Audrey Baldwin (19 Aug 1929 - 19 Apr 2016)

FAMILY TRIBUTE

My mother was born Audrey Dorothy Ada Hubble on 19th August 1929 to Henry and Margaret Hubble, a war widow. She was the second youngest of her mother's five surviving children, 3 other siblings having died, including Audrey’s own twin brother. She lived in 10 Sparham's buildings, St Peter's Street, Lowestoft in a community and at a time where a poor catch or decision could be a financial family disaster. While this was not the poorest part of Lowestoft, it was not the most salubrious either. Mum's family often had little they always shared with those less fortunate. One of her most formative, if not traumatic experiences lasted four years. In July 1940 she was evacuated to Nottinghamshire, aged ten. Told by her mother to look after her younger brother Raymond, the babe, and on no account to be separated from him and did so, which was typical of her.

Audrey valued her family and friends more highly than material possessions. She was a faithful daughter, sister, wife, mother god mother. She remained very close to her brothers, sister and their families and took immense pleasure in hearing how all sides of the wider Baldwin and Hubble families were getting on.

Audrey was the swot in a sporty family. She kept herself physically fit, taking long walks with her sister in law Violet until the last few months. But Audrey’s passion was for the intellect. An avaricious reader, she had many books on the go – often reading them while she was cooking, in shops, and even at traffic lights. She was very proud of achieving top marks and a prize for divinity. She had a thirst for knowledge and a life long interest in literature and history, and a passion for teaching. Her teaching career spanned fifty years in the classroom, over thirty in the Crowfoot school in Beccles.

She started teaching in Lowestoft, met her husband to be, fellow teacher, Peter Baldwin. They married and moved to Ruddington in Nottinghamshire, where after teaching in a secondary modern school, Audrey had her first child in 1956. In 1961 the family moved to Waterloo, where my sister Jane was born in 1962. Audrey would have liked to return to teaching, but instead her husband Peter bought her 600 chickens and a contract with the egg marketing board. She cared for her father in law until he died and then returned to teaching. In addition to her own career, Audrey was her husband's business partner in a coach company, garage, and cycle manufacture.

At home she supported a playground for us as children with sheds, horses, caravans and old cars and tree houses, feeding and taxiing us and our friends, and even brewing ginger beer for my classmates, until the scvhool complaned about tipsy year 10s. She also ran a small hotel for waifs and strays that my dad met and felt sorry for and was zoo keeper to a growing menagerie of arthritic chickens, disabled ducks, pensionable turkeys, delinquent dogs and dis-functional cats – and a pair of peacocks. There is an old joke which starts: “why did the chicken cross the road? The answer for a time here in the Waveny valley was “To get to the Ditchingham roundabout”!. At least some of the chickens that wanted to get to the Ditchingham Roundabout did so to escape Audrey’s cooking pot which threatened whenever she got fed up with “them bloomin cockerels”.

Audrey bore these 'trials' with good humour and hope. Hope is about the future. Hope is a prerequisite for setting up businesses. As a teacher she gave hope to students and parents. The weekend before Audrey's funeral Jenny Dowson rang me up to tell me how much hope Audrey gave her when bringing up her daughter who found learning very difficult. As a mother, and grandmother, Audrey listened, encouraged and supported. Her intentions were always to do the best for the future. And as Audrey used to quote her mother, “You should get up and give life a good biff every day” and my mother absolutely did this being blessed with immense energy and resolve.

In 1998 her husband Peter sadly died. Audrey then demonstrated how life could begin again at 70. She sold the White House Waterloo, and moved into 84 Denmark Road, Beccles. Over the next eighteen years she; became a helper at the Crowfoot school; a volunteer for the Beccles Museum, Waveny Enterprises; the Suffolk Hearing Services Hand in Hand Club and the Children's society Charity Shop. She gave support, wise counsel energy and passion and encouragement and kindness and understanding. She became a poet. She also became nanny to her youngest grandchildren in Oxford three days a week. She delighted in the company of her five grandchildren Lottie, Alice, George, William and Thomas, and was very proud of all of them, for their achievements and character. Audrey loved her friends, family, towns people and country and life itself.

Audrey worried and cared. She was the last person to describer herself as a thrill seeking adrenaline junkie For her a white knuckle ride was to travel faster than 30 miles an hour in someone else’s car. This did not mean she lacked physical or moral courage. She once stepped in to harangue a gang of teenaged boys taunting the comedian Ronnie Corbett and woe betide anyone who ever sounded their horn in an attempt to persuade her to drive faster. When Audrey heard the diagnosis of her fatal disease, she was shocked and frightened – and very sad that this was it. But she drew strength from setting an example and faced death with dignity and courage saying this is the last thing we can give our children.

There is an image of Audrey as the cheerful woman wearing more layers of clothing than most polar explorers, her hats and knitting, a cheerful woo-hoo at the door and the warmth of her voice. She will be missed immeasurably by all the family and everyone who knew her. There is an Audrey shaped hole in all our lives. I am also reminded that her deeds were those of the Christian virtues - faith, hope, charity and love. The girl who won a prize for divinity knew what she was doing. Didn't she do well.

Frank Baldwin – on behalf of her children and grandchildren

AUDREY BALDWIN -INSPIRATIONAL TEACHER
The last time I saw Audrey we hugged and had a little dance together in the street in a very Audrey way.
The first time I met her was when I was a green probationer with more enthusiasm than skill. Audrey took me under her wing and became my mentor.

Audrey specialised in teaching remedial children in the 50’s and recognised a gap in provision; she pioneered the concept of a half-way house between mainstream and special schools.
She persuaded the county to open an Area Support Unit for children with learning and behaviour problems at Crowfoot Primary School.

To begin with the unit was entirely isolated and Audrey had to work hard to persuade the head and staff that her children did not have three heads.
Both a change of head and Audrey’s powers of persuasion soon brought the practice of integration into the school.
Also national inspectors came in to the unit and rated it highly, using it as an example of good practice for others to follow.

Integration slowly became a two way process between the unit and mainstream which benefitted all children, working on their strengths and providing extra support where necessary.
The term that Elsa Arundel became acting head with Audrey as her deputy was the happiest Crowfoot had ever been, they made a formidable team, efficient, creative and kind, following sound principles; building up the integration programme. The school sang under their guidance.

Audrey was extremely perceptive in assessing the needs and strengths of each child in her class; not only academic but physical and emotional too. These needs and strengths formed the basis of the programmes she developed for each child. If a system was right for a child she would adopt it whether it was popular or not. Health and Safety might say something about her cooking in class but Audrey could always justify her actions.
She was brilliant at anticipating a problem and could diffuse a situation and prevent it escalating.
I can’t remember her raising her voice but she had a very expressive face and children soon learnt to read her disapproval. They wanted to please her and even the most difficult child learnt to listen and respect.
Audrey’s love of literature inspired her children to listen to, read and write stories even though many found it a challenge.

She was a great actor and story-teller who made even the most pedestrian exciting, and she had an astonishing memory for rhymes, songs and games.

She knew the importance of physical well-being for learning, and presented the children with a wide variety of activities through games, gymnastics, dance and drama.
She included the playground and the environment, she took children out, and shopping. She tackled gardening, digging, using tools and harvesting. She taught them the value of nature watching.
These activities helped with self- confidence, self- control and enjoyment as well as achieving fitness and coordination.

She would always have lunch with the children and join them in the playground, encouraging them all to play together regardless of age and ability.

Learning to become part of a group ensured that children felt secure and valued, developing the life-skills they would need as adults.

Audrey hated any form of discrimination and did everything she could to eliminate it from the school. She had a strong sense of social justice and this coloured everything she did.

.She was a staunch friend and supportive colleague, always interested in others, sharing ideas and information. If she did not know something she took the time to help you find out. Her time was precious as she chose to be on duty all day, but she would give it with pleasure.

Some people travel to find wisdom.
Audrey found hers at home; it was deeply embedded by her insatiable curiosity and profound sense of social justice.

Alison Shirreff

AUDREY BALDWIN -POET

Let Us -First Person Plural A poem by Audrey Baldwin

Let us start with —— a celebration
'For morning has broken like the first morning',
Human words for Holy Writ, - Exploration
Of praise, faith and fears — Composition
To give strength in times of stress, - Motivation
To galvanise the ennui of spirit- Expiation
In the doing of good works, - Bunyan's exhortation
To tread the Pilgrim Path, - Tradition
To give form, then find new ways - to Commission
Both Ancient and Modern, - Thankful Expressions
In songs of Zion, Poems for us - The Congregation

Read at the funeral service by Gill Leftwich