Fredrick Ashbury
A MEMORIAL service was held at St Mary's Church, Newmarket, on November 4 for Frederick Vernon Ashby, of Childwick House, Howard De Walden Way, Newmarket.
Mr Ashby, who was 90, died at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, on October 18.
Born in Great Wilbraham in 1918 just before Armistice Day, he was the sixth child in a family of seven and his early years were spent in Burwell.
He loved The Fens, describing himself as a Fenmanr.
He attended the local primary school and went to the Cambridgeshire County High School for Boys in Cambridge on a scholarship. While there he played in the cricket, rugby and hockey first teams, and the village football club's second team.
Aged 18, he went to Goldsmith's College, University of London, to take a science and maths degree combined with a teaching certificate as he already knew he wanted to teach. But his studies were interrupted after two years by his call-up at the outbreak of the Second World War.
He joined the Suffolk Regiment and spent most of the war years training and preparing for D-Day. The Suffolks were second on to Sword beach, liberated Colville-sur-Mer and fought their way inland. Three weeks in he was injured in an attempt to capture a German garrison and sent back to England where he spent the next 15 months at an orthopaedic hospital in Nottinghamshire.
There he met Enid Abery, a ward sister, whom he married in 1946. The couple went on to have three children, Susan, Jane and John. Mrs Ashby died in 2007 after the couple had been married 61 years.
When he was discharged from the Army he became the teacher he had always wanted to be.
He and his family moved to Newmarket in 1949 where he began teaching at All Saints' Primary School in 1955 and later moved to Scaltback Middle School. He also taught sport, particularly football and gymnastics. He retired in 1982.
He drove the day centre bus for some years, was an active member of the Probus Club and, along with his wife, was a founding member of the Newmarket U3A. Local history was his real passion and many people have benefited from his knowledge of the area. He ran the local history group and his last lecture was given just two months ago.
He leaves Susan, Jane and John, 11 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
The service, which was preceded by private family cremation, was taken by the Rev John Hardy.
Family and other mourners were: Sue Ashby, Tony Benge, Jane Gresham, Kip Gresham, Dan Gresham, Matt Gresham, Nick Gresham, Tim Gresham, John Ashby, Fran Reichenberg, Kate Ashby, Helen Ashby, Laura Ashby, Emma Ashby, Nick Ashby, Michael Ashby, William Vann, Alex Clissold-Jones, Matthew Kay, Mike Rodman, Ivana Brdanovic, Anna Brdanovic, Zlatko Brdanovic, Jill Mansell, Janet Ramsay-Helie, Noel Muncey, Pauline Burford, Graham Burford, Jean Readman, Teresa Burt, Mr I Perry (Mrs M Perry), Michael Dalton, Hazel Fielding, Ronald Fordham, Joy Smith, Mr W Wade, Brig Deller, Barbara Coppeard (rep Kate Auty), Barry Coppeard, Roger Johnson, Jean Relihan (Mr and Mrs Joe Moore), Mr E Dunning, David Trent, Wendy Trent, Robert Booth, Frank Timmins (Margaret Timmins and Bob Bell), John Ansell (Evelyn Littlewood), Dr Gwen Gresham, Susan Hill, Margaret Stafford, Jenny Staines, Roger Staines, Stephanie Hoskins, Ena Powney (John Powney), Linda Surridge, Richard Clarkson (Gillian Clarkson), Liz Hardy, John Pindar, Kay Rust (Leslie Johnson), Kevin Rust, Sylvia Dwyer (Marcia Marshall), Pauline Richardson, Brig Calder (Suffolk Regiment), Sue Calverley, Richard Calverley, Judy Paxton, Joan Shaw (W Cowan and Mrs J Clarke), Paul Mascall, Dorothy Foster (Betty Ambrose), Frank Matthews, Iris Boggie, Linda Swinson, Elly Holden, Judy Reith, Adrian Reith, Jo Wroe, Marjorie Charles and Gill Ouwendijk (Wim and Saskia).
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Wednesday 08 February 2012
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