A Wagga woman marked this Mother's Day just weeks after a rare achievement; becoming a great-great-grandmother.
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Ruth Gissing, 98, has now lived to see five generations of her family following the birth of her great-great-grandson last month.
Atlas Sutcliffe was born on April 15 to Mrs Gissing's great-grandson Bradley Sutcliffe and his partner Sarah Long in the Blue Mountains.
He is the descendant of many proud Wagga families on both Ruth's side and the side of her late husband Maurice, a former Wagga mayor.
The pair spent their entire married life in Wagga, with Mrs Gissing currently living at the Wagga Remembrance Village.
With the coronavirus outbreak reducing travel across NSW, it will likely be a long time before the Gissing generations are able to meet in person.
However, Mrs Gissing was one of the first to meet her great-great-grandson.
Her daughter Margaret Sutcliffe said the family had been quick to set up a video call to introduce the pair the first afternoon after Atlas was born.
"Mum saw Atlas before he was even a full day old," she said.
Like many families split by the coronavirus this Mother's Day, Mrs Sutcliffe said technology had been "a great help" to keep the five generations connected.
She said the entire family was very proud to welcome the newborn.
"To welcome the next one in the family is great ... it's just a pity we can't always be together and fully enjoy it."
Mrs Sutcliffe said she believed it had taken a while for her 98-year-old mother to absorb the significance of meeting her great-great-grandson and she was enthusiastic about it.
"I think she's pretty proud now," she said.
Mrs Sutcliffe said Mrs Gissing credited her longevity to her Brunskill heritage, with the women on her mother's side of the family generally living "well into their 90s."
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