RIP: Longford mourns death of wonderful character who had great love of style and fashion

Her absence from Lanesboro over the past eight years most definitely was a great loss to the community but the news of the death on Wednesday, January 14, 2026 at Innis Ree Nursing Home of Madeline (Madge) Finn (nee Cowen), Rathcline Road, and formerly of Clara, Ferbane and Crossmolina, brought great sadness to the entire community. 

To know that we will not see Madge’s beaming smile and feel the warmth of her greetings is leaving us all the poorer. 

She was a wonderful character full of life and she had a most vibrant, cheeky and light-hearted and cheerful personality. 

Madge had a great love of style and fashion as well as being a woman that loved being involved in many crafts.  

Nobody was a stranger with Madge because once she greeted you her nature took over and you felt you were no longer a stranger. She may have been small in stature but that everything in her personality was huge. 

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Madge was always smiling, full of laughter and she was especially accommodating to anyone that was in need of a chat or a shoulder to cry on, her caring heart drew you in and comforted you in a most meaningful way. 

Madge had a great enthusiasm for her faith, family life, family development, golf and support for all the local people and teams that were representing the community. She was a woman who was never stuck for words and her descriptions of events and happenings would bring a smile to your face. 

Madge dying at the beginning of the year is very saddening but in her own inimitable way she would want everyone that knew her, her personality and wittiness, to go forward with the very same positivity that she had professed throughout her life. 

She was predeceased by her parents John and Ita, her brothers Christy, Jim, Tom, Con and Noel her sisters Mary and baby Anne.

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Madge lay in repose at  Glennon’s Funeral Home, Longford on Thursday, January 15 and Mass of the Resurrection took place in St Mary’s Church, Lanesboro after her removal from her family home on the Rathcline Road, on Friday. Burial took place afterwards to Clonbonny Cemetery.

To her husband Jim, children John (Cork), Shirley (Trim) and Michael (Dublin), grandchildren Fiona, Kitty, Zara, Emilie, Cillian, Fionnan, Kirsten, Oisin and Lauren, great grandson Rua, daughters-in-law Bairbre and Sinead, son-in-law Peter, cousins, neighbours and a wide circle of friends  we extend our deepest sympathy.