Great-great-grandmother Mary Scholey, 82, has so many descendants that she sometimes forgets where she has stashed the gifts during the year
A pensioner is preparing for a family-packed Christmas as she buys presents for her 80 grandchildren.
Great-great-grandmother Mary Scholey, 82, not only has to start gift shopping early but also gets through piles of cards every year for her expanding brood.
And Mrs Scholey, called Nana Mary by the youngsters, has no trouble remembering the names of all 33 grandchildren, 44 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.
Mary, who is a mother of 10 children, said: “I never really thought I would have a big family but 60 years ago there wasn’t that much of a choice in the matter.
"I had two sets of twins and six other children so the family just kept on growing.
“I don’t find it difficult to keep up with all the names. We are not on Facebook or anything so I get all of the news about my family through word of mouth.”
She added: “Christmas is a busy time because there are so many of us but it’s nice to see everybody. It’s always busy here anyway so I’m used to that.”
Mary, who lives with husband Raymond, had her children with first husband Jim, who died 20 years ago.
They are: mum-of-three Lesley, 62; dad-of-two Stephen, 60; father-of-three Neil, 58; dad-of-four Peter, 55; mum-of-four Vicky, 54; mum-of-three Debbie, 50, and 45-year-old twins Josie and Jane, both mums of three.
Two of her children have passed away – mum-of-three Jacqueline and Stephen’s twin Stuart, a dad of five.
No sooner has Christmas finished than Mary, of Sheffield, South Yorks, starts planning the following year, keeping an eye out for bargains at markets in nearby Wombwell and Barnsley.
Son Stephen said: “Obviously with so many to buy for mum doesn’t spend a lot on each one, but she always puts a lot of thought into it.
“The children always get a Christmas and birthday present from her but these days she misses out the adults, otherwise the cost would be ridiculous.
“Although with so many presents to hand out she sometimes forgets where she has stored them during the year.”
Distributing gifts and cards could be a challenge, but Stephen said: “We all get a card at Christmas and birthdays but she draws the line at sending them in the post – it would cost a fortune in stamps.
“All the family who live around here visit and so she dishes the cards out when it’s coming up to Christmas and we spread them around ourselves.”
He added: “I don’t know how she does it, especially as she’s getting older.”
Another hurdle is getting all of Mary’s relatives into one building for special occasions, but that did not stop Stephen from organising a treat for the generous gran.
More than 100 family members turned up to a festive family gathering as an early Christmas present for Mary, at Wadsley Bridge Working Men’s Club in Sheffield.
Stephen said: “She had been saying that because the family is so big we never got together, so I got in touch with everyone and organised it as a big surprise.
"When she walked in and saw everyone together she was absolutely amazed. Everyone was making a fuss of her and she had the time of her life.”
Mary added: “It was lovely to see them all and when they saw me they were all in a queue to give me a kiss. I enjoyed that.”
And there is more joy to come for the super gran as four more great-great-grandchildren are due in the family next year.
