Eulogy for Doreen Yvonne Rushin Doreen was born in Leicester, United Kingdom, on October 12th 1938. When war broke out the following year, Doreen’s Mum Beatrice, joined up and served in the Army. During this time Doreen went to live in Uppingham, the place of Tom Brown’s schoolday’s fame. Doreen was the eldest of four children; her siblings being, Albert, Elaine and Step-Brother Nigel. Doreen attended Fosse Girls School and completed her secondary education there. After leaving school she went into the Hosiery industry where she spent most of her working life; Doreen also worked for a short time in the shoe manufacturing industry…. these two industries were the main employers in the City of Leicester. Doreen married first husband John and went on to have three children named Debbie, Mark and Tracey, and after twenty five years of marriage the couple separated. Sadly, also were the deaths of Debbie who suffered with a major heart problem and Mark who was tragically killed in a car crash. Doreen went on to meet a new man in her life called Derek and they lived together for five years; but heartbreak was to be just around the corner when Derek suffered a bad heart attack and was rushed into hospital. The couple wanted to get married, knowing that Derek would not recover and got the paperwork through in just two days. the wedding service took place in the hospital before Derek passed away. I asked Dick where he fitted into the story of Doreen’s life. He explained that he knew Doreen’s daughter Tracey and her husband Geoff for many years before he met Doreen herself; Geoff was related to Dick’s first wife. Dick would go out with them for Sunday lunches and one day Tracey said to Dick ‘Why don’t you take Mum on?’….. so he did, and they were married in 1995. Sadly, tragedy was to strike again and two years after they tied the knot, Doreen’s sister Elaine passed away. Life for Doreen went on and she and Dick fell in love with the Island of Menorca. They visited and holidayed on the island many times and so loved one special hotel, the name of which, I cannot pronounce, that they stayed there fifteen times. Their thoughts were originally to set up home there but things got very expensive, very quickly and especially property prices went through the roof. After much discussion and a viewing trip they settled on the Costa Calida and Camposol where they went on to set up home in 2007. Doreen was a home-bird and loved her villa. She was not a party animal and nothing could be better for her than to curl up in front of the television and watch the night away. Dick told me that Doreen loved her home, her television, John Wayne, clothes shoes and handbags…. Oh, and we must not forget the dogs… she loved and idolized them. Doreen loved the music of Barbara Streisand, Doris Day and Mario Lanza; Tracey said she could remember all her Mum’s Doris Day songs… she grew up with them. Food likes…..? Doreen preferred plain English cooking and her favourite was fish, chips and mushy peas. She could be described as the lady who just discovered Chinese food, as after may years the family finally managed to get her into a Chinese restaurant. Doreen did not really have a nickname… her Mum called her Dor but most people called her Doreen I asked if Doreen had any hobbies and the answer came back…. The tele !! Doreen loved the sun and even when she lived in the U.K she would migrate to the garden and the sunshine whenever she could.. this was spoiled a little prior to her moving to Spain when she developed a phobia about bees and could not stand them buzzing around her. She was described as a home bird yet with many friends and a special person who would never speak a bad word about anyone. Doreen leaves Grand-daughter Stacey and Great Grand-daughter Evie who sadly she had never seen… Air tickets had been booked for later in February when Dick and Doreen were to travel to U.K to see the new family member. Other members of the extended family include Step-Son Graham, his wife Rachael and their children Cameron and Harry, also, Step-Son Carl, his wife Juliet and their two children, Owen and Olivia. If anyone had reason to get bitter and twisted about what life threw at them, Doreen could have topped the list. Yet instead, I see a strong lady who despite all the grief, hurt and pain, chose to move on and make something special and precious of her life, and in doing so, touched the lives of so many others on the way. You will be so sadly missed by all your family and friends who loved you so very much… God bless you Doreen.