The Appleby community lost an active member with the death of Susan Alderson, of Clifford Street, aged 75.
Born in Cardiff, Sue was the daughter of Richard and Nancy Howell. She had a brother, Mike.
She spent her early childhood at Penarth until her father got a job with the council at Kirkby Stephen. The family lived there for several years until he began another council job in Appleby, after which the family moved to the town’s Clifford Street.
Although initially unhappy at leaving behind the friends she had made in Kirkby Stephen, she quickly made new ones and joined the “Three Christines Gang” — Christine Harper, Christine Gradwell and Christine Taylor, plus Sue, the only non-Christine.
After leaving school she attended Briggs Commercial College, Penrith, where she learned secretarial and administrative skills. She went on to get a job with the Civil Service at the Rock Chapel, in Appleby.
It was in the early 1960s that she started to see David Alderson, who had been at the same school she attended, although in a different year.
They married in 1969 and David, not having much money at the time, suggested they spend their honeymoon at Blackpool, but Sue thought Southport would be more special.
The couple at first lived in Huddersfield, where David’s job was based, and Sue got a transfer so she could continue to work for the Civil Service.
After a couple of years he started working for Texaco as an industrial sales representative and they moved to Durham, where they brought up their two sons, Mark and Paul.
The family moved back to Appleby in 1975 when David decided to join the family road haulage business and they bought a house in Clifford Street, close to where Sue had lived with her parents.
She worked as wages clerk for the family business and had a number of other jobs in Appleby, including at the town’s VG shop and as a midday supervisor at the grammar school.
Quite a few of their friends with children of a similar age lived in the same area and they often enjoyed holidays together at Pontins and Butlins. Their first overseas holiday was in 1982 when about four families went to Torremolinos.
In the 1990s they had several holidays in Estartit, Spain, where they enjoyed being on the water in the family speedboat.
In 2004, they took a cruise in the Caribbean which they enjoyed so much they went on to undertake many further cruises, travelling to China, the Mediterranean and back to the Caribbean. Sue also enjoyed two trips to Australia to see her brother Mike and his family, who lived near Brisbane.
At home, Sue served for many years as treasurer of the Appleby Friday Club and enjoyed going to fellowship meetings. She also worshipped regularly at Appleby Methodist Church.
She is survived by her husband David, Appleby; sons Mark, of Appleby, and Paul, who lives in Penrith; and another brother, John, North Yorkshire.
