Culture, Leisure and Entertainment

Deaths

Some of our diarists were touched by the deaths of friends or relatives on September 24th.

• My husband died on September 22nd 2002. On September 24th my family and I were receiving messages of condolence by telephone and postal delivery and had numerous visitors. We were arranging the funeral service to be held the following week at the Methodist church, followed by interment at the Church. My husband, a dairy farmer (retired) was born and died on the farm on which he was raised.

• Tuesday turned out to be a day very different from what I had planned, which was a day's visit to Shugborough. I had spent a very enjoyable weekend in London, then on my return learned that my cousin had died suddenly on Saturday night of a heart attack. She was just 56 and quite fit, but she smoked. Sorting out her affairs had to be my priority. I am one of 15 second cousins, her nearest relations, and as one living nearby the task appears to be mine.
  
  First I went to the funeral director and made provisional arrangements but nothing could be finalised until the post mortem report arrived. He will ring me when he knows something more. Next with another relation we visit the solicitors, one of my former pupils, and give an account of what has already taken place. She will also come back to us later in the day. Then to visit the neighbours, then return home to wait for phone calls - none came, each had problems - this is not going to be straightforward.

• This morning my Uncle George died. Organised bus travel to North of Scotland to go to funeral next week.
  
  
• Met a friend whose husband died last Sunday. A staunch Methodist family who have been great friends to us since our arrival in the village 8 years ago.
  
  
• The first people we saw were a couple of friends enjoying the sunshine with their mother who was confined to a wheelchair after a recent stroke. The first thing they told us was that the mother of a dear friend of ours had died whilst on holiday in Bournemouth with friends. She was a lovely lady who had lived in the area all her life, the last 41 years as a widow with 4 children to bring up.