Photographs of Irene show her with members of her family mainly with Katherine. She was a family orientated woman, unassuming and most accepting of other people's opinions or what they wanted to do. If she didn't agree with them she wouldn't say so. Paul says he never heard his mother raise her voice in anger. People like Irene are not the "movers and shakers" of this world, but they are always comfortable people to be with, and that itself is a virtue.