Margaret Ruth Lilian Hawkswell, of Carrington Road, Flackwell Heath was a beloved wife, mother and grandmother.

She was born in Alperton, Middlesex, on April 15, 1937, and died at home on September 3, 2005.

As a child during the Second World War, Margaret was evacuated to Wales where she contracted rheumatic fever, from standing outside in the rain for long periods of time waiting for her foster parents to come home from work.

She was taken to Great Ormond Street Hospital, where staff managed to save her life, but she was left with permanent heart damage and suffered ill health for the rest of her life.

Margaret met her husband, Arthur, on a warm summer's evening at a dance held in the Majestic Ballroom, in Wembley, in June 1955.

Describing the moment they met, Mr Hawkswell recalls: "I turned round, and suddenly I saw this elegant girl standing there. She was looking both serene and beautiful. It would be that same look that I would grow to cherish as the years rolled by. I felt a strong attraction inside me, something that I had seldom felt before. I thought, a girl as beautiful as this, I could marry."

Mr Hawkswell asked Margaret for the next dance and escorted her home by moonlight. The next day he called her at work and they started going out. Shortly after, they became engaged and were married. In 1964 they had a son, whom they christened Mark. In 1967 their second son, Paul, was born.

A company restructure brought the couple to Flackwell Heath. In 1984 Margaret was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, but she rarely complained.

Margaret took particular delight in family occasions such as the wedding of her younger son, Paul, in 1998 and the birth of her first grandson, Max, in 2000.

Mr Hawkswell said: "After Max came into the world, Margaret seemed to gather some extra strength. Each time we were visited by our son Paul, Lisa and of course little Max, Margaret became happy and cheery."

In 2003, Lisa and Paul had a second son called Daniel.

Margaret was an active member of the Flackwell Heath Women's Institute and a member of the Bourne End Horticultural Society.

At her funeral on Tuesday, September, 19th Mr Hawkswell said: "I shall never be able to replace Margaret. She was my wife, my lover and my very best friend."