Marie Ferrie (18 Sep 1934 - 5 Apr 2025)

In loving memory of Marie Ferrie who sadly passed away on 5th April 2025

Marie was born in Bakewell to Lewis and Nellie Ball. They lived in Birchover where the whole family lived and Marie was very close to her Grandad Ball, who used to call her his 'little lambkin'.

She was close to her dad and has memories of going in his truck - he had a haulage business and he would take stone from Birchover quarry and deliver it to Bamford where Ladybower Reservoir was in the process of being built.

She was joined by brother David in 1943. She became very protective of him and they maintained a good relationship throughout their lives. Marie used to visit David and his wife Pam at their home in Cheshire. She was proud of him, of his having gone to Liverpool University and also the lovely home he and Pam had.

Marie loved spending time with her cousins at Rock Farm in Birchover and kept in close contact with the youngest, Babs, speaking on the telephone and exchanging cards their whole adult life. She was bridesmaid at Bab's wedding in 1956.

Marie was also very fond of her grandmother on her mum's side, Granny Thompson, who lived with the family for many years.

Marie's ambition as a teenager was to be a dance teacher on cruise ships, travelling to see the world. She took exams and got her medals in ballroom dancing. She went out dancing seven nights a week, many nights walking over 2 miles from the bus which dropped them at Hawley's Bridge.

She met Wilf in 1956 when he called at the post office in Birchover, where she worked with her Aunt Freda (dad's sister). She was quite taken by him and later that day, she bumped into him again at her home when he called to talk to her father about a truck he was buying (Wilf worked for his dad who owned garages and Wilf was a salesman for the company). She was impressed by the way her dog Bess responded to him and felt if the dog liked him, then he was probably okay. They went on a few dates and very quickly they decided to get married later that year. It had been love at first sight for both of them.

The following year, Liz was born. They moved around quite a bit over the years, starting off in a flat in Bulwell then buying a house in Holloway, then Spondon, Mickleover, Worksop and Sheffield. The highlight for Marie was moving down to Barnet - it was nearly London. Marie had fallen in love with London when she went to the Festival of Britain in 1951 and decided it was where she would be based when she was not on the cruise ships. They moved then to Potters Bar and Cockfosters before moving back to Bakewell.

Whilst Marie lived in Barnet, she started her career in insurance, beginning as a clerk at Hill's in New Barnet. She then moved to Hellier's in West Bridgeford and got promoted to Claims Manager at Fenchurch in Leicester around 1973. This was all accompanied by home moves of course, Staythorpe, Nottingham, Ilkeston, Loughborough and Leicester.

Marie and Wilf had a very good relationship. They enjoyed the same things; dogs, gardening, walking and reading. They loved their caravan holidays which gave them freedom to do as they pleased.

In 1980, they joined Liz at her newsagents shop in Worksop. They bought the greengrocers next door and settled down to work there for many years. In 2001, Liz moved to Kent and Marie and Wilf continued to run the shop until they finally retired in 2003 when Marie was 69 years old. Wilf died in 2005 and Marie was left alone with their dog Moss.

She already knew many people in the area, having lived there for over 20 years, but had not socialised a lot as her life revolved around the business and going to the caravan on their days off.

She met a group of people dog walking on the field and one of them invited her to go on a trip to London organised by the Priory Church. She jumped at the chance and was happy to go. She felt that she ought to support the church as she was taking advantage of their social events. There were many people she already knew who attended the church and she took to the community quickly.

She visited Liz frequently in Chatham and had extended stays. During those stays, she went to St Stephen's Church and became a great supporter of their events and made many good friends. She moved to live with Liz at her house on Pattens Lane permanently in 2014.

Marie enjoyed her friends - she was always chatting on the phone to either friends from Worksop, her cousin Babs, her brother David or her many friends around Chatham. She helped Liz by doing housework and gardening, she helped her grandson Rory by getting on the bus and going over to his place to 'give him a good clean'. She loved doing puzzles, reading and for her 80th birthday, Liz gave her a tablet which she mastered quickly, enabling her to get her daily newspaper and do dozens of puzzles online. It was the highlight of her day, to get a cup of tea and download the newspaper.

After she moved to Chatham, she told Liz she was 'content'. She missed Wilf very much, but had found a new normal of her own. She liked it that Rory could drop in at any time, take her out for tea and cake, a visit into Rochester to look at the Cathedral or Castle and spend a bit of time with him that she would not have been able to do had she not moved to Kent. She liked the people and the convenience of where she lived. She preferred living with Liz to living on her own and having visits with mainly phone contact in between.

She enjoyed getting on the train at Rochester and going up to see David and Pam. Well into her 80s, Liz would put her on the train at Rochester, she would get off at St Pancras, walk up to Euston and get on a train to be met at the other end by David. One little old lady with a suitcase on wheels off on her travels.

Her dementia began around 2020 but she was okay for a couple of years, just having minor memory issues that were easy enough to cope with. During 2023, her dementia deteriorated to the extent that she was no longer safe to live in a family home and she moved into Rochester Care Home in November 2023. This was a decision that she and Liz had discussed over the years - when she was no longer safe, she did not want to be a burden to her family. She said she would go into a nursing home, even if when the time came, she was not able to make the decision herself, it was her decision whilst she was of sound mind.

She settled in, helping out with washing up and dusting (her choice, nobody made her!) and she loved the pet therapy dog visits and the music activities. The carers at the home were just that - caring - they were so loving to Marie and made her life as comfortable and easy as it could be.

Her dementia worsened and her health took a turn for the worse at the end of 2024. She became unwell and passed away on 5th April 2025.

Liz sat in her room with her during the last few days and Rory dropped in several times to see his Grandma as he was driving around the area. She was asleep for most of the time, but was aware that her family were with her.

She gradually slipped out of consciousness and peacefully passed just before 11am on 5th April.