Newark mother, grandparent and great-grandparent lived a life filled with fun and laughter

A mother, grandparent and great-grandparent, who lived a life filled with fun and laughter, has died, aged 92.

Margaret Meakin, formerly of Philip Road, Newark, lived a life of laughter and spent her final years enjoying the sun with her daughter in Cyprus.

Janet Hopkinson, Margaret’s daughter, said: “She met my dad, Derek, playing tennis at the Ransome and Marles Tennis Club and they later got married — that is when me and my brother, David, came along.

“My brother had heart problems, so for many years she spent time going in and out of hospitals looking after him.”

Janet said that her father died in her late teen years, leaving her mum alone with the two children.

“She was very stoic and stood no nonsense,” said Janet. “Through all of this she kept close to her best friend Jean Scotney.

“Towards the end she needed care so when we retired she came to live with us in Cyprus.

“We had a wonderful three years. She went to concerts, she went to the beach and we went out for meals with friends.

“In her own words, she was ‘well looked after’.

“She died peacefully at home were she wanted to be. She was a 92-year-old filled with fun and laughter, and she had a witty sense of humour to the end.”

Margaret was also a popular figure in her home town, particularly at the Tawny Owl pub, Fernwood, where she would spend a couple of hours a night, up to three times a week.

She would always sit at her favourite table and was known as mother by pub staff, who held a leaving party for her and her family before her move to Cyprus.

Her funeral will take place on August 10 at Lincoln Crematorium at 9.50am. The family welcome donations to the Alzheimer’s Society through Pat Cook Funeral Services, Lincoln.

As well as Janet, Margaret leaves behind her son-in-law Paul Hopkinson, her son, David, and her daughter-in-law Christine, two grandsons and two great-grandchildren.