Born on 14th September 1925, Mum grew up in Islington, North London in what is now an extremely expensive area, but then the large properties were divided into numerous lodging rooms, with several families in each property, shared toilets and kitchens and no baths.
 
Mum, always called Pat - she detested her middle name - was the eldest of three girls. Her father, John Dyson, was in the Royal Navy, away at sea a lot. Her mother, Florrie, was one of a large family. Mum’s middle sister was Irene and her youngest sister was called Joy, a very appropriate name for her.
 
Florrie was often very sickly, coming from a poor family and not well nourished, and mum, a child herself, often had to look after her mother and two sisters, who were six and ten years younger.
 
Like many people who grew up in poverty, Mum was something of a hoarder. When we sorted out her bungalow last year, Trish came across her own bridesmaid’s garland that Mum had kept from Joy and Frank’s wedding in 1956. And Dave unearthed my certificates for reading and reciting poetry at Primary School - Upton County which so many of our family attended. So I had no choice but to read Mum’s eulogy today!
 
The Dysons lived through the war in London and evacuated to Bexleyheath into a rented property in Olron Crescent, where they (especially Joy) were delighted to have a whole house to themselves with a proper bathroom!!
 
Mum met our Dad on a visit to the local pub dance hall and found he lived in the same street! Dad, Selwyn John Cooper, but always known as Dave or Dai, was Welsh, one of originally 12 children who had moved from the mining valleys to find better employment.
 
Mum and Dad married on 16 July 1945, when Dad was doing his National Service in the army and the war in Europe was ending. Mum was welcomed into the extended Cooper family. Mum and Dad lived in homeless families’ accommodation for nearly 5 years, waiting for a council house. But then a property came up for sale in Olron Crescent. They managed to scrape together a deposit and got a mortgage to buy it, unusual for both families who all lived in rented houses.
 
As their families all lived in the same street, we grew up with lots of relatives around all the time and had many large outings, including one on a train hired by Dad and another on a coach to the seaside, which he also hired. There were lots parties too, dancing to home-made music.
 
Mum and Dad both had their education cut short because of the war and family unemployment, but they were intelligent people. Dave became an electrical engineer and eventually worked for the Ministry of Technology. He helped to develop the equipment used to test the first hearing aids for the NHS and then worked on the “Black boxes” in aircraft.
 
Mum had various jobs as a shop assistant and in catering, until she obtained an office position for a TV rental company, which used her good mathematical brain and where she was very happy.
 
Mum and Dad encouraged all three children to go on into higher education. Once we had all grown up and left home, our parents began to travel abroad and around Britain for their holidays. Mum has been to Canada, to see one of Dad’s sisters, and her own Aunty. Together they went to India, Nepal, Egypt and Kenya, as well as several trips to Spain, Portugal and the Canaries and of course, often to Wales.
 
They were very active members of the Labour Party all their lives. Their other interests included, for Mum, reading books and doing crosswords, while Dad followed the sport, until he invariably dozed off and Mum changed the channels! They were both keen gardeners, Dad grew the veg, while Mum grew the flowers. Mum also became a governor of primary schools, and eventually chaired one school board. She enjoyed this activity very much as it fitted with her support for education.
 
Having survived major heart surgery several years earlier, her beloved husband and our adored father died suddenly in January 1999. This was a terrible blow for Mum, and all of us.
 
She stayed in Olron Crescent for another decade but left her home, where they had lived for 60 years, when she decided to move to a bungalow in Chelmsford to be nearer to David and his children and grandchildren. She remained very independent until aged over 90 years but never really got over the loss of Dave.
 
In May 2019, following several emergency admissions to A&E in Chelmsford with dehydration and low blood pressure, Mum moved into a small, friendly family run care home where she was very well cared for and made a good recovery. She began to eat and drink regularly, eventually stopping smoking, and to enjoy visits from her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, as well as playing with the home’s little dog, Peabody, which she loved.
 
Her chronic, longstanding kidney disease slowly worsened, as she was too frail to withstand dialysis. An end of life plan was put in place but sadly this was completely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
On the morning of Saturday 28th March, Mum was taken by paramedics into Broomfield Hospital where she shortly passed away, with no family present, to our everlasting sorrow. She will be sadly missed.