Jean was born in 1926 in Ebbw Vale, Wales, beloved daughter and only child of Reg and Gladys Caswell.  Her first name was actually Winifred, after one of her mother’s dearest friends who commented, “Why did you call her Winifred? It’s an awful name!”  Henceforth she was always known by her middle name: Jean.
 
Her father’s work as an engineer brought the family to Windsor when Jean was 11 and she attended Windsor Girls’ School when it was located on Kings Road, overlooking the Long Walk.  She hated it there and although being told she was ‘very intelligent’, her school work didn’t reflect this, except in the few subjects she really loved – like English and History – and Religious Studies which she had been force-fed since childhood!  Jean wanted to draw a veil over her school certificate results and she refused to retake her exams, preferring to attend secretarial college which she loved and where she excelled in everything she studied.  Aged 18, she landed a fantastic first job at Eton College where she worked for the Head Master and then the Bursar, and she found a real niche for herself.  She was at Eton for about nine years before knowing she should spread her wings.
 
From here she found employment in London at British Nylon Spinners (later ICI Fibres) where she worked in a number of departments before accepting a very happy role working for the Director of Marketing, Eric Sharp, for 11 years.  She loved London, had some wonderful friends and work colleagues and took full advantage of all the culture on her doorstep.
 
She eventually took a flat in Bayswater with her dear friend Anne, heading back to Windsor to see her parents at weekends.
 
Jean met Malcolm in 1966 at a leaving drinks party at the Paxtons Head pub in Knightsbridge, just across the road from her work.  She didn’t really want to go – she didn’t frequent pubs as a rule – but she was persuaded.  Malcolm was in London on business that day and called in at the Paxtons Head to see his friend Bill who also worked for ICI.  Despite Jean calling him Michael, not Malcolm, all evening, that night marked the beginning of a beautiful three-year courtship.
 
Malcolm believes they must both have been waiting for the 'right one' to come along to have remained single for so long.  And as far as he was concerned, the right one did come along: Jeanie!  Jeanie was very keen to have a baby and bearing in mind she was in her early forties, they talked seriously and decided to let nature make the decision for them, and it did!  Malcolm and Jean married in Bloomsbury in 1969 with a very tiny, unborn Charlotte present at their wedding breakfast.  They were blessed with their daughter’s safe arrival the following year.
 
 
In a letter to Charlotte many years later, Jean wrote, “To me life really only began with marrying Daddy and having you.  I feel so fortunate to be with Daddy and especially to have such a loving and lovely daughter”.  The three of them really were an incredibly tight family unit – Malcolm ran his own business from home, Jean looked after the house and family and Charlotte loved them both.
 
Jeanie really was such a lovely human being and Malcolm adored her. They seldom had a row but if they did, they tried to clear it up before bedtime. Malcolm recalls one evening in the early days which did prompt an argument.  Malcolm had gone to the greyhound derby at White City with a friend and left Jean with his friend’s girlfriend, with whom she had little in common.  Jean was not amused and when Malcolm picked her up the following evening Jean beat him on the chest with both hands until there was a loud crack.  Malcolm said, “Oh my God, you’ve cracked my ribs”, and she started to cry.  Then Malcolm admitted to her she had only broken the pipe that was in his pocket.  She duly bought him another one!
 
Jean was the most wonderful, wise and generous mother.  Charlotte could talk to her about anything and Jean could confide in her too.  Jean welcomed Charlotte’s friends with open arms and had much in common with so many of them.  When Charlotte met Ivan, Jean immediately made him feel part of the family and always loved his company and hearing stories of his travel adventures.
 
Her faith was incredibly important to her and she worshipped at her parents’ church, Windsor Baptist Church, for many years with her cousin Barbara. 
 
Jean loved film, opera, ballet, theatre, classical music and literature.  She had an amazing collection of books and poetry and would always be able to recommend and lend the perfect holiday read.  She peppered her conversations with quotes from here and there and had a wonderful way with words.  It was incredibly hard to accept that in her last days, when asked how she was by nurses and consultants, she could only say, “there are no words”.
 
Jean had some very loyal friends and always looked forward to catching up with them.  Whether it was a meal at the Duke of Edinburgh, Croque Monsieur and a glass of wine at Café Rouge, fish and chips at Loch Fyne or coffee and cake at the farm shop, she always enjoyed sharing food with her family and friends.  But she did hate garlic so very much!
 
A quick glance at Jeanie's monthly direct debits reveals how much she loved animals; she supported the work of many animal charities, from dogs to donkeys. She adored dogs in particular and while Malcolm hankered after owning a German shepherd, Jeanie discovered dachshunds after a trip to a local dog show.  Suffice to say the family went on to own two miniature sausage dogs, not alsatians, as Charlotte was growing up!
 
Jean adored her grandson William: he was the apple of her eye.  She was so pleased to have seen him start at The Windsor Boys School, to know that he was so happy in life and had a bright future ahead of him.
 
Malcolm and Jean were married for 49 years and six months and he adored her throughout. She had a wonderful sense of humour and a penchant for 'Spoonerisms' such as "that's a nice flock of bats".  She was exceptionally kind and very sensitive to people's feelings and was so brave when she fought this cancer. She looked after Charlotte and Malcolm wonderfully well and they will love her forever, and just wish this was not happening.
 
When it became clear that her cancer was advancing, Malcolm wrote to relatives and close friends and invited them to write to Jean.  The family was overwhelmed with such wonderful messages of love, best wishes and happy memories.  After she passed away, again many people wrote about what Jean had meant to them and what they had loved about her.  Her wit, turn of phrase, wonderful sense of humour, adorable smile, infectious laugh and gentle soul are just some of the beautiful descriptions that Malcolm, Charlotte and the family will treasure about their precious Jeanie forever.