The family of a Bury woman "who was loved by everyone who met her" honoured her memory with a sweet tribute at her funeral last week.
Shirley Carroll, who lived on Topping Fold Road, died last month aged 86, leaving behind widower Frank, 91, and three children.
She was raised on Hazel Avenue in Bury and spent the rest of her life in the town.
Shirley met Frank, also from Bury, at the Lido in Clarence Park, Walmersley, in 1957.
The pair married in 1959 and went on to have their three children.
She worked as a shop assistant before moving to a role at Bensons Toffee Works on Huntley Mount Road in Bury, which was later acquired by Barker and Dobson.
Shirley became a supervisor and stayed until it closed down in 1989.
Shirley then worked in the bakery section at Asda in Bury until she retired aged 63.
She was a keen cyclist and would often cycle from Bury to Southport.
She enjoyed playing rounders, bowls and dancing at Bury Palais dance hall on Bolton Street in the 1960s.
Shirley liked to travel and spent time in Cancun, Florida and Tunisia.
Daughter Julie Croke, 60, said: “My mum had a great life and has been all over the place.
"She became a bit of a globetrotter after visiting Europe then began venturing further afield to the United States.
“She was very quirky with a great sense of humour and always had plenty of one liners up her sleeve!
"She was a good mum and was loved by everyone who met her.”
Julie shared that her mum never liked flowers and this posed a dilemma when it came to planning her funeral decor.
She said: “She had such a sweet tooth. I bought a huge bunch of red roses for my mum as a treat when I was in my twenties.
"She was unimpressed and joked that she ‘couldn’t eat those’.
"The family only bought her chocolate gifts from then on!”
Julie decided to honour her mum in an unusual way and, with the help of a neighbour, created a coffin topper made from a variety of wrapped chocolate bars.
The homemade spray cost a total of £70 compared to an average of £150 for a similar sized floral arrangement.
Julie added: “She never had flowers in the house so they didn’t seem fitting for this occasion either.
"It made more sense to use chocolate given her love for it and her former career.
“It turned out better than expected. We dished the bars out at the wake and everyone went home happy.”
The funeral was held at East Lancashire Crematorium on Monday, February 5, arranged by Unsworths Funeral Directors in Tottington.
It was attended by friends and family who had travelled from Australia, the Lake District, Huddersfield and Coventry.
A wake was held at Elton Liberal Club in Bury afterwards where guests enjoyed the chocolate bars alongside food from family-run Bolton bakery Carrs and a toast of peach schnapps and lemonade, which was Shirley’s favourite drink.
Julie said: “Some people commented that it was more like a party than a wake.
"There was lots of laughter in the room. My mum would have loved it all.”
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