A tribute by Margie Murphy a very close friend of Anne's

When you try to describe Anne you realise that it is almost impossible to believe that you are talking about just one person. So many ofus here don't know one another but we are here because we all knew Anne. We knew her in the many and varied aspects ofher life. We have heard from Caoimhe and Claire about Anne, the person to whom family was so important. But family to Anne had no rigid boundaries.
There was a  sense of elasticity in Anne's concept of family. It expanded to include Finian's family, her sisters in law and brother in law and friends.
Just now she was preparing with great good humour to expand again to include a son in law.

To Anne bonds of family could stretch but they would never break.
Anne was an activist in the truest meaning of the word. Her activism wag grounded in doing not in saying. She stepped up in every aspect ofher life. Professionally she excelled. She was a mentor ofnew teachers before the concept was discovered. To work in the classroom next to Anne was to feel protected, helped and supported. I should know, I was one ofthose teachers. She could have continued in the security of a classroom for the rest ofher teaching career. But that was not her way.

When Damdale JNS was allocated a Home School Liaison teacher it was a leap in the dark for all of us.
We needed someone with experience, empathy, common sense and courage. Anne was the obvious candidate and she was an inspired choice. She laid the foundations on which we built down the years. Her greatest asset was the absolute respect with which she treated her colleagues, parents and the children.
Her kindness and goodness were contagious and her life experiences gave her an empathy and credibility which parents recognised and to which they responded.
On returning to the classroom she was still up for a challenge. Integration was a topic under debate at that time. Anne's contribution to that debate was simply to do it. She, with others went on to successfully pioneer
the policy of integration in our school which continues today.
The activist in her was attracted to the INTO. Attending Meetings quickly led her to become a Staff Representative.
Sticking with her philosophy of doing rather than talking she went on to become the Secretary of Dublin North West Branch, a member of District 15 Committee and a Congress delegate for many years. She was heavily involved in, and organised, at Branch level, every INTO campaign through the 80's and 90's. Anne saw no contradiction between being a good teacher and an active trade unionist. Rather she saw those roles as complimentary.
I ask you to remember that most ofthis work was done at a time when she was quietly and bravely fighting her 14 year battle with her illness.

The public Anne was not very different from Anne the family person. She moved seamlessly from person to person and from situation to situation. Nobody was treated differently because oftheir name or their status.
She was grounded in ordinariness and she grounded those around her. Anne didn't "do" fuss or show but she set, maintained and expected high standards. She was the classic WYSIWYG. What you saw was what you got.
And what a lot we got!!!

There is a danger at a time like this that we paint a picture of someone who is too serious, too good, too perfect and frankly boring. That picture is not only wrong but it would be a serious disservice to Anne to give that impression.
She loved and was loved. She loved life and lived it to the full. She constantly tried new things. In latter years that included French classes and learning to play Bridge. Anne was about light and happiness regardless ofher own situation.
We know that to be Anne's friend was a privilege and a pleasure. It involved much laughing, lots oftravelling, coffee and lunches, nice meals, a little white wine and even the odd gin and tonic.
We had long chats about books and films and especially long discussions on the plot lines of CSI, Law and Order and The Bill. For 5 ofus in particular, she was our anchor and she will continue in that role.
There is much talk recently about legacy. It appears we must all leave one. So what is the legacy of Anne McGrath?

In professional terms, it is the children whose life she influenced through her teaching.
The parents whose attitudes she changed by giving them a place in the school community.
The colleagues whom she inspired and supported.
The improvements in the education system which she was part ofthrough her work in the INTO.
For her friends it is the love we shared, the fun we had and the memories we made together. In the family, Anne's legacy sits in front ofus. It is her brothers and sister and their families, her extended
family and her in-laws. Above all it is Finian, Cliodhna, Caoimhe and Niall.
We all have a responsibility to Anne which I put before you now. We owe it to her to speak her name often.
Initially that will be in sadness. Soon it will be in smiles and eventually we will speak ofher in laughter. Anne must be as important a part of our future as she was of our past.