Feb2015_VALE: FRANCES HENDERSON

Passed away on 1st December 2014 aged 66 years.

HAVE YOU WRITTEN IN THE BOOK YET?

The staff at the Dayboro Medical Centre provided a book for people to sign and leave messages of memories shared, to be later presented to the family.  This book will be available until at least the end of February – so call in to the Dayboro Medical Centre and add your message. 

 

On her passing Frances’ family chose to hold a small, private ceremony.  The Dayboro community felt the need for a form of closure and an opportunity to honour their collective memories of Frances who, until mid 2014, was the owner/operator of Day Clippers – a ladies and gents hair salon.  This Remembrance Celebration was held on 17th January 2015.

Frances’ brother David, sister-in-law Monica and niece Jessie attended the Remembrance Celebration and were able to gain a measure of the strength of the friendships and associations that Frances had enjoyed within the Dayboro community.

Frances always supported local events and helped out where she could.  Her readiness to trust and see the good in people is what endeared her to many a speaker on this day.  The easy chatter as you are having your hair cut etc. is a skill which came easily to Frances.  Many of us have memories too of stopping to chat outside the shop when Frances was not busy with a customer.

On this day many people took the offered microphone and shared their memories of Frances.  It was clear that Frances was fondly remembered on many different levels and those gathered included loyal customers from her pre-Dayboro salon (at Margate) and also her former apprentice, Tracey, with whom Frances had a life-long friendship, keeping in touch and sharing memories like an extended family.  This friendship included going on cruises together.

Before establishing her Salon in Dayboro, and moving to her home at Ocean View, Frances lived at Kallangur and had a salon located at Margate.

How well do we really know people?  How often does the story of someone’s life – presented as a celebration of their life after they have passed away – bring to light aspects of that person’s life that you knew nothing about?  This was certainly the case on the afternoon of Saturday 17th January.  

A ‘naughty’ snippet that came to light was that some old friends would come in to have their hair cut and bring with them a ‘bottle of bubbly’.  Frances would pour it into tea cups to ‘keep the secret’ and have it appear that they were just enjoying a ‘cuppa and chat’ whilst having their hair tended to!  

Our thanks to the Dayboro District Progress Association and Pastor Richard Lance for the organising of this afternoon.