Eulogy for Sheila. Written by her daughters Linda and Carol and read at her funeral.
Sheila was born in London in 1939. She was the daughter of Ronald and Ella Lee. She was born in harsh times; World War Two had started shortly before Sheila was born, and when her father went to war, her mother abandoned her and her two siblings, Ronald and June. Consequently she spent some time living in an orphanage and with their grandmother until her father returned from the war and reclaimed the three children. Her father later remarried and they had a daughter, Sheila’s step sister Sandra. Her stepmother was strict and uncompromising. She was known only as ‘Mother’. Given all this, it is not difficult to understand where Sheila’s feisty, independent nature was formed.
Sheila went to work when she was 14, but it was while working in Guys Engineering, sanding and drilling - making parts for planes, that she met Arthur whom she later married. Sheila had fond memories of Arthur sending her love letters down the production line in the factory until the boss discovered this and moved Sheila to a different section. Sheila and Arthur married in 1959. (They divorced in 1978 and Sheila was later married to Jozef Van Hamersveld from 1980 until 1990.)
In 1966 Sheila and Arthur and their young family migrated to Western Australia. Challenge was a common theme of Sheila’s life. It must have been very difficult to pack her life into a suitcase and depart from what was home to a foreign land and lifestyle with young children in tow.
Sheila loved her children; Carol, Linda, Paul, Mark and David, and loved to be involved with her grandchildren, Angela, Rachel, Allan, Chris, Christopher and James, and her great grandson Bodhi. For many years Sheila lived with Linda and her husband Ian and cared for their two sons, Christopher and James. Sheila gladly travelled with Linda and her family to wherever Ian’s job took them – Kalgoorlie, Leinster, Townsville, and Mandurah – and formed a strong bond with her grandsons.
Sheila always took great delight and interest in the lives of her grandchildren and her great grandson. She would use Facebook to message and keep up with news, she learned how to use video chats. In recent years she loved to view videos of baby Bodhi and delighted in his every moment. Sheila’s home was filled with photos of her family; weddings, birthday celebrations, graduations…happy moments recorded and displayed with pride.
Sheila loved her four legged family too. It seems like there was always a pet in her life - Sophie was her much loved, cup of tea drinking and lolly eating Silkie Terrier. Sheila’s children’s pets also had an important place in Sheila’s life- they were her extended family; Sandi, Mollie, Star and Bob the Dog, and she could always be counted on to share a treat with them. And Sheila loved that Bob was able to visit her in her room when she moved into the nursing home.
Sheila loved to sew. She made clothes for her grandchildren, as well as aprons, bags, table cloths and decorations for her daughters. Her sewing machine travelled with her. When Sheila moved into a Seniors Village in Kalgoorlie she continued sewing for the Community Centre, making turbans for the Cancer foundation, and joined other craft groups which held stalls and raised money for charity. Sheila loved to be involved and active; she enjoyed bingo, craft groups, bowls, as well as reading and talking about books. Sheila was a very social person, and loved to know what was going on with everyone.
When Sheila moved to Mandurah to be closer to her family, she made a long lasting, good friend – her neighbour Maureen. Sheila and Maureen went out and about together, Sheila was the driver and Maureen was the navigator. They went on bus trips to the Burswood Casino many a time - a cheap day out with great food. Sheila always had an eye for value or a bargain, and loved the thrill of the casino.
Throughout her life Sheila loved food. Her tastes were simple; she loved jam and cream sponges, doughnuts, fried chicken, fish and chips, ginger nut biscuits. She loved a BBQ with her family – Mother’s Day, birthdays, any time was a good reason for a BBQ. Not only did she love food but she loved watching others create exotic tempting dishes…visits to Carol and Garry’s house would see her sitting on a stool at the kitchen bench engrossed in the process of creating a culinary treat in front of her. Exotic foods – such as “Ding Dong Noodles”. Actually Udon Noodles but her hearing was not so great by then – or she didn’t have her hearing aids in…
In her later years Sheila’s health became compromised with various ailments – some critical. Cancer and heart issues were something she did not want to discuss – in fact she would often claim that she was not ill, that there was nothing wrong with her. Memory issues also surfaced. During this period of her life she became increasing dependant on Linda’s assistance to remain in her own home. Linda attended appointments with her, took her to specialists and held her hand during procedures. Other family members also stepped in to help when they were needed.
Sheila later experienced several falls, and it became obvious to those around her that this feisty woman needed more help in her daily life. With Linda and Ian moving to Mt Isa, and Sheila not well enough to go with them this time, Mark and Mandy willingly opened their home to Sheila. Sheila’s health declined further and a sea change was deemed appropriate and Sheila moved into Mirambeena Nursing Home in Margaret River. Sheila flourished in her new surroundings. She loved the social aspect of the home, she made friends with Bernice (who had a room across from her), and she enjoyed conversations at meal times with Norma, Harry and Don. She loved the bus outings- to the Berry Farm, the beach, to local parks and gardens. She got her hair done, her nails painted and enjoyed shoulder massages and “Happy Hour”.
She was thankful for visits from all her family, even those she hadn’t seen in some time. They took her out for meals, for coffee, shopping and for trips to Carol and Garry’s home where she enjoyed her beloved BBQ and a glass of wine. Here Sheila collaborated on Carol’s art work – giving advice on colour selections and style. She was enthusiastic and proud of the end results. She had a wonderful last Christmas and unwrapped her presents with great joy, relishing in being spoiled and having family around her.
However, Sheila’s health rapidly deteriorated, cancer was making its presence felt. Although she didn’t want anyone to fuss after her, it was clear that the battle against cancer could not be won. After picking up an infection that she couldn’t shake things rapidly declined. Sheila passed away peacefully surrounded by love and in the thoughts of all her family.
Sheila will be remembered for her spirited, independent and sometimes stubborn nature; and for her wonderful, genuine laugh - something we were all lucky to hear a lot more of in the last couple of years.
