A CHAMPION of Irish traditional music in Limerick and beyond, a mentor and a warm-hearted and welcoming woman, and a great servant to traditional music.
These are just a few of the descriptions mourners have paid in tribute in the days since the passing of Peig Ryan (née Carberry) this past Saturday (January 10) in her 103rd year.
The great-grandmother, late of Rath, Murroe, and Cappamore, County Limerick, passed away at St Anthony’s Nursing Home – where she was known as a popular, larger than life character – surrounded by her loving family.
She will be laid to rest in Doon Cemetery this Wednesday (January 14) following Requiem Mass at the Holy Rosary Church in Murroe, which is to be a musical celebration of her life.
She will be reposing at Meehan’s Funeral Home in Cappamore tomorrow (Tuesday) from 6pm to 8pm.
Peig was a founding member, with her late husband Mick, of a Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann branch in Murroe, which established in January 1972, that would later be named in her honour for her dedication in shepherding multiple generations of traditional musicians.
Now into its 54th year, Craobh Peig Uí Riain has ushered in some of the country’s top traditional musicians – many mentored by Peig herself, who taught whistle, flute, and concertina into her 95th year.
Paying tribute in an online post, Craobh Peig Uí Riain said: “We are grateful for the impact she has made through her wonderful love and passion for music. When we consider the status of Irish traditional music in East Limerick, the name of Peig Ryan must be associated with it.”
“Our Comhaltas branch, rebranded in her honour, is so blessed to have experienced Peig’s many talents as a musician, mentor, officer, producer and teacher over a long lifetime. She has left us a legacy which needs to be acknowledged in years to come by all our members and especially our music students,” the group said.
In January 2023, the group celebrated its 50th anniversary and, in doing so, paid special tribute to Peig on the combined celebration of her 100th birthday.
Others paying tribute online described the traditional music titan as “a warm hearted and welcoming woman”, “a gentle lady and a mentor to many”, and “a great servant to traditional music”.
“She and the Ryan and Carberry families had a profound impact in the areas of traditional Irish music and culture at local, regional, and national level. She may now continue the work among the angels,” one mourner wrote.
The staff at St Anthony’s Nursing Home, where she spent her final years, paid a touching tribute online, writing: “It has been with such sadness and tears in our eyes that we say goodbye to a lady that lit up all of our lives in so many ways”.
“There are no words that we could ever write that would do Peig justice, a larger than life character with a special VIP presence around her. Peig was such a special lady to us all, she was beyond popular with fellow residents and staff and had a special way of getting what she wanted without having to try too hard.”
Ms Ryan was predeceased by her late husband Mick, daughter Theo, parents Patrick and Margaret, and brothers Mick-Joe and Tom.
She is survived by her children Mairéad, Gerard, Paudie, and Mike, daughters-in-law Mary, Mary, and Helen, sister Marie O’Donnell and her husband John, her many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nephews, nieces, neighbours, admirers, and a wide network of Comhaltas friends and musicians across the Irish traditional music world.