My mother, Alex, was a vibrant woman who always went out of her way to help others – no matter what. She was a proud and dignified woman who had a passion for life, gardening and jigsaws. 


Mum was born in 1943, she grew up in Hackney with her mother and father, Margaret and Henry and her brother and sister……….Margaret and Henry.
Mum was brought up with traditional values and learnt the skills that a woman of her era should – boxing, fishing and scrumping for apples.


Mum started her career as a Telephonist in the Women's Royal Airforce where she met my father, Malcom, on a blind date. They were married in 1962 and had me 2 years later, followed by my brother 3½ years after that. During that period the family lived in Malta, Norfolk and Singapore. We finally settled in Grove, Wantage and when my brother and I were both at school Mum went back to work as an auxiliary nurse in Wantage Hospital. She always had a lots of funny stories to tell us and although the work was very hard and often thankless I know she loved going in everyday. 


During that time Mum joined the Brownie and Guide movement and worked her way up ‘through the ranks’ to become a Brown Owl. I remember the house always being full of crafty things and attending what seemed like a never ending stream of jumble sales and fetes.


Mum and Dad eventually parted ways and life became a little bit harder for Mum, with two rowdy teenagers and a house full of our friends traipsing through the kitchen eating all the food and neither of us helping out with anything more than the occasional bit of cooking and washing up. To this day I don’t know how she managed to hold down 2-3 part-time jobs ranging from fruit picking in all weathers, working at a garage during the evenings and somehow attending classes to gain her Maths and English O’levels. At some point Mum decided on a new career path and went into full time education as a mature student to get her teacher training Degree. It wasn’t until a few years later that realised how much work was involved and how hard it must have been because Mum didn’t burden us with her worries or stress. I am extremely proud of my Mum for all that she achieved, especially during that time of personal emotional turmoil and high demands of wilful and independent teenagers. David and I were brought up to be self reliant and spontaneous explorers so it wasn’t long before we had both flown the nest and eventually moved away. Mum then sold the family home and moved to Hiskins where she was to spend the rest of her days developing the garden, sometimes to the detriment of the house, but, no one can deny that she had both a beautiful and productive garden.


Mum filled her time over the next 20-30 years with being a Supply Teacher and working for various charities including The Home Farm Trust and The Lions, all of which I know she threw herself into 100%.
But where mum really came into her own was when she became a grandparent. She self confessed to me to spending more time reading with my children than she ever did with her own. When I returned to work she was always there to pick up the children from school, feed, bathe and entertain them while it was my turn to hold down 3 jobs. She was always willing and able to run them around and have them stay over at her place. I don’t know how I would have managed without her never ending help and support with my children and I will always be eternally grateful that she played such a big part in their lives.


David and I eventually left the UK on our adventures and our relationship with our Mum became one of phone calls and letters, long, long phone calls which usually involved us listening to her exploits in the garden or about her dog. Both David and I tried to drag Mum into the world of modern technology but she never did manage to get further than programming the video recorder so we never got as far and FaceTime or whatsapp where we would have had a lot more freedom to chat and keep in closer contact. It was at this point where Mums neighbours stepped in and took up the slack of her far flung family. We are grateful for her close friends and neighbours who have been there for her over the years, she always had such wonderful things to say about them so I knew she was being cared for while we were so far away.


Mums passing was sudden and unexpected, least of all by her as she honestly thought she was going to live forever. She only spent about 4 days in hospital and I am sure she spent every single one of them driving the nurses crazy with her antics.