THE funeral took place on Tuesday of Josephine Crossan, Woodland, Letterkenny, and formerly Mountcharles and Surrey.
Tuesday’s funeral Mass in the Church of the Irish Martyrs was celebrated by Fr Ciaran Harkin.
Josephine’s niece Ursula gave a fitting tribute to her aunt’s life and times.
A native of Woodland, Letterkenny, Josephine spent her early years between Woodland and Dooish national schools before her secondary education in St Louis Convent school in Monaghan.
“At 18 years of age Josephine followed in her sister’s footsteps to England where she trained as a nurse and subsequently moved into banking where she spent the majority of her professional career,” Ursula said.
It was there that she met her late husband, Colin Clifford. They settled in Surrey, where Josephine was devoted to her garden. The couple travelled the world and Ursula outlined trips to Singapore and the Gambia.
Later in life the couple had planned to retire to Mountcharles. Unfortunately Josephine’s husband passed away before the move back to Donegal.
In an emotive eulogy, Ursula said of Josephine:
“She was funny, witty, generous, and oh so kind.
“Always generous, always kind, always concerned for others. She made us all better people by just having known her.
“You always felt better after spending time in her company. She lived a rich and full and colourful life and is a great example for us all on how to live life.
“She will be sorely and dearly missed, but her spirit lives on in all of the lives she touched along the way.”
Fr Harkin said: “Ursula painted a very beautiful portrait of her aunt Josephine. And her words certainly resonated so clearly with all of you who knew her. Josephine was blessed. She was blessed with a long life, certainly a very interesting life, a life that presented her with many golden opportunities that she was indeed so thankful for. “
Fr Harkin described how “Ursula had touched on Josephine’s creative gifts in the world of gardening and in designing and making clothes. And certainly those creative gifts helped to compose within her a great contentment, a great composure of spirit, a contemplative outlook on life. There was a wonderful depth to Josephine. She could read situations and she could read people wisely. And she would do so with compassion and kindness.
“She always appreciated that and she always said she never forgot. And of course, as we know, Josephine’s life was rooted in her religious faith and her daily prayer habits captured in the many little prayer leaflets and booklets that were never that far from her bedside,” he said.
Josephine is predeceased by her husband, Colin, brother, Shaun, sister, Maureen and brother-in-law, Hughie.
She will be deeply missed by her sister, Anne, brother, Michael, sisters-in-law, Jean and Philomena, brother-in-law, Mojtaba, nieces, nephews and a wide circle of family, friends and neighbours.