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Death of former deputy mayoress
A true servant of our community who always had a twinkle in her eye has died, aged 98.
Winifred Dry, known as Wyn, was a former deputy mayoress of Morecambe and a fund-raiser for numerous charities.
Mrs Dry received long service certificates for her work with the Women’s Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS), Cancer Research and the British Red Cross.
She worked in the Royal Lancaster Infirmary WRVS tea bar for many years and also in the British Red Cross shop in Morecambe.
Wyn, one of seven children, was born in Lincoln on January 13, 1915.
As a young woman she worked as a manageress for Woolworth in Lincoln and did a huge amount of work for the Second World War effort, travelling to open cafeterias all over Britain for the troops and casualties of war, training up girls to manage them.
Lincoln was an RAF base and there, Wyn met a fighter pilot who would become her fiance, but he was tragically killed during the war. “Wyn was broken hearted and wept for days but her mother, a strong woman, said she had to dry her tears and must carry on,” said Dawn Baxter, a friend of Wyn’s.
At a party thrown by a mutual friend, Wyn met her future husband Donald Dry on Boxing Day 1945. They were married at Lincoln Registry Office.
The family moved to Morecambe in 1962 when Don was promoted to district manager of the CIS (Cooperative Insurance Company) in Lancaster.
Wyn became a member of North West Cancer Research, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and the Flying Doctor Service. Don was a local councillor. He and Wyn were deputy mayor and mayoress when Nellie Bolton was mayor.
They had three children, Stuart, Chris and Ghislaine, nine grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.
Wyn loved caravanning and in later years travelled the world with Don. She also loved poetry and Abba!
She carried on her charity work well into her ‘90s and after Donald died.
Ghislaine said: “She was a real trooper who always looked the part and always wore a hat and made sure ‘she had her face on’.
“Once she was collecting for the North West Cancer Research at Sainsbury’s and some children came up to her and asked her if she was the Queen Mum!”
Wyn, who still lived in her own home until very recently, died on March 3 at the Sands nursing home after a short illness.
Dawn said: “Her coffee mornings were the talk of the town.
“She was adored by her family, friends and neighbours who she helped, cooked for and nursed in time of trouble.”
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Weather for Morecambe
Friday 24 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 5 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 28 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 7 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: West
