31st January 1912 – Mrs Mary Lewis Goytre
On January 31 aged 68 years there passed away Mary Lewis the beloved wife of Mr Joshia Lewis Danygraig, Goytre, one of the oldest and most esteemed inhabitants of the district. Deceased had been in failing health for some time but the end came with tragic suddenness. Whilst quietly conversing with her husband at table she passed peacefully away into the unseen. She was long a familiar figure in the neighbourhood, a good neighbour and a valued friend. She was the granddaughter of one of the founders of Saron Church (Noah Lewis) and her father was a deacon for upwards of 40 years. With such progenitors it was but natural that deceased should evince a great attachment to the old Bethel of her fathers and was never happier than when in its service. One by one the familiar faces depart. They are missed from their accustomed places and the loss of Mrs Lewis will be felt keenly by a very large circle of friends and by the church with which she had been connected since childhood. The interment took place on Sunday afternoon at Saron, Goytre, amidst manifestations of deep regret and sorrow. Friends gathered from far and near to pay their last tribute of respect to one “whom they had loved long since but lost awhile.”
The funeral service was conducted by the Rev. Havelock Roderick of Saron assisted by the the Rev. A Bowen Morgan late of Goytre, now of Birkenhead.
In the evening a memorial service was held at which the Rev. Bowen Morgan preached from the text, “and his disciples came and took up the body and buried it, and went and told Jesus.” [Matt.XIV.12] The preacher after dealing with some of the suggestions of the text passed on to pay a personal tribute to the departed’s memory, in which he dwelt upon some of the salient features of her life. There were three that stood out in bold relief:
1.The peacefulness of her disposition.
2.The tender and gracious sympathy of her heart and
3.Her unflinching devotion to duty in the sphere of home and church
“Her children arise up and call her blessed, she leaves a sorrowing husband, four sons and a daughter. We extend to them our sincere sympathy in their bereavement”.