TWO bunches of flowers on the wayside cross at Rockfield have been left in memory of a popular resident of the village.
Sue Senekal, née Lewis, was tragically killed on 27th April in a car crash in South Africa while on holiday with her husband Derick.
She was the backseat passenger of a vehicle that was hit by oncoming traffic and despite being airlifted to hospital alongside her husband, she passed away from her injuries.
Her mother-in-law was alongside her in the car and was also killed in the collision.
Sue was a much loved wife, mother, sister, aunt and “the best granny” to her three grandsons. Her family paid tribute to her saying: “Sue was a wonderful woman; kind to the core, she always put everyone else before herself.
“She was the lynchpin of the family, calm, measured and full of words of comfort and advice; whether it was her encyclopaedic knowledge of birds, trees and flowers, her amazing crossword wizardry or to offer her wisdom. We will all miss her terribly.”
Sue was a well-known member of the Monmouth community; working for a number of years in Waitrose and also as “a fantastic cleaner and gardener” said a family member.
Friends and colleagues at Waitrose where she once worked paid tribute to the “nice, quiet, gentle” person who worked the ‘twilight shift’ at the store.
She continued to shop at the store after she finished working there and chat to her former co-workers who have said they were “shocked” by her tragic and unexpected death.
Waitrose partner Tessa Probert. who trained Sue for the tills and worked with her said: “Sue had worked at Waitrose for many years and was a valued member of staff, we were sad when she left to look after her mum.
“She was always smiling and so helpful. She had a great interest in gardening as well, so you could always have an interesting conversation with her. We were all shocked to hear she had died, as she still came in to do her shopping with her husband. A lovely lady, friend and colleague.”
A short ceremony to celebrate Sue’s life will take place at St Cenedlon Church, Rockfield on Thursday 13th June at 2pm. Dress will be smart/ casual.
This will be followed by light refreshments for close family and friends at The Stonemill 3-5pm.
The family have requested that instead of flowers or donations they would love people who knew Sue to consider planting a bee /butterfly friendly plant in their garden in her memory.
She leaves a husband, son and two grandsons from her second marriage and a son and grandson from her first.