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'Doing a howley' - i like that explanation MC !!

Sylvs - leave me the info on the Edith Smith thingy !! - I have to go to bed now!

Nite nite all,

Dea Xxx

Sunny, cold, not too windy

Sylvia no caffeine in Utah, then I won't be going. I can't get through the day without my coffee

this is post 15709

one of you is for it.

have antibiotics for the leg dea

Oh yes

bit of a long story, to do honour to her

Edith Smith ................. was a childhood friend of OH's father. and had a pretty hard life in some respects, especially when she was young

Her mother was close friends with OH's gt aunt, and Edith used to go for holidays at the family farm in Westmorland, which is when she met my f-i-l.

Her father was an absolute bully, although Edith was probably the proverbial "handful". On at least one occasion she was sent to the farm to get her away from the boys!

She was supposed to have a double wedding in 1937 with her twin sister, having been engaged 2 years longer than twin. Her fiance called off the engagement very shortly before the wedding ....... Dad insisted it went ahead as planned, only with Edith as her sister's bridesmaid.

Edith managed to get out from under Dad's control when WW2 came along ................ she got a better job, and began to help out at the YWCA events for servicemen. They were so impressed with her abilities that, after the war, they sent her for training at a college to become Warden of residences. She then worked for both the YWCA and YMCA

In 1959, when she left for Canada, she was Warden of the YWCA residence in Bristol Her secretary went into the office one day and said "Why don't we go to Canada?". So they made all the plans.

Edith arrived in Toronto to be told the Canadian YWCA didn't need any English Wardens ........... so the 2 women got whatever jobs they could, including waitressing at a Golf Course Club. Then the YWCA came back to Edith, they needed a Warden at the St Thomas Ontario YWCA. She went there, there was a Dutchman working as janitor, mainly to occupy himself. He asked her out on Feb 14 1960, and they married before the end of the year.

Her father sent a letter that arrived on her wedding day ....... he was disinheriting her because she was marrying a man he didn't know, and he was also a FOREIGNER. Edith was 50!

Edith and her husband moved out to Vancovuer in 1961 or 1962, and I met her in 1968. Her husband was about 12 or 15 years older than she, and had once owned a farm near Vancouver until his first wife wanted to move to St Thomas to be near their son. They had sold the farm, but he preferred BC.

Edith and R became apartment managers in Vancouver, to occupy him 'cos he certainly wasn't a man to sit still. He died in 1971.

After my daughter was born, she became an honorary grandmother, J called Edith Grandma Sxxxx. That was until around 2002 when Edith decided otherwise.

Looking back this was the beginning of Alzheimer's, although we didn't know it. She had moved to another city in BC just before her husband died, which made it difficult for us to visit her, although I used to phone her every Sunday morning .... until she informed me that she didn't want to hear from me again. Again, looking back, that was another sign of the Alzheimiers, along with the extremely bad temper she started to show to me.

She died just before her 96th birthday in 2006

But what a woman ......... imagine just upping and leaving your home and country at the age of 49?!

The search for the information started because J asked yesterday if I would put together what we knew about Edith ................... she was THE grandmother figure of J's childhood as we saw OH's parents only every 2 or 3 years.

Toots


that was in 1987-ish


Most cafes and restaurants, even ones owned by Mormons now serve coffee and tea.

We were there about 6 or 7 years ago, and there are now clubs and places ot buy alcohol even close to the Temple ..... although you had to be "members" to go in. Very easy to become a member though!



They're not daft you know!

oh heck


looks like I'm the one in trouble


:)))))))))))))))

What 'ave you done Sylvs? Or have I missed summat?

look at LK's posting above


"this is post 15709

one of you is for it."



then count back

When did Dea grow wings?

Sylvia


I never knew her -- but I would have liked Edith Smith ---

and would have l enjoyed meeting her

Renes

Perhaps some of the brilliant minds here can help this poor soul

http://www.genesreunited.co.uk/boards.page/board/trying_to_find/thread/1257997

Robert

Good ole Edith getting away from the bully.

Must be really awful to have your life controlled like that

ja...x

I'm having pre mens fun on Chat with the ghost thread!

Oh thank goodness for that, I can put it back on my places to visit. Strange I wasn't as bothered about no alcohol as no coffee.

Edith sounds like a very remarkable lady. How sad her father was so controlling, or tried to be. I'm glad she found happiness

she was a remarkable lady!


and she was always very gentle with me up until about 2004, but I couldn't say that about others. I did hear many stories from other people about how she treated them!


Looking back ........... I stood up to her, and others didn't, and I think she admired that.



BTW ............ her father was a policeman from a young age (at least 22)


s
xxx


She certainly made a lot of her life ................ and there were some horror stories about childhood abuse from her grandfather, beatings by her father etc.



But she had a lot of "spunk"!

off out for afternoon coffee shortly


see you all later



and sleep well, those who might go to bed soon!



s
xxx

enjoy your caffeine sylvia.

He is back. funny how he posts when they are closed.