Many of you knew our fellow stitcher and blogger Gaynor of Stitchers Anon and if you did , you will have also known of her brave dealings with breast cancer .
Sadly , Gaynor passed away on 16th September , with her family by her side . She had been in hospital for a while , which is not the way she wanted things to go , but I know she appreciated the care given to her and her family during that time .
I have "known" Gaynor since before I started this blog, when I used to read her previous blog, where she amused ,entertained and made you think with her clever and articulate posts. Later , I joined a stitch along blog with her and some others to encourage us all to finish our UFOs . Gaynors' cursing at her E-type Jaguar was legendary.
I started this blog , and we chatted via comments and other bits and bobs , later becoming facebook friends as well and bloggy friends and I got to know her quite well. We lost another friend to breast cancer some years ago , Cathey of the Pumpkin Patch and used to share reminiscences and memories of how lovely she was .
I was around when Gaynor started designing , have lots of her charts and am very lucky that during one of our exchanges I was given a lovely piece that she designed and stitched . It is something that I will treasure.
I tried to be a support to Gaynor as she was dealing with her diagnosis . sometimes just letting her know I was there if she needed to talk .
Gaynor was such a wonderful person ,and an inspiration to me in so many ways. She made me want to be the best person I can be . Even through her tough times , and she had them , despite appearances , Gaynor continued to be there for the people she cared about , often putting her own feelings and needs aside so she could offer support to others .
Gaynor was a loyal , loving and giving friend. She was clever , funny and quite caustic at some times , but in the nicest possible way. She cared , about people , about animals and about the world , but most of all for her family ,especially her beautiful Granddaughter .
She was a creative and talented designer , a crafter , a writer (I have both of her Holmsey Hare books), a teacher , a friend a Mum and Grandma and of course a wife . She was a fundraiser ,a campaigner , a warrior when needed and she was so many more things to so many people
and she was an amazing person to know.
I want to pay tribute to my lovely friend , who I miss every day , Gaynor you brightened the world for so many people , you will be missed forever by all who knew you and I am sorry you didn't get the time you wanted , but glad that you are no longer in pain .
Love you
Cath
