Sandra Cross (9 Apr 1937 - 9 Apr 2014)

In loving memory of the late Sandra Cross who sadly passed away on her birthday, the 9th April 2014 aged 77 years. Sue, Ian and their families were with her.

Sandra Cross 9 April 1937 – 9 April 2014.

Sandra was a kind, lovely, caring, friendly and selfless woman who went out of her way to help others. She was always proud and dignified, did not wish to trouble others with problems and had a great passion for the simple pleasures in life. When asked to describe Sandra, the words lovely and kind are always mentioned by anyone that met her. She had no regrets or malice in her heart, whatever life threw at her.

Sandra Poppy Cross, who preferred to be called Sandra, was born on 9th April 1937 in Derby Street, Beeston, the second daughter of Amy and Albert and sister to Shirley. It was just before the Second World War in which her father went to fight. Her mother did a wonderful job of raising her in their home in Clinton Street and she had many happy childhood and influencing memories of her mum, Auntie Lettie and many other Aunts and Uncles. When she was 13 her mother married Adrian who Sandra loved having as a father. She enjoyed dancing lessons which as she got older led to her and Shirley having enjoyable dancing evenings at the Palais in Nottingham.

At 16 Sandra left school and felt very fortunate to be selected for a role in the laboratories at Boots; here she met one of her best and longest friends Mollie and they both had important roles in testing and developing new products – including Strepsils. She was very proud of this time and that she was asked to teach and train new graduates who joined the company. It was here she met her husband Tony and they married when Sandra was 22. They went on to have two children, Susan and Ian and Sandra would always claim this was the happiest period of her life. Tony and Sandra started a gardening business whilst working at Boots and this eventually became their main occupation that led to a lot of travel within the United Kingdom and Holland where they made some very close friends.

It is fair to say that they pioneered a new approached to selling horticultural products including bulbs, seeds and plants and later pet accessories by displaying at many different agricultural and horticultural shows and exhibitions across the country – gaining success, awards and many friendships over the years. They decided to expand into a florist and pet shop and Sandra completed a prestigious floristry course which helped her in producing lovely bridal and floral arrangements including the flowers for Ian and Jo’s wedding. She enjoyed her time running the shop, employing staff and doing floral arrangements – quite often accompanied by her dog Jenny. She considered her customers to be new friends; this was particularly true of Marion who she met on a coach trip and enjoyed many further trips and happy days with her.

Sandra was thrilled when she became a grandma, firstly to Emma and then Adam, followed later by Amy, Megan and Jacob. She embraced her duties as grandma – particularly buying ice creams and cuddly toys – the latter being something she was very good at!

In 1996 she started a new chapter of her life living in Granby Court, Bingham; she bought herself her first car and loved the independence of putting her second dog Gemma in the passenger seat and visiting her family near Brighton and Derby. She spent lots of enjoyable time helping Sue and David with their new business venture and later she made a career change and worked in a children’s nursery in Bingham which she thoroughly enjoyed and made many friends and was as always seen as happy and helpful. Sandra made lots of friends and helped many of the people around where she lived. She often talked of her shopping exploits with Mary and Pam and spoke fondly of her neighbours Olive, Rose, Maud and Trevor. Many here will remember her 70th birthday celebration in Bingham which was always a special memory for her of being surrounded by her most treasured friends and family and having the most wonderful time which was talked about for many years afterward.

Sandra’s pleasures came firstly from her family, her daughter Susan, son Ian, daughter-in-law Jo and her grandchildren Emma, Adam, Amy, Megan and Jacob. She was always there for her family, helping, guiding, nurturing and supporting them. She was very proud of all of their many achievements. Anyone who knew Sandra well will appreciate she had a love of shopping – clothing, teddy bears, collectibles and handbags – with a good eye for quality, a bargain and a generous nature. She loved animals, particularly the dogs and rabbits which she kept as family pets – perhaps with the exception of Sue and Ian’s guinea pigs that once escaped and hid under the garden shed where Sandra spent considerable time laying on the floor trying to coax them out.

She had a love of music and films as proven by the vast amounts of CDs and DVDs she had – she particularly enjoyed Charlie Landsborough, Russell Watson, Alfie Boe and Katherine Jenkins as well as classical, operatic and more modern music.

Sandra has travelled here today in a Rolls-Royce, accompanied by her favourite bear Millie, along a route that visited many of her old and treasured haunts of Chilwell and Beeston including Clinton Street where she grew up, Derby Street where she was born, the University Boulevard where she loved to see the rhododendron bushes in bloom and Woollaton Park. She wanted to be laid to rest in Bramcote as her own mum and Adrian are also here, she was confirmed in Bramcote church and had many happy childhood memories from growing up close by.

Even in her final few weeks, her main concern was not for herself but for how Susan and Ian and their families would cope with their loss when she went. It seems very unfair to think that Sandra died of an illness at an early age that is primarily caused by smoking when she led a very healthy life and smoked only two cigarettes as a teenager and rarely drank. The only positive the family gained from the diagnosis was the opportunity for them to spend as much time with her as they could, listening to her favourite music, talking generally and talking about how much we loved her and she us.

When Sandra decided that she could not return to Bingham due to her illness she remained positive and asked her family to help her with finding a home for, in her own words, “her new adventure and the next chapter in her life”. The family felt fortunate to find the Old Lodge nursing home in the countryside at Etwall, Derbyshire, where Sandra spent the last week of her life until she passed away on her 77th birthday. Matron and all of the staff were extremely kind and respectful and we know Sandra appreciated the lovely room and care she received there. We only wish we could have had more time at the home together to enjoy springtime.

We all have many happy memories of Sandra and these we must hold dear in our hearts and cherish them, as she cherished us.

She will always be special, very special, always appreciated and always loved.

Yes we greatly mourn her passing and do wish there had been more time to enjoy her company but we also wish to remember and celebrate her life, as she would have wanted us to.