Pearl Mullan
5th April 1940 - 15th March 2007.

A tribute by Elsie Rea

It came as a great shock when Pearl passed away at the age of 66. Although she had been ill for along time no one was prepared to lose her so soon. Pearl joined the Newtownards based Berkshire Hosiery company in 1976, working in the Sales Office and quickly became a solid member of the team.
Before working with us Pearl had been employed in the office of the Portaferry branch of clothing manufacturers Debretta Ltd. Travelling to Newtownards every morning was a bit of a drag at first, but she soon got used to it. However, she learned to drive, passed her test and was no longer dependant on buses. Pearl and I became firm friends and many people thought we were sisters- maybe because we were roughly the same shape! She had a great sense of humour and made friends with everyone she met.

One of the jobs in the office was taking orders from the sales representatives that were phoned in on the ‘robophones’ overnight. Pearl arrived in the office every morning at eight o’clock to do this task even though it meant a really early start. She was a favourite of the reps as they thought she had a great accent on the telephone. Even after we had all left the firm, Pearl, Margaret Mathews, Irene Drury, Dorothy Dunlop and I kept on touch over the years. We often went for nights out, but recently these outings became less frequent due to Pearl’s health problems.

Although Pearl had to travel to the Ulster Hospital three times a week for dialysis, getting up at 4.30am, she never complained and always remained cheerful. She was a member of Portaferry Bowling Club and often bowled from her wheelchair, even being helped to aim the bowls when her eyesight was failing. Pearl was a deeply religious person and lived for her family.

She was married to Paddy and they had three daughters, Paula, Jennifer and Elaine. Her grandchildren gave her great pleasure and just three weeks ago she became a great granny. Her family, including her mother, will miss her very much, as will all her many friends.