OUR SISTER JILL – TIM AND MARGARET

Jill was born on a sunny spring day in May 1946 to our parents David and Hilary
Bevan. The orchard was in full blossom. She was the first girl after three boys, me,
Nick and Richard. It was shortly after the war and it was no surprise that she
sometimes wore hand me down boy's clothes as a prudent saving, but she was
well up to the challenge!

Our father was a housemaster at Shrewsbury School and Ridgemount was where
Jill grew up. It was a noisy, and loving household, always full of family and friends.
But we were all closely supervised by dear Nanny Ivy who didn't take prisoners!

Margaret arrived seven years later- a girl- and finally an ally for Jill and they
remained allies all their lives. They were both strong characters (some might even
say bossy!) probably as they lived in a house full of boys. This helps to explain why
Jill’s nickname was Madam and Marg’s was the Dame!

In 1954 the family moved to Colkirk on Kennedy Road and Jill followed her
brothers up the road to Stepping Stones School run by the fearsome Misses
Lutener and Tombs straight out of Hammer central casting. In her class were Di
Deverell and Trot Lavelle who have remained close friends ever since – a
formidable team then and now ! Aged eleven Jill chose to move on to Doctor
Williams School for girls in Dolgellau on the strength of reading the Enid Blyton
Mallory Towers stories. What she hadn't bargained for was that she would have to
learn Welsh! We conveniently had a holiday home on the coast nearby at
Fairbourne so it was easy to take Jill out.

Whilst there she was allowed to keep pets and last Christmas she sent Margaret a
text about her school pet guinea pig Flossie. ‘
“ She died , so I brought her home on the train wrapped in paper and dettol. And
on arrival Mother held a funeral service for her!’.

Fortunately throughout their married life Jill and Gerry were rather more
successful at looking after their beloved dogs - Homer, Seb and now Coco and for
three years while Penny and I were in Canada our retreaver, Rosie.

All our family holidays were spent at Fairbourne and to this day there is a strong
family connection as James and Elly have a house close by. It was undoubtedly
one of Jill’s favourite places.

Jill was always independent and on one occasion aged about seven or eight, she
foolishly spent all her pocket money in the Barmouth amusement arcade.
“How did you pay for the toll bridge?” asked our Mother.
“I borrowed a penny off a nice man” was the reply! She then walked the two miles
home along the railway line as the Cambrian Coast Express thundered by. Years
later after a trip to the cinema our aunt Auriol who was in charge said perhaps
unwisely that Jill who was still a learner could drive home in the dark. It started to
rain. Dear Auriol, ever helpful tried to switch the wipers on, but instead switched
the lights off! But they still made it in spite of the narrow Welsh roads with high
granite walls on either side!

After leaving school she went to Devon in the arctic winter of 1963 as a nanny.
Marg remembers our parents being very worried because she was snowed in
alone on Dartmoor with the children whilst two escaped convicts were on the
loose in a blizzard outside!

She returned home to do her nursery nurse training , living at home. She managed
to gain her NNEB certificate whilst at the same time enjoying an impressive social
life. Her classmate and roommate , Sue Leigh, who lodged with us, remembers
getting ready for nights on the town whether to the pony club, young farmers, a
coffee at Sidolis or the Hunt Ball, complete with beehive hairdo and mini skirts .
They even went to Blackpool to see the Beatles. Other friends in the Shrewsbury
community included Yvonne here to day, Sarah Pitt and many others . On one
occasion, our Mother bought two tickets to the Bligny ball, the Shropshire social
event of the year and persuaded me who had just arrived that morning on leave
from Germany to take her. A serious loss of street cred to take your seventeen
year old sister but at least I got a free dinner in return!

Margaret jealous of Jill's exciting life was also incredibly nosy and Jill had to
have a bolt put on her bedroom door to stop Marg from reading her diaries. But
always short of cash she did sell Marg her signed Cliff Richard photo.

Eventually, after completing her training, and a brief spell working in the St
Alkmunds travel agency in Shrewsbury she headed for Canada where she had
been offered a job as a nanny. Marg remembers driving up to Liverpool in the
family Morris Traveller with her trunk in the back, and leaving her at the docks to
sail on the Empress of Canada- It was the first and only time Marg had seen our
mother cry.

On arrival she was welcomed by our Canadian cousins Dick and Connie Glover
and their family Ted, Pat and Bill and she lived with them in Ottawa for several
months. She was very fortunate to be found a job at the National Museum of
Canada . . . of which Dick was a Director . . . When he drove to work at the
Museum, Jill was dropped off a block away so she could walk in and the family
connection could remain secret . . .

During her Ottawa stay, Richard also visited during his Greyhound tour of North
America and two of his highlights included watching England win the World Cup,
and Pat teaching her cousins to skateboard down the very steep driveway.
Later she was employed as a nanny and mother’s help before eventually ending
up in Vancouver. When she finally did decide to return home to England she
arranged to drive west to east across America with a friend. Relatively easy now,
but this was decades before social media and mobile phones. Thank goodness our
parents never knew that her companion abandoned her in San Francisco and that
she completed most of her journey back east on her own!

She eventually arrived back well travelled and with some very fancy culinary ideas.
She soon put these into practice spending a whole day cooking spaghetti
bolognaise WITH garlic bread- the height of sophistication! This for the Bevan
family was really living!

MARG will take up the story.

In 1969 She moved to London where she worked first for Air Canada and then at
Saintseal which later became Eros travel. This was where she first met Jeannie.
The company specialised in educational visits to Greece and Italy and Jill
developed a real love for both countries, especially Greece. There was also a brief
stint as an au pair in Sicily. She even learnt some Italian and I remember her
always answering the phone with ‘pronto’! For the next few years in the early
seventies she lived with flatmates Sue and Ali who have remained the dearest and
closest of friends. Ali remembers the landlord calling them the three Amazon’s!
Then came the momentous tarts and parsons party where she met Gerry -the love
of her life. They soon became engaged.

Ali sent this memory:
She and Jill went together to the jewellers Richard Ogden to look for an
engagement ring that was suitable, to quote Jill, for her big horrid hands! They
then walked back all the way across Green Park to Victoria with the ring on appro,
hoping not to lose it and that Gerry would like it!

Luckily he did and so they were married at Bledington in November 1975 on All
Saints day. It was an autumn wedding and last November when Marg and Aidan
went down to see J and G they got out the wedding albums and laughed until they
cried at the incredible 70s fashions- brown floral chintz, aprons and bonnets
(straight out of Jane Austin)- Charlotte and Katie both here today were
bridesmaids as was Marg. It was the start of a long and wonderful marriage and
their care and devotion to each other has shone through thick and thin.

They very soon moved to West Sussex for Gerry’s work at E.G. Hudson’s and they
lived in The Croft in Walberton. That’s where they started their family- first James,
and then Thomas born in fairly quick succession.

As well as bringing up the boys and managing their hectic lives Jill worked from
home before it was invented and throughout their time in Walberton she ran her
own travel business selling charter flights to faraway places – her Bucket Shop.
Many people have recalled how Jill arranged their holidays and more especially
long haul flights to exotic destinations always at a knock down price! On one
famous occasion she booked a flight to San Diego USA for someone wanting to go
to Santiago, Chile!

Her entrepreneurial spirit continued when they moved to Berrycroft in Walberton
where she and Gerry ran a highly successful Bed and Breakfast . Typical Jill- guests
became regulars and then firm friends. She also took on a job as company
secretary with the IDA (International Dragon Association) which she did for 15
years- again working from home and, again, ahead of her time, dealing with
databases, website management and other technical wizardry. Those who know
Jill well will be aware that she was a lover of all gadgets. In Berrycroft before catch
up TV was invented she had an incredibly sophisticated method of recording
programmes without the need for a video player and she could even skip the ads!
If there was a new gadget going Jill would find it!

Jeannie said:
Didn’t Jill love her little MGB and later, her Smart car! Jill recently had her eye on
a snazzy Fiat 500, she had plans for Dave to help her choose a suitable one.

While the family were growing up Jill and Gerry hosted wonderful Christmases at
Berrycroft following all the old family traditions including games of Murder in the
Dark and the Rod Moves. The glorious holidays with extended family continued in
Wales in Traeth Merion, and more recently at Heddwch.

Jill and Gerry always took enormous pride in their garden wherever they lived and
her roses are a still testament to her loving care. She was so proud that she still
had blooms out last Christmas. Her asparagus was also a source of huge pride and
great rivalry with our brother Richard in America! She was talking about the
asparagus and the plans for the allotment during a very recent conversation.

In 2000 Jill and Gerry entered a new phase of life and offered our mother a home
for almost eight years, with all the love and care that entailed, before moving her
into a nearby care home Abbey Dean. Gerry’s Aunty Dee and then his mother
Mary followed into the same home and at one stage Jill was visiting the three of
them every day. She showed remarkable and unfailing love and devotion
throughout.

She and Gerry are immensely proud of their children, James and Thomas and their
three grandchildren, Rosie, Freddie, and Ruby. Both boys are rocks, as are Ellie and
Amanda. They have done their mother proud.

As my big sister Jill was always there for me at the right time- I have a telegram
she sent together with a wonderful letter when she told me my awful O Level
results- (Champagne All round!)

She was there to put slices of cucumber on my eyes on the morning of my
wedding! She joined the ringers in the tower after the ceremony to ring us out of
church. We have been locked out of a hotel together, we have drunk an entire
bottle of Dubonnet together on a balcony in France with our mother- out of pint
glasses! We have gossiped, laughed, and sung together and shared so much.
She and Gerry loved singing in a range of local choirs and during lockdown she
found huge support from an online Singing for All choir that they both adored-
Coco used to join in!

She also joined an online Wellbeing group run by Hannah for people with
dementia and their carers. She invited me to join her and Gerry at a weekly
session. This became a very special part of our week as we were all able to spend
time together online and share some rare and precious moments of calm. At the
last session before Gerry moved into Woodbine Manor we all sang be Still in the
Presence of the Lord together which felt very apt. We are singing it today.

Gerry told me that Jill was the light of his life. Jill’s family was the light of hers with
Gerry at the centre. The warmth of love and affection from friends and family in
recent letters and emails has been lovely. She has always been there for everyone
and we are bereft. But there is one blessing- she just managed to reach the Pearly
Gates before Prince Philip and that would have made her laugh.