Florence Lower (15 Nov 1926 - 28 Feb 2020)

In loving memory of Florence Lower who sadly passed away on 28th February 2020. This is the eulogy that would have been delivered at her funeral.
Our Mother or Floss as she was known to most of you was born in Ryde on the Isle of Wight on 15th November 1926. Her younger brother, Henry, joined her some 8 years later.

Her father was a farm worker and a very strict Methodist, so strict that even a packet of Wine Gums was forbidden, in the house. Cyril said that the only place on the Isle of Wight that he knew he wouldn’t meet a relative was in a pub!

When Floss was 10 years old she suffered a real body blow in that her mother died. Floss came to Epsom to stay with her aunt and uncle in Langley Vale for a couple of weeks to help her get over her mother’s death.
The holiday was obviously successful, as she didn’t return to live on the Isle of Wight.

She left school at about the age of 15 and started working as a trainee bookkeeper for the Coop. apparently taking evening classes in bookkeeping. Until late in life Floss always had a very good grasp of figures as anyone presenting her with an account would bear witness – especially if it was wrong!

I can remember being helped with maths homework in my early ears at school when it seemed so easy for her and just the opposite for me.
When my brother and I were old enough she returned to bookkeeping at
W H Smiths in Epsom High Street where she worked until retirement.

Having grown up during the war she had many stories including those of her Uncle, a male nurse and in a protected occupation, being in the Home Guard. She also told of being in The Mall on VE evening with her Uncle.

She met her husband Cyril at a race meeting. He was from Brighton and had joined a family outing to Epsom races. The two families had a friendship and he met Floss - the rest is history. Cyril always said he went to the races, lost his money and his heart; they were married for 65 years. At the beginning they lived on the Wells Estate and then moved to Langley Vale.

Her family were the centre of her life; my brother and I can remember many family times, with outings and camping holidays to Spain. We also remember boundless love and support along with advice and guidance. She was a very involved grandmother and in later life anybody venturing within 20 yard was shown photos of her great grand children who gave her a fresh lease of life.

So apart from being a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother what else did she do?

In the early 1960s David joined the Cub Scouts and quite soon Floss was encouraged to join the supporters committee – and she loved it! After a few years she decided to move into uniform as an Assistant Cub leader firstly with the Methodist group in Epsom and then concurrently with the Group in Langley Vale where she was the leader or Arkela, staying for 20 years. She loved working with the youngsters, having great fun and watching them develop.

In the time leading up to retirement Floss joined the Langley Vale flower club. Before long she was on the committee and in time became chairman. This proved to be a great interest and whilst she was chairman they entered a garden into the Chelsea Flower Show collecting a commendation.

It is fair to say that participation in sport was not high on her list of priorities. But when they retired Cyril persuaded her to join him in taking up Bowls and to her surprise she really enjoyed it. Of course the Bowls Club had a committee and she was soon elected onto it and in time became Chairman and then President. The Bowls club also provided a fresh set of friends and many trips away both in the UK and abroad.

After living in Langley Vale for 42 years they moved to Derby Close in 2006 - this was a great move for them. Derby Close is a community for the over 55s, it has a warden and both the gardens and outside are maintained but most importantly there is a real sense of community. Also there is also a committee!! When they first arrived the default answer from the committee to any different suggestions was a resounding NO.
After a couple of years Floss and another couple of residents got themselves onto the committee and started to shake things up. And you may have guessed what comes next but soon she was Chairman bringing energy and her committee experience to bear. Soon the default answer to change was ‘lets have a look at it’ and a long standing resident tells me that she changed the feel and atmosphere in Derby Close.

We are all products of our age and she had some great sayings.

If there is enough blue sky to make a Dutch Boy a pair of trousers, it’s not going to rain.

Having met a new member of the Bowls Club she told me “I met a new member today a Mrs Smith – she’s a vegetarian but she’s very nice really”!!!!

Following the loss of Cyril, Floss was determined to be independent and stayed living in Derby Close until the age of 92. However old age is rarely kind and a loss of mobility and hearing took its toll and following some falls, she moved into Priory Court care home. After a short time Floss was participating in some of the activities but surprisingly was not on the residents committee!

It is always sad to loose a loved one but as you can see she had a long, happy and productive life. And although she will be missed by us all, we would like everyone to view today as a celebration of that life.