At a funeral service filled with beautiful singing in keeping with her own life, the eulogy to Margaret Mitchell was fittingly titled ‘Margaret’s Melody'.
Rev Jane Nelson of First Omagh Presbyterian Church explained that it was not an original title, as it was actually the name of a daffodil specially created to celebrate her illustrious singing career.
It was a melody that began in the town in 1944, where Margaret grew up the only daughter of Jack and Ruby Campbell on the Ballynahatty Road.
Her mother was a teacher who taught her pupils the ‘tonic sol-fa’ singing technique and took her to music lessons and feis competitions in Omagh and Derry, where she took home many prizes.
Margaret’s future husband, Omagh GP Haldane Mitchell, later recorded how it was the church choirmaster, Wesley McKee, who encouraged her to audition with singing teacher Frank Capper when she went to Belfast to study physiotherapy in 1963.
The young soprano joined the Royal Victoria Hospital Choral Society and auditioned for the Belfast Philharmonic Choir, performing sacred works each year in the Ulster Hall.
A medical appointment with a member of St Agnes' Choral Society led to weekly trips to Andersonstown and she was chosen to sing the lead part in its annual musical in 1969.
The outbreak of the Troubles intervened to limit further opportunities and she also found herself relocating the following year back to Omagh following her marriage to Haldane, a member of the same church community.
They would be blessed with three children, Suzanne, Angus and Fergus, and Rev Nelson said “many a happy tune was sung on the beach at Rossnowlagh, on holidays in the Republic and at family parties and gatherings down through the years”.
Margaret continued to compete in music festivals and travelled regularly to Belfast for lessons and to sing at the Performers' Club at Queen’s.
She also began a long and fruitful relationship with Omagh Musical Society, which performed Mozart’s Ave Verum at her funeral, as well as Londonderry Amateur Operatic Society and Letterkenny Musical Society.
She was lead soprano and solo performer in many musicals and concerts, as well as performing regularly at weddings and other church gatherings.
Rev Nelson said Margaret’s rich melody also included a fulfilling career as a physiotherapist in Omagh County Hospital, where she was fondly remembered by patients in the stroke unit and elderly ward.
“She had a deep passion and care for others, particularly the vulnerable, and especially children. She was a long-term active member of the local NSPCC committee and alongside Lady Moira was the divisional vice president of the NSPCC, attending meetings and conferences in London on a regular basis.
“She was a formidable fundraiser organising, along with her committee colleagues, the annual bluebell walk in Baronscourt and the Omagh High Street charity collection.”
Also serving four terms as president of the Inner Wheel club in Omagh, Margaret’s services to charity was recognised with the award of a British Empire Medal in 2015.
Recalling her “warm smile, twinkling eyes and great sense of humour and fun”, Rev Nelson said she was a consummate hostess at home and life and soul of parties across the community.
Margaret had closely supported her husband throughout their 46 years of happy marriage, often fielding emergency calls and directing him to call-outs via CB radio.
She suffered his passing eight and a half years ago, and in recent months had borne her own illness with stoicism.
“Classic FM on the TV, the calm and reassuring notes of nurses and care assistants at home and in hospital, the loving care of her beloved family and the reassuring presence of lifelong friends created a beautiful harmony in Margaret’s last days,” said Rev Nelson.
Margaret Mitchell died on January 3. Predeceased by her husband Haldane and brother David, she is survived by her children, four grandchildren, and brothers Denzil and Kenneth.