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Five members of this family lived to see 100 and they're hoping it's a world record

The family have made an application to the Guinness World Records.

Clarke Family 1916 001 Joe Fanning Joe Fanning

FIVE SIBLINGS OF this family from Loughrea in County Galway lived to see their 100th birthday, which the family hopes is some sort of record.

Madge Fanning (Clarke) (pictured above sitting on her mother’s knee) celebrated her 100th birthday this year, making her the fifth sibling in her family to reach the milestone birthday.

The family believe that this is a new record, with one family in the UK holding the record with four siblings reaching 100.

The Clarke family go one step further, with Madge’s mother also living until she was 101, but the record only stands for immediate siblings, they were told.

clarkesfag The Clarke Family in 1974 Joe Fanning Joe Fanning

Record

Speaking to TheJournal.ie, Madge’s son Joe Fanning said they filed documents with the Guinness World Records and hope to hear back soon.

Fanning says his mother and uncles all lived full lives, with many living past the age of 100.

Charles Clarke (1902 – 2002) was taken by the Black and Tans in 1921 and was kept in the Curragh for over a year. “He was a founder member of An Garda Siochana in 1922, and was presented with his 100th birthday cheque from the Garda Commissioner in a ceremony in his honour,” explained Joe.

Joe Clarke (1901 – 2002) died just one day after celebrating his 101st birthday, while his brother Pat Clarke (1903-2005) died seven months after celebrating his 101th.

James (Jimmy) Clarke (1906-2009) emigrated to New York in 1927. “He left and Hubert, his brother followed. They knew that the small farm they had in Galway could not sustain the whole family so they did what many people did and left. Jimmy died in New York four months before his 103rd birthday.”

Madge, the last surviving member, was born in 1914. She met her husband, a Dublin man called James and moved to Dublin to live in Skerries in 1937 where she opened a seaside shop.

Last surviving family member

Madge has eight children seven boys and one girl, fifteen grandchildren and sixteen great grandchildren.

So what is their secret?

“My granny, (Madge’s mother who lived to be 101) always said everything in moderation is good for you,” he said, who said that tragically his grandmother died at 101 in a motor accident while out shopping for an outfit for one of her grandchildren’s weddings. At the time of her death she had seventy nine grandchildren.

granny Margaret Clarke (Coen) - Madge's mother who died in 1975.

“They were all just very easy going,” explained Joe, who added that his mother has no real answer to give as to why they live so long, other that they never got overly-excited or stressed out,” said Joe.

Madge also said none of them were big drinkers, with some of them never touching a drink.

“Family is a huge thing though. All the siblings looked after each other and after they passed on the grandchildren and great grandchildren stepped in,” said Joe.

The Clarke’s family story was recently featured on RTÉ’s Nationwide.

gtt Madge Clarke, aged 100. Screengrab / RTÉ Screengrab / RTÉ / RTÉ

“I had a great life. I enjoyed every minute of it,” said Madge.

She said she loves to see families staying with each other and loving one another. “I say a few rosaries every day to thank God for my long life”.

family The Clarke family gathered around Madge on her 100th birthday. Screengrab / RTÉ Screengrab / RTÉ / RTÉ

Opinion: Dublin is a great place to live, but not necessarily when you’re old>

Opinion: Older people and Gaeilgeoirí are right to be indignant – this Cabinet doesn’t care about them>

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    Mute cosmological
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:37 PM

    What a nightmare for the kid, not to mention the family.

    478
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    Mute Angry Squirrel
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:45 PM

    Yep I would be suing the SXxT out of the lot of them if it was my daughter.

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    Mute dstaffx
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:50 PM

    Sue sue sue! Lets get money!
    There are better things in life than money.

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    Mute Gonzo Doyle
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:52 PM

    Strange the way Glen has stopped commenting on every single story since he is in line for comment of the week. He will have his Sunday best on at 11am tomorrow for the announcement.

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    Mute cosmological
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:59 PM

    Wot’s this Gonzo obsession with Glen, are you a secret admirer?

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    Mute Conor Cullen
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    Apr 24th 2015, 1:08 PM

    Yeah and when you have loads of money you can buy those things!

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    Mute Lolo
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    Apr 24th 2015, 1:13 PM

    Well the compensation money would come in handy for all the therapy the poor kid will probably need!

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    Mute Amy gaffney
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    Apr 24th 2015, 1:51 PM

    Maybe suing them would make them think twice before making such a monumental cock up again. That Garcia one had her own daughter taken away and then done the same thing to someone else and refuses to take responsibility for it. There’s a special kind of selfish nastiness in that.

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    Mute ohaimhirghin
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    Apr 24th 2015, 2:32 PM

    Eggs?

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    Mute Alan Wiley
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:39 PM

    It’s not often Mexicans have to be dragged kicking and screaming to the U.S.

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    Mute Living Abroad
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    Apr 24th 2015, 5:52 PM

    That supposed to be funny? idiot

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    Mute Barney r
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    Apr 25th 2015, 11:17 AM

    For the women smuggled into the sex trade and the hundreds that die crossing the border, thats hilarious

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    Mute John
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    Apr 24th 2015, 1:46 PM

    Remember when that happened here in Ireland because some curtain twitcher thought that a Romanian child didn’t look enough like her parents. Just last year

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    Mute Patrick Murphy
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    Apr 24th 2015, 2:04 PM

    And most of the commentators on the journal thought it was ok for the gardai to do it.

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    Mute Paul Roche
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    Apr 24th 2015, 2:19 PM

    Once might have been forgivable, but twice?

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    Mute Sinead
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:56 PM

    I really just don’t understand how this could happen? How could the woman who took her not see that the girl is not her daughter? And the the girl has a huge family all testifying who she is! Fairly dodgy carry on.

    152
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    Mute Ciarán Masterson
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:43 PM

    Why didn’t Dorotea Garcia ask the Mexican authorities to test a sample of Alondra’s DNA before the court hearing took place? How could she not have thought of the possibility that the girl was not her daughter?

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Apr 24th 2015, 6:02 PM

    She was probably desperate, but any right-thinking neutral would see this as the most appropriate way to approach the situation, even if the kid had to be taken into temporary foster care whilst awaiting results.

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    Mute Jane Sacrey
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    Apr 24th 2015, 1:09 PM

    Holy cow .. They could have been sending her to her death or worse … I don’t understand in this day and age with so much at the courts disposal that they did not do the DNA test before shipping her off !!!!!!!

    104
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    Mute John Ryan
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    Apr 24th 2015, 8:04 PM

    US law enforcement wave their big dick and the Mexicans bend over is how this works.

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    Mute ah_enda
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:47 PM

    Absolutely disgraceful…

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    Mute Thomas Maher
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    Apr 24th 2015, 12:50 PM

    Mad ted

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    Mute Jamie McCormack
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    Apr 24th 2015, 1:04 PM

    Not the Momma!

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    Mute Jamie McCormack
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    Apr 24th 2015, 10:26 PM
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    Mute Dennis Collins
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    Apr 24th 2015, 4:25 PM

    The judge claims that she could not order a DNA test as it is not her job to investigate, rather just to judge. If she felt the evidence was insufficient, what would have been wrong with simply dismissing it until more satisfactory evidence was presented. A lot of questions need to be answered by this judge.

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    Mute Sheik Yahbouti
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    Apr 24th 2015, 3:22 PM

    Utterly disgraceful.

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    Mute Shane Russell
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    Apr 24th 2015, 4:06 PM

    That is so messed up.

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    Mute Vicko Aguilar
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    Apr 24th 2015, 4:40 PM

    It’s embarrassing to see this kind of stupidity! I claim all the children from Mexico are mind and the rotten judge say yes they r yours you can take them now. Poor parents! I can’t imagine the law in that country!!

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    Mute Vinny Wallace
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    Apr 24th 2015, 4:51 PM

    Did no one have a bit of sense even at border control there was no real eveidence this woman was the mother of the child. Did no one say hang on a sec go get DNA evidence then you can come into the country.

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    Mute Paul Roche
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    Apr 24th 2015, 2:17 PM

    The best interests of the child in action.

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    Mute Oisín Tarrant
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    Apr 24th 2015, 6:12 PM

    The father who really took Dorotea Garcias daughter has to have seen this happening.

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    Mute Ewan O'Doherty
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    Apr 26th 2015, 8:16 AM

    Even if Alondra Lunez’ family attempt to sue the authorities (which, in a still very corrupt Mexico, one wonders if ‘authorities’ is a misnomer) how far would they get? To do something like that to a terrified young girl, all I can say is that I am totally disgusted

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