Family and friends of one of Lindfield’s oldest and best loved residents gathered at Worth Crematorium last month to say farewell.

Kathleen Rusby, known to her friends as Kath, died on 21st December aged 97.

Kath was extremely well known in Lindfield and played an active role in village life, from bringing up her family and running a local business, to wholeheartedly supporting events and organisations, including the Royal British Legion.

We would like to thank Kath’s family for allowing us to publish this lovely account of her life, written by son Clive and sister Val.

“On 24th September 1921, Lindfield Football Club and another side were lined up for the start of a needle match, when a boy dashed on to the field – shouting ‘Your wife’s had a baby; you must come’. Fred Smith, a much-vaunted local football hero, rushed from the field to be with his wife Rose and to meet his daughter. Thus, in the first hour of her life, Kath was introduced to the two major influences in her life – her beloved village and her equally beloved father.

Family planning being what it was in the twenties, Kath was soon followed by a baby sister, Elsie. With Rose busy with a young baby, much of Fred’s leisure time was spent in the company of his eldest daughter, Kath. They enjoyed treasured time together; trout fishing and mushroom picking and even on occasion foraging in squishy-bottomed ponds for moorhen eggs. Though, of course, much of Kath’s pre-school time was spent in the company of her mother (often affectionately referred to as Muz) and her grandmother (known as Granny Gristle) who occupied the adjoining house in Blackhill Cottages, and of whom Kath was very fond of and enjoyed running errands for.

Full article published in March 2019 issue of Lindfield Life magazine