John Minns farewelled by family, friends and dignitaries at packed St Declan's

Mr Minns' life as a husband, father and grandfather, school teacher, parishioner for 46 years and friend to many was celebrated in a Requiem Mass led by his brother Denis, a priest in the Dominican order.

There was only a passing reference to one of his three children being the NSW Premier.

However, Governor Margaret Beazley and many present and past members of parliament were among those who gathered to pay tribute and support John's wife Cara, children Sarah, Chris and James and their families.

Sarah Minns, who delivered the Words of Remembrance, said her father was born in 1952 and grew up on the Cooks River in Earlwood as the third of five children.

"Sometime I think his mother Bernice, who left her family behind in Brisbane, and his father Jack, who was an only child, felt like they wanted to build a big family from scratch, and that's exactly what they did," she said.

"... A noisy, enormous, vibrant family that now runs to more than 50 people, and 70 years later is still close.

"It was a family that talked over each other every night at dinner, went to Mass together every Sunday and played on the banks of the Cooks River, skipping stones, rowing tinnies, running and playing and trying not to fall or get pushed in."

Ms Minns said, by high school, it was clear her father had a gift for public speaking and acting. He won inter-school competitions and was chosen to be on early Australian TV series such as Divorce Court.

After finishing high school, he had joined the amateur Genesian Theatre Company.

"Dad would have liked to have been an actor and, by all accounts, would have been an excellent one, but he got a Commonwealth Scholarship to Teachers College and that was a ticket to a secure income," she said.

"He studied primary teaching. At some point he must have realised that his love for performance and narrative and the values of social justice he got from [his parents] made teaching a perfect career for him.

"It was a true vocation. He once said to me, 'When I first started teaching, I thought I can't believe I'm getting paid for this'."

Ms Minns said her parents married in 1976 and "within two years bought a home in Penshurst, which is still the hub for our family to this day".

Ms Minns recalled her father's "wicked sense of humour - he loved a joke and a prank - and it was a joy for him seeing that cranny Minns brand of irreverent humour emerge in all his grandchildren".

Ms Minns said the school and parish at St Declan's had been very important, and they had made many friends.

"In retirement, dad derived a lot of fulfilment from his job as a volunteer guide at the Australian Maritime Museum," she said.

"Dad was a mad Labor supporter, which is well documented. Our lively family dinner revolved around talk of news, current affairs and political intrigue.

"But he was also an avid reader. He often repeated a saying from my grandfather - 'If you've got a book, you've got a friend' ".

Ms Minns concluded, "For your endless love, for your laughter, for your advice, for building our beautiful family with mum, which will now have a giant hole in it, thank you".