Today is the third anniversary of my grandmother’s death. January 14th is the 29th anniversary of my grandfather’s death. They died 26 years minus two days apart.
My dad died suddenly a few months before I was born, leaving my mum, Linda, aged 24, to raise me alone. My nan, Joan, and grandad, Ray, did a lot for us in those difficult early years.
My grandad was the only male role model in my life at that time. He introduced me to football (soccer) and Hereford United; to art through his amateur oil paintings; and opened up to me about his stutter, which I inherited and struggled to deal with. I was 13 when he died.
My nan was like my second parent. We wrote to each other weekly all through my teenage years, sharing news and tidbits. As death eventually took all my immediate family, she always stood strong. She was there, aged 89, at my mum’s funeral and we supported each other. Her other daughter, my mum’s sister, had died a few years earlier too. My nan was heartbroken. Sadly she died just a few weeks later.
Joan Doris Bevis 1928–2018
Raymond Henry Bevis 1922–1992
