Alda Lewis (nee Weldon)

Alda Weldon born abt. September 1916 (birth record is for December period, 1916 in Prescot, Lancashire). Married Robert Lewis in 1938 at Prescot, Lancashire.

I can recall visiting them in Prescot as I grew up living "down the road" in Whiston, usually visiting on a Saturday afternoon, memories of cups of tea and battenburg cake with the sound of laughter and the football results in the background.

They had two daughters, Margaret (born 1938) and Ann (born 1943) and the pair carried on the Lewis sense of humour even after Bob's death (October, 1993), Ann, recounts that she and her sister, Margaret, were waiting in the funeral home when the funeral director left them alone for a short while. They heard knocking and thought it was Bob trying to get a message through. They were creased with laughter as the knocking and tapping continued, when the funeral director got back, she apologised for the noise as they were having some maintenance done.

Bobs family was buried in St.Helens Cemetary and Bob had wanted a cremation instead of a burial. After the funeral, there had been some discussion about where his ashes would be scattered and Margaret and Ann thought it would be nice if his ashes were brought back to Prescot (only a few miles from St.Helens). Alda was unaware that they were making these plans and when she found out she thought they were bringing them back to the house! , Ann jokingly said that she could put them around her roses, in the end Alda wanted them scattered in St.Helens so the ashes were returned.

Alda died in July 1999 after a brief illness, Ann, recounts that her mum wasn't feeling too well and had turned yellow (jaundiced) so they took her to hospital, she was in no pain but within nine days she died.

Ann had visited Alda just before she died, she said that her mum was "like a marigold" with the jaundice but in no pain. Alda had said that it was probably something she'd eaten and that "it'll pass through", when Ann got home there was a phone call asking her to come back to the Hospital. She knew as soon as she saw the nurse that something was wrong.

Alda was diagnosed post-mortem with Cancer of the Pancreas.