Address by Minister Tony Argent

·                     Wendy was born in southmead hospital 21.10.1944 - a war baby

·                     her mother was called Marjory and father called James

·                     she had two sisters named Rosemary and Valerie

·                     Her father tragically died when wendy was only 5 and circumstances lead to the seperation of the family

·                    Wendy grew up with her cousins -  "the Waldens" and became a much loved member of their large family

·                    Later she lived with her mother and grand mother Emily.  Emily was a strong woman and role model to Wendy turning her into a shy and beautiful young lady

·                    Wendy met Terry when she was 15 and he was 18 and an apprentice in the RAF

·                    They courted for 3 years and when Terry was posted to Germany they married so they could be together and not be seperated

·                    Wendy and Terry had 2 lovely daughters, Kim and Trudi, both born in Rintelm military hospital in Germany

·                    During the 3 years they lived in Germany Wendy learnt to speak German and made many friends.  She named her Daughter Trudi after the babysitter in the village and Kim's second name Dagmar was also after a friend.

·                    Terry played in a group for 3 years with Wendy in full support.

·                    They returned to England in 1967- They lived in Stamford and Norwich areas for the 16 years that Terry was in the RAF.

·                    Wendy loved the RAF life.  She liked the travelling, meeting new people, going to Sargaents Mess Balls and dressing up - always interested if there was be a new posting in the offing.  A bit of a gypsy.

·                    On leaving the RAF they returned to their home which was Bristol to be near and support their elderly parents.

·                    Wendy decided to work part time at Cadburys for some pin money and actually stayed on for 28 years.  she worked on production and laterly on quality control.  she travelled on her scooter in all winds and weathers, preferring two wheels to 4.  She made many friends at Cadburys.

·                    Wendy continued to support Terry in his many pastimes and was always loyal and showed interest.  She showed interest in Terrys hobbies even though she might not of naturally been so.  Hobbies and joint interests included:- Cadbury heath football club, Founders members of Avon Gold Wing club, Terrys duo (group) "The Gruesome Twosome" and his Air modeling club.

·                    She retired from Cadburys early at age 55 and loved holidaying in Malta with Terry.  In hindsight this was a wise move even though finances were very tight, due to her later health problems.

·                    She was a very proud grand mother of William, Chloe, Eve and Harriet.  Supporting her family by learning sign language so she could communicate with them. For many years Wendy and Jean (Ian's Mother) formed a great baby sitting team.  Having many an evening together putting the world to rights after a hard day of looking after the kids.  Something Kim and Ian will be eternally grateful for.

·                    Wendy was very proud of Ian and Dave - her son in laws.  She avidly followed Ian's footballing and football management career and Dave's motor-cycle racing interests and engineering career within F1.

·                    Wendy's main interest other than her garden with her camper van called "Ellie".  she loved holidaying in her van with Terry - they often dissapeared to the hidden corners of devon and cornwall.  Always returning with amazing stories of interesting pubs and places they had found together.

·                    Later in life Wendy discovered that her Sister Rosemary had died in a road traffic accident in New Zealand.  through Kim researching the family via the internet she found out that her other sister Valerie was living in Bristol.  They met when wendy was 60 and had great times building their sisterly relationship.  Something we know that Wendy treasured.

·                    Unfortunatley wendy had been diagnosed at 59 with Breast Cancer.  Many will be aware of her courageous 4 year battle.  During that battle Terry was diagnosed with Bladder cancer and they often had Chemotherapy together.  Always heading straight to the Nova scotia for a pint afterwards.

·                    Wendy supported Terry through his Chemo and his bladder operation even though she was suffering herself.

·                    Fortuitously Terry recovered well enough to be able to nurse wendy with kim and trudi when wendy finally succomed to her disease.  She died at home in the arms of her loved ones, where she wanted to be.