The heartbroken family of the late Breege Maguire have been left in shock following the unexpected death of the loving wife, mother and grandmother who was known for her caring personality and "infectious laugh".

Breege (58), late of Derrygellia, Roslea, passed away unexpectedly but peacefully in her sleep on Saturday, July 10.

Speaking on behalf of his family, Breege's son, Ciaran, described her as a "great family person".

"She just loved having her family around; she was a great family person, and she absolutely idolised her grandchild, Alfie.

"To me, mammy was just mum. I have one brother and two sisters, and she knew all about what all of us were doing, and my father as well.

"We would have told mum everything. If we weren't having a good day, the first person we would have went to was mum. She had us spoiled to a certain extent," he said, going on to note how Breege was also very close to her siblings, who she often enjoyed socialising with.

"She had four sisters and two brothers, and collectively the five sisters would've done quite a lot together. She had actually been out with them the Wednesday night before she died," he added.

An outgoing person, Breege had a "really infectious laugh".

"In a crowd, mammy wouldn't talk too much, but she'd just be laughing away at everything. A lot of people enjoyed her for that," said Ciaran.

For more than 15 years, Breege worked in parish administration for the Parish of Roslea.

"She was hardworking and very discreet, because of her job. She would've been very trustworthy, again with her job - anything anyone told mum, it never went any further, she would keep confidence very well."

When she wasn't working or spending time with her family, Breege enjoyed going for walks, particularly around the family farm.

"She would walk around the farm; we're from a farming background, and we have a farm just over the road.

"She'd be straight over and directing proceedings. The farm was definitely one thing, but her faith was very important to her. She was very loyal to the Parish of Roslea, and she enjoyed going to Knock, and Lough Derg."

Ciaran added that his family are very sporty, and his mother was very supportive of all their sporting endeavours.

"She'd be at the games, or if we were watching matches on TV, she'd be with us. Any sport, but certainly GAA, she was big into that."

Breege grew up in the village of Roslea, but moved to the countryside when she married Benny.

Ciaran explained that moving to the countryside was a shock to his mother at first, but she settled in well, enjoying the solitude of countryside living.

"She loved the peace and quiet," he said, noting how the privacy was important to her.

This peacefulness and quietness particularly resonated with the family following Breege's passing, giving them time to together try and process her unexpected death.

"It was completely out of the blue," said Ciaran, going on to explain how the family were together the evening before her death.

"I was talking to mam about the match, and she was going shopping the next day. Then she made us hot chocolate, and we all sat and drank it together.

"She went to bed that evening, but my father stayed up a wee bit later [than her]. When he went down to bed, he was talking to her," said Ciaran, going on to explain that when the alarm went off the next day, his father got up, but his mother didn't.

"Mammy just looked like she was asleep. Then my sister Therese went down to wake her up, and she had just passed away in her sleep.

"It was just like a light going out, that's the only way I can describe it. Just a light went out and she slipped away so peacefully, with no suffering, and she wasn't sick. There was no indication.

"No one could believe it," said Ciaran, saying that the family are still in shock.

"It's an awful shock. My dad did say, if she had been sick, you could accept it a bit more, but this just happened with no warning."

Breege's funeral was arranged by Aidan Connolly, Funeral Director, and took place on Friday, July 16 at St. Tierney's Church, Roslea.

Talking about the support his family has received since his mother's passing, Ciaran said: "We've had great support from the community and mammy's friends.

“Some of the neighbours took over the running of our farm. We couldn't function, to a certain extent, because it was such a shock."

Dearly beloved wife of Benny, and a much-loved mother of Clare, Therese (Steven), Ciaran, Brian and a devoted grandmother to Alfie, Breege is sadly missed and remembered with love by her husband, daughters, sons, son-in-law and grandson; her sisters Bernadette, Dympna, Mary and Margaret; her brothers Colum and Maurice; her sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews and her entire circle of family and friends.