Memorial service for JP McManus' daughter-in-law Emma to be held on Tuesday

The late Emma McManus with her husband John and father-in-law JP. Picture: by Don MacMonagle

A memorial service is to take place on Tuesday in Barbados, for Emma McManus, daughter-in-law of Limerick horse racing magnate JP McManus, who died suddenly on the Caribbean island on December 30 last.

Ms McManus, 40, married to JP’s son John McManus, was with loved ones in their private island family residence when she suddenly became unwell, and passed away a short time later at a local medical centre.

A memorial service is due to be streamed online from Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens, Barbados, at 2pm Irish time tomorrow.

It’s understood a separate private family service will take place in the coming days to allow loved ones of the cherished mother of three say their individual final goodbyes.

A memorial service is to take place on Tuesday in Barbados, for Emma McManus, daughter in law of Limerick horse racing magnate JP McManus. Picture: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE

Ms McManus, a daughter of former Irish tennis star and businessman Peter Ledbetter, had been preparing to celebrate New Year’s Eve with loved ones on the grounds of the luxury Sandy Lane resort, Barbados, which was purchased in the late 1990s by her father-in-law and fellow investors, financier Dermot Desmond, and horse breeder John Magnier.

Barbados police are not treating the death as suspicious and are awaiting the results of an autopsy to confirm the cause of death.

Messages of condolences

Hundreds of messages of condolences and sympathy have poured in from all over the world.

“We are so sorry for your loss. May Emma Rest In Peace,” wrote the Fitzgerald family, owners of the Woodlands House Hotel, which is located close nearby JP McManus’s five-star Adare Manor Golf and Resort in Adare, Co Limerick.

The Irish Naval Association, through its secretary Ger Kiely, has passed on its “sincere condolences to the McManus and Ledbetter families” on their “tragic” loss.

Sporting clubs all around the country, including Mr McManus’s local Staker Wallace GAA club, as well as management of racecourses in Limerick, Tipperary Leopardstown, Killarney, and Galway, all wrote messages of condolences.

A poignant message of sympathy left by a “Co Limerick Mom”, read:

“Wishing you peace to bring comfort, Courage to face the days ahead, And Loving memories to Forever hold in your heart.” An informed source said both families were “completely shaken” by the sudden passing of the Trinity College graduate.

Limerick-based priest Fr Chris O’Donnell has flown out to the Caribbean island to officiate at the memorial service. His colleague Fr David Casey told the Limerick Leader: “The family are so well thought of, their presence in the community is strong – they are good to the community, and everyone in the community is praying for them.” 

Ms McManus, late of London and Blackrock, Co Dublin, is survived by her husband and their three young children Milly, Lauren, and Annie; parents and parents-in-law, Peter and Paula, JP and Noreen; grandmother, and three siblings.