Jenny Lee died on July 31, aged 83. She had many friends and acquaintances in Rye, having come here on retirement to live next door to her mother at Eagle Cottages, Landgate. She shared home for many years with her beloved terrier Puddy and her cats. A special favourite was her Maine Coon cat which she inherited from her brother Angus, former pilot, yacht captain and father of her three nephews.
She joined the Rye Conservation Society and served for countless years as membership secretary until 2011, keeping immaculate records and bringing them into the computer age. Her reports of outings and social events were always highly readable, with a sharp eye for detail. Always elegantly dressed, she was a lady of Rye with her wicker marketing basket, independent with forthright and sometimes prickly opinions, but a good neighbour to a friend in need.
Her interests were wide-ranging, particularly in the arts, literature and music. “It seems only yesterday that she would be setting off in her little red Citroen car to the Wigmore Hall”, remarked one friend. She was a patron of both the Rye Arts Festival and the Peasmarsh Festival as well as a supporter of the Brickwall Music Society, the Rye Art Gallery and Rye Castle Museum amongst others. Her cottage garden was a source of joy; she was a keen gardener and generous with surplus produce in season. She will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her.
A private funeral will be followed by a memorial service to be held on Friday September 4 at St Mary’s, Rye at 12:30 pm.
Photo: courtesy of Isabel Ryan