Death Notice
GRAHAM, Sadie – Died 4th September 2026, peacefully at hospital, late of Barnamaghery.
Dearly loved wife of Robert.
Following a private family interment, a Service of Thanksgiving will be held in Carryduff Free Presbyterian Church on Tuesday 8th September 2026 at 2.00pm.
Family flowers only please. Donations in lieu, if desired, to Carryduff Free Presbyterian Church Building Fund c/o Norman McBriar & Son Funeral Directors 37 Saintfield Mill, Saintfield, BT24 7FH.
House Strictly Private.
Lovingly remembered by the family circle.
Silent thoughts of times together hold memories that will last forever.
Tribute
It was with deep sorrow that the Carryduff Free Presbyterian congregation learned of the home call of Sadie Graham, dearly loved wife of Robert (“Bobbie”), who passed away peacefully on Friday evening in the Ulster Hospital.
During Sunday morning’s announcements, Rev. David McLaughlin offered a personal tribute on behalf of the Congregation, Session and Committee. He described Sadie as a personal friend of this congregation, and a personal friend to him, and spoke of a woman who loved this church, prayed much for it, and was much in support of it. In his words, the congregation has lost a true stalwart.
Rev. McLaughlin also recalled a moment six years ago when Bobbie himself stood at the door of death in the same hospital, with doctors having said nothing more could be done. By God’s grace, and, as Bobbie put it, in answer to prayer, those years were gifted back to him. Little did we know then that the Lord would call Sadie home first.
The family circle is asked to be remembered in prayer at this time, and Bobbie in particular.
“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.” — Psalm 116:15
Funeral Arrangements
Service date & Time
08 September 2026, 2.00PM
Service Location
Carryduff Free Presbyterian Church, 87 Killynure Road, Carryduff, Co. Down, BT8 8EB
Flowers
Family flowers only please. Donations in lieu, if desired, to Carryduff Free Presbyterian Church Building Fund c/o Norman McBriar & Son Funeral Directors 37 Saintfield Mill, Saintfield, BT24 7FH.
Live Broadcast
Tribute given at the Thanksgiving Service
By Rev. David McLaughlin
It’s my honour not only to officiate today at this service of thanksgiving for Sadie Graham, but I’ve also been asked by the family to bring a very short tribute. Of course, we’re gathered to say goodnight to a very special lady.
Sadie Graham was born on the 30th of July 1938 in Belle Turbot in County Cavan. Surprising the things you learn, isn’t it? She was one of ten children. Her father was called Thomas and her mother was called Lillian. Her three sisters are still here, and we’re thinking of May and Violet and Eileen.
When she was six years old, and think of life through the eyes of a six-year-old, her father and mother moved to Saintfield, which became her home for the rest of her life. Think of life from the eyes of a six-year-old going on a journey, a new beginning, a new home in the year 1944. What an adventure.
Sadie went to school in Doran’s Rock, and I’m sure she was a bright pupil. I’m sure she went to school willing to learn and eager to please. I believe she was a fun-loving child, and there was plenty of laughter, and I have no doubt there was plenty of fun and games. I’m sure some of you who are nephews and nieces even remember fun and games at the farm in later times.
Sadie left school, of course, as a teenager. She was a hard-working woman, and her mother had taught her well. Her early working life started on the laundry line in the Ormo bakery, though I’m not sure what she was doing there. Then she went on to the mill in Saintfield before spending many years working on the farm at Barnamaghery. The farm was a big part of Sadie’s life. Sadie loved to farm. In fact, on the farm she worked hard every day. She had a strong work ethic. From dawn to dusk she was working, right up to the age of 82, and then she took on the responsibility here of looking after her husband, Bobbie. That says something about the woman, her strength, her determination, her work ethic.
Then, of course, into her life came her Bobbie. It wasn’t just Bobbie, it was her Bobbie. Sadie Graham married Bobbie Graham. I was confused at the start when I came to this church. She married him as his 21st birthday present, and what a birthday present for Bobbie. Before that, Bobbie had prayed for a wife like his mother. Isn’t that wonderful? Bobbie’s mother was a very kind, hard-working woman, and that’s what he prayed for: “Lord, give me a kind, hard-working woman like my mother.” Of course, he got it in Sadie Graham. That was the beginning of a beautiful marriage that lasted for an incredible 65 years, a life together based on true love, a life of devoted service, a life rooted in faith in God.
You see, the farm, Bobbie, and the Christian faith were the three things at the heart of Sadie’s life. Now, she was great at cooking, or as Sadie called it, “the feeding.” See, it wasn’t only the animals that got fed; it was the family that got fed. All farmers know about the feeding. And when you either worked there, some of you did, or when you visited the home, you were certainly not going home hungry. When Sadie was around, she took great pride in making everyone eat up and made sure they were well fed before you went home.
I can remember her phoning me down to the manse and saying, “Now, if you’re about tomorrow, I’ll have a wee bowl of stew for you, Reverend.” It wasn’t a wee bowl of stew, it was a big bowl. I didn’t eat anything more until the next morning for my breakfast. Whenever you were leaving the house, no matter what you got, there was always a wee bag of stuff in it for you. I have to tell you honestly, and I hope the family’s not offended, inside that bag there were a few pounds for the church and a wee envelope for the church building fund. Sometimes she’d have given me a wee container of soup to take home. Sometimes it was in a frozen box, and other times it was in a wee round oval box.
Let me just tell you this as well. On Friday the 3rd of July, before she went into hospital, I think it was the 4th she went in, I was late getting there and I told her I’d be coming. When I arrived, maybe about five o’clock, I was going to some function in Saintfield that evening, and she made me a big fry. I want to tell you, it was two of everything, eggs, sausages, potato bread, bacon, you were really… And then, of course, whenever the fry was over, the plate was gone and then it was in with the sandwiches and then a few buns, and “you’ll take a bit of cake.”
Did you know that in the early years, when men were out in the field working, they would look about dinner time and Sadie would come across the field carrying two bags, and the bags were laden. Inside the bags were plates, cups, saucepans, cutlery. And whenever she was offered a lift home in the tractor, she’d say, “I’m not sure, I walked here, I’ll be able to walk back.” See, she was a hard worker.
I’ll tell you another wee story, and this was shared with me by a family member. Somewhere about Saintfield there at the island, there was a field, and did you know that Sadie Graham gathered the stones out of that field, put them in the link box, link box full after link box full, day after day, when she came home from her work and got a wee rest, out in the field she cleared the stones from the field. And I know that because in my earlier years I know about gathering stones with a tractor and a link box, and having done it myself in past years, I know it’s back-breaking hard work.
Today we gather to thank the Lord for Sadie Graham. I met her and Bobbie shortly after I came here as minister 27 years ago. They belonged to the Martyrs, and they were with the Martyrs a long time, Martyrs in the morning, and then in the evening they’d come over to the wee schoolhouse where we had the wee schoolhouse there on the new site for the months. She loved the singing. She loved the gospel message. When she would, you’d get a wee gleam in her eye, a smile on her face, and oftentimes she had a wee gift to put into your hand as well, and then she would say, “You’ll be over, Mr McLaughlin, for a drop of tea.”
I want to tell you, Sadie Graham was a wee lady that was special, a wee lady that loved the Lord. I remember, and my wife reminded me this morning, Rosemary and I got an invitation for a meal, and we were in the good dining room, not in the kitchen, and of course we had the best china and delicious food. And listen, she kept putting stuff on the plate, and I was stuffed, I can tell you that, when I left the house. She’d have done Mary Berry proud. If Mary Berry had known her, she would have said, “Your cooking’s the same as mine, Sadie Graham,” because it was home cooking.
A true friend, and we value her friendship, we value her fellowship in the Lord, and all that time it continued right up to the end. And I just want to say this in finishing: she didn’t have a bad word to say about anybody in all the years that I knew her. Such a wee woman, no matter how busy she was, she had time for you, and she also had time for the Lord, and time for the word of God, and time for prayer. And she was always in her place, and when there was a special service, or on Sunday services, Bobbie and her, when they were able, they were in their place on the Lord’s Day.
She was delighted to be here when the new building was opened in 2018. Do you know, she wouldn’t have hurt a fly? Sometimes there’d be a fly in the kitchen, she’d open the window, and of course if she couldn’t really get it out, then it did get her into a bit of a sweat, but very, very rarely. On the church website we put a lovely, beautiful photograph of her and Bobbie at the opening.
And I just want to say this: we’re gathered here today with sorrow in our hearts, the death of a family member, the death of a friend, but we’re not gathered to say goodbye. You see, it’s not that we will not see her again. We’re really gathered to say goodnight. You see, she used to love coming to the wee schoolhouse when the Murphy group was here, and of course one of Dan Murphy’s favourite songs was “I’ll Meet You in the Morning,” just inside the Eastern Gate over there. And those in Christ, they look forward to that resurrection, victory and glorification, to be with Christ, which is far better.
She’ll be missed. Bobbie will miss her, her family will miss her, her friends will miss her, but she’s not forgotten. Just think of this: where was she happiest? With her Bobbie. On the farm, or in the field, or in the kitchen, or in the house of God.
And I just want to thank God for her hard work. I thank God for her love, her kindness, the little things that she did, the familiar ways, and the memory she has left us. What a wonderful example of a faithful woman, and she’s gone to her eternal rest. Her work here on earth is done; her journey is over. And in the book of Revelation we read this, in chapter 14, verse 13: “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.” Amen. May God bless this little tribute to her heart.
Sermon Summary: “She Hath Done What She Could”
This sermon, preached at the funeral of Sadie Graham, is built upon a single verse: Mark 14:8, “She hath done what she could.” The preacher uses the story of Mary of Bethany anointing Christ with costly ointment as a framework through which to honour the life of the deceased and, more importantly, to press the claims of the gospel upon the living.
The sermon’s structure is simple and deliberate. It is divided into three main sections, each drawing a lesson from Mary’s act and applying it to Sadie Graham’s life:
- Her dependency on Christ — she knew what she needed
- Her devotion to Christ — she gave what she could
- Her diligence for Christ — she used what she had
Throughout, the preacher weaves together personal recollection, biblical exposition, and a direct evangelistic appeal, so that the funeral becomes an occasion not only for mourning but for confronting each hearer with the question of their own standing before God.
The Text and Its Setting
The sermon opens by introducing the words of Mark 14:8 and the scene in which they were spoken. Mary (the preacher notes the woman is called Mary) anointed Jesus with a box of very precious ointment of spikenard, while Christ sat at meat in the home at Bethany.
The preacher observes that the disciples and others criticised her, regarding the act as excessive and wasteful. Yet the Lord Jesus saw something quite different. He saw a woman with a heart that loved Him, a woman who had acted willingly and gladly “against the day of his burial,” and He commended her.
The preacher acknowledges that at a time of death, words seem inadequate — no collection of words can fully express what Sadie Graham meant to her husband, family, friends and neighbours. Nevertheless, he believes these words of the Saviour provide a helpful way to remember her by, and he notes that he had long thought that if he ever had the joy of conducting Sadie’s funeral, these were the words he would turn to.
First: Her Dependency on Christ
The first lesson drawn from the text is that of dependency. Mary knew what she needed to do, and Sadie likewise knew what she needed.
She was dependent on Him for life
The preacher explains that Sadie discovered in life’s journey that she was a dependent creature. Everything she did, she did “in and through him.” This dependence rests on the truth of creation: God is our creator, and we are His creatures, His offspring.
Drawing on Isaiah 43 and on Paul’s sermon at Mars Hill (Acts 17), the preacher stresses that “in him we move and live and have being.” God gives us breath to breathe and life to enjoy. He presses the point personally and directly:
- You could not take a breath without Him.
- You could not take a step without Him.
- You could not get out of bed and go about your daily tasks without the input of His power.
Many today, he says, have forgotten this dependence. Sadie Graham, by contrast, had discovered it.
She was dependent on Him for all life’s blessings
The preacher recalls that Sadie had a thankful heart, rooted in her upbringing on a farm. At harvest time he can picture her sitting at the back singing, “All good gifts around us are sent from heaven above; then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord.”
He cites James 1:17: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights.” Every gift necessary for the journey of life has come from God:
- The gift of love
- The gift of kindness
- The gift of hospitality
- The gift of a smile
He introduces the divine title Jehovah Jireh, “the Lord will provide,” and reflects on the provision of the Shepherd from Psalm 23:
- The provision of rest — “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures”
- The provision of refreshment — “He leadeth me beside the still waters”
- The provision of restoration — “He restoreth my soul”
- The provision of the path of righteousness — so that we can live right, governed by the Word of God
She was dependent on Him for salvation
The preacher then moves to the heart of the matter. On life’s journey, Sadie discovered that the Christian life does not begin with what we do for God, but with what the Lord has done for us.
He recounts that Sadie married Bobbie on his 21st birthday, and they were married in Raffrey Presbyterian Church by the late Reverend Martin Smith. She sat under his ministry for many years, heard the faithful preaching of the gospel, and came to the point where she knew Christ personally as Lord and Saviour. She came to understand she was a lost sheep, and that there was a seeking shepherd calling to her.
This leads into a full statement of the Reformed gospel:
- Salvation is of the Lord.
- Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
- The gospel is not “do better,” not “try harder,” not even “keep the ten commandments.”
- The gospel is not “make yourself right with God.”
- The gospel is not “we can work our way to heaven.”
The preacher quotes Ephesians 2:8–9: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” There is a place for good works, he says, but not as the ground of salvation. Good works are the evidence, the fruit of faith. None of us could accumulate enough good works to cancel our debt of sin.
He then sets out the substance of the gospel message:
- “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
- “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
- Christ came as “the Son of man… to seek and to save that which was lost.”
- He was born for sinners.
- He lived a perfect, sinless life for us.
- He died an atoning death on the cross, shedding His blood — a substitutionary, vicarious death, as surety, substitute, sin-bearer and sacrifice.
- He bore the guilt and punishment of our sins on the tree.
- He rose again bodily from the dead.
The preacher quotes Romans 5:1: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
He then makes the application emphatic, because, he says, Sadie would want him to emphasise it: the Christian life is not “have I done enough to please God?” No — the true foundation is this: Christ has done everything necessary to save me. I just have to receive Him. I have to rest in Him.
The preacher closes this section by observing that death is a reminder that we are dependent creatures. Sadie knew she would one day die, and in her final hour, unable to speak, she was pointing upward with her little finger. He believes this was the secret of her contentment and of her radiant smile — she was a dependent creature.
Second: Her Devotion to Christ
The second lesson is devotion. The Lord Jesus commended Mary’s devotion, and the preacher turns to examine the character of that devotion.
Mary’s place: at the feet of Jesus
Studying Mary’s life, the preacher notes a striking pattern. Three times she is recorded in Scripture — a number of witness — and on each occasion she is found at the feet of Jesus:
- In Luke 10, she was taught the Bible at Jesus’ feet.
- In Luke 11, she laid her burdens at Jesus’ feet, when her brother Lazarus had died.
- In John 12, she gave her best at Jesus’ feet.
The Lord did not commend Mary for doing everything, but for faithfully doing what was in her ability to do.
The costly gift
The woman possessed something very precious: a box of spikenard, very costly — about 300 pence, almost a year’s wages for a labourer in the first century, worth perhaps tens of thousands, or even a million pounds today. Yet precious and costly as it was, she gave it to Christ.
Crucially, the preacher stresses her motive: it was not to earn salvation, nor to buy a place in heaven. She gave it out of love and devotion to Him. She did what she could.
A picture of Christian service
This becomes, for the preacher, a beautiful description of Christian service. The Lord does not ask us to do what He has not given us the ability or opportunity to do:
- Sadie was never going to preach a sermon or sing from the pulpit.
- The Lord does not ask that of us.
- But He does call us to a life of faithfulness.
The preacher reflects that there is something very precious about a life of faithfulness. Sadie Graham’s life speaks of faithfulness and loving devotion. She was never in the public eye, never on the platform or in the pulpit, never seeking the applause of the crowd — only the approval of Christ.
Her happiest place was with Bobbie, on the farm or in the kitchen, working hard and caring for him. Much of her work was entirely unseen. Yet the Bible says in Hebrews 6:10: “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love.”
The preacher draws out the comfort of this verse:
- People forget, but the Lord does not.
- Every meal prepared, every act of kindness, every prayer offered, every word of encouragement — God does not forget.
- Sadie gave words of encouragement, phoning others out of loving concern.
- Every pound she gave, every act of selfless service, was seen by God.
She spent and gave herself for others — for Bobbie and for her family circle. She loved, cared, worked, prayed, believed, trusted, served God and remained faithful.
Where her love was best seen
Her love was best seen, the preacher says, in:
- Her Bible reading
- Her times of prayer
- Her church attendance — she and Bobbie, up until six years ago, never missed a regular or special service
She gave without looking for the applause of men. Love, he observes, does not ask “what am I getting?” but “what can I give?” That is the kind of love Sadie had — the kind only seen in those who have sat at Jesus’ feet.
He then turns the application directly upon the hearers with a series of searching questions:
- Have you sat at Jesus’ feet?
- Have you been taught the Word of God by the Saviour?
- Do you bring your burdens and leave them with Him — the burdens of the day, of the family, of work?
- Do you ask the Lord for help and grace?
- Do you give your best at the Saviour’s feet? — “Lord, all I am and all I have belongs to You.”
Third: Her Diligence for Christ
The final lesson is diligence. She used what she had.
A willing heart
Sadie faithfully used what God had given her. She did not use someone else’s gifts; she did not covet what another had; she was not out for approval in the applause of the crowd. She used what God had given her:
- Her smile
- Her cooking skill for hospitality
- Her laughter — a lovely, infectious laugh
- Her words of encouragement
The preacher shares a personal recollection: he once preached a sermon in the little schoolhouse called “God’s Handkerchief,” and several times afterwards Sadie phoned him to say what a blessing and encouragement that message had been to her.
She had a true spirit of contentment. She used her time, her talents, her tithe, her ability and her opportunity to do good to all men, especially to the household of faith. She felt it her responsibility that whatever needed to be done that she could do, she did it gladly and willingly.
The preacher cites Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might” (rendered here as “with all your heart”).
Conclusion and Application
The preacher draws the sermon to a close by imagining what Sadie would say if she could speak to the congregation:
- Do what you can, with what you have, and let God judge your life of faithfulness.
He returns to the image of Mary breaking the box of spikenard and pouring it on Christ’s head. It was a welcome sacrifice, made against the day of Christ’s burial. Within days Christ would be beaten, mocked and nailed to the tree. The Bible says that “for the joy that was set before him” He endured the cross, offering Himself willingly as a once-for-all sacrifice for sin.
He reminds the mourners that while they grieve — there is an empty chair, a silent voice, an unoccupied space — they do not sorrow as those without hope. The grief is real, and Sadie will be missed, but they should be thankful for her life, for “she being dead yet speaketh.”
Her message to those left behind is threefold, echoing the structure of the sermon:
- Live a life of dependence — for in Him you live and move and have your being; every blessing comes from Him; be dependent on Him for the salvation of your soul.
- Live a life of devotion — do what you can, use what you have for the glory of God.
- Be diligent in faithful service — and let Him judge your faithfulness.
And if he had to sum it all up in one sentence, the preacher concludes, Sadie would say this: Christ is all you need.
