him. She then stayed with the McGlone family, until she got sorted with accommodation and she loved the work and working for Mr. McGlone and became very friendly with a huge number of people but three in particular remained her closest friends their lifetimes and they were Rose Connolly nee Treanor; Eileen Keenan nee Watterson and Patricia McGovern, nee Kelly. At the same time she got to know the area and fell in love with the area and with her husband-to-be, Mick McKenna. Until then she religiously wrote a letter home but Mick had a car so he was able to drive her to see the folk at home. She took a year out to go to England, where there was a high paid job but she returned after a year as she missed friends she had here. She and Mick got married in 1951 and set up home in Mullan Village. Mick was working in Mullan Mills. Their first child, a son they called Patrick, arrived a year later and Maura’s Mum came all the way from the West to see him and her daughter. She too fell in love with Mullan and visited many times after that. In 1953 they moved to their new home – the bungalow at Emy, which would become a home full of countless precious family memories. Seven more children were to be born and reared there and there are many who can also recall great memories as visitors to that home. Maura was a terrific entertainer and if it wasn’t music, it was cards or a quiz or a poem or a story or an in-depth discussion on a current topic or a part of history and she was capable of defending her opinion with gusto. She understood the value of education and encouraged each of her children to reach their potential taking a personal interest in all that they did. Music played a big part in her life and she passed on to her children her love for our native language, music, song, writings and culture. Maura was a great neighbour and was one to whom many went for advice, which was always worth taking. When her children were reared and employed, Maura herself returned to the world of paid employment in Emyvale District Credit Union and was a popular and efficient member of staff until her retirement. Coincidentally the Credit Union building is located on the same site where once stood John Joe McGlone’s Office -so in a sense she was back where it all began. Even with all of this Maura had time for the community and was involved in many organisations and happenings over the years. When the North Monaghan Social Services was formed she was a leading light there and encouraged senior citizens to attend and enjoy a meal and entertainment. While funding was being raised for the building of the Leisure Centre, Mick was a member of the organising committee and Maura again played her part by getting involved in activity, which was organised to raise money, like the Madhatters Ball each year and Fancy Dress parades and other endeavours. In more recent years 20 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren were arriving and she was always delighted to see them and lavish them with her love and attention. Back some years Maura wrote a letter for her friend Eileen, which was entitled ‘Mullan Village through the eyes of a resident – Maura’s story’. It grew out of a conversation that took place at a wake when it dawned on Maura that she had invaluable knowledge of how an older generation lived in this area; and Maura had the ability to tell the story. It is a terrific and tremendous social history of the area and it is published on Mullanvillage.com. She was also a lady who kept abreast with technology and used it to advantage. She had Alexa in the house and was able to order Raglan Road to be sung, when she wanted or indeed any other song or music or find an answer to a question. She was up to date with all regional and national happenings and was a keen follower of Tommy Bowe. Maura loved people, she loved chatting with people, she loved helping people and she loved humour and used her wit and sense of fun to brighten many a day and occasion. She was a very gifted lady and she loved to share her gifts and talents, which she did with her family and neighbours: baking, sewing, crochet or any of the many other crafts she had mastered. Even during the past year or so she loved to pass on her skills and home-making crafts to various carers, who assisted her but above all else her faith was strong and her attendance at Mass and the saying of the Rosary was paramount. Our hope is that she is now enjoying the eternal rewards in return. She will be sadly missed by her family and by her friends and neighbours in Emy and in many other areas. Ar dheis Dé to raibh a h-anam naofa. The family would like to express their sincere thanks to all who cared for Maura in her final years and their appreciation for all the support and expressions of sympathy they have received. Your Comments HERE