Sean T. Madden | Carpenter, 48

Sean T. Madden, 48, of Wayne, a carpenter who loved Ireland, died of cancer Friday at Bryn Mawr Hospital.

Mr. Madden worked as a finish carpenter for Main Line contractors. He also built homes for an aunt and for a friend; built an addition to his parents' home; and made furniture for friends and relatives including cradles for his nieces and nephews.

He graduated from Radnor High School, where he played on the football team. For several years he was a pitcher for local softball leagues.

Mr. Madden grew up proud of his Irish heritage - his father, Charles, was founder of the Main Line Irish American Federation. He visited Ireland several times and hoped to someday live there, his sister Anne Behm said.

He proposed to Sheila McCrosson when they were vacationing in Ireland; they married on Valentine's Day 1998. Their daughter, Sean Reilly, was born in 2000, and in 2003 they moved to County Clare, Ireland.

In 2005, they moved back to the Main Line after he was diagnosed with fibrous sarcoma, a soft tissue cancer. He lost a leg and a lung but continued to fight the cancer, his sister said.

He considered himself fortunate, she said, to have fulfilled his dreams to live in Ireland, to be married, and to have a child.

In addition to his wife, daughter, sister and father, Mr. Madden is survived by his mother Joan Madden; stepchildren T.J. and Jess Connor; four sisters; and two brothers.

A Funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. tomorrow at St. Katharine of Siena Church, Lancaster and Aberdeen Avenues, Wayne. Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. today at McConaghy Funeral Home, 328 W. Lancaster Ave., Ardmore. Memorial donations may be made to the Sean Reilly Madden Education Fund, Commerce Bank, 401 Lancaster Ave., Haverford, Pa. 19041.