Rosalind came to Basingstoke in 1967 with her husband and three children.  They moved here because her husband's company had transferred here.  They found a house in Cumberland Avenue with a long garden.  The road was surrounded by fields and the younger children could ride into the fields on their tricycles.

The family made friends with a family who had moved to Darlington Road and that was how they got to know South View where there were a variety of Victorian and Edwardian houses. One day, walking along Richmond Road with her friend, Rosalind realised that if they were lucky a suitable family house might come on the market.  Two weeks later after seeing one advertised in the Gazette they were lucky enough to buy it and the family have lived there ever since.

Rosalind started to look for a part-time job and she walked into the library one day to ask about the possibility of Saturday jobs.  She had her two and half year old daughter with her and was amused to be offered an interview straight away with her daughter sitting on her knee!  The job was for a Saturday assistant in the soon to be opened South Ham library, she was offered the job and worked for the library service in Basingstoke for many years until her retirement, gradually increasing her hours and levels of responsibility until she became the library supervisor in the central Basingstoke Library.

When they first arrived in Basingstoke the town centre development had only just begun and it went through several different phases as the town grew.  The town sadly lacked a concert hall but there was a very enterprising Concert Club whose members promoted several classical concerts each year played by soloists, chamber groups or small orchestras in the hall at Queen Mary's Grammar school, in Cliddesden Road.  They were thrilled when the plans to build the Anvil Theatre were made public, as they loved classical music and were very excited when they realised that the central venue chosen meant that they could walk to concerts. Rosalind's husband had played for many years in the Basingstoke Symphony Orchestra and as they grew up several of their children had as well.  All four of their children became members of the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra and their oldest son became a professional musician.

Rosalind and her husband went to the opening concert and “were amused that in the interval the audience sat quietly while a pistol was fired to enable the experts to test the acoustics!”

Basingstoke also has a very successful Choral Society and they perform several concerts each year often including one of the wonderful choral pieces written by notable composers.

Basingstoke is lucky to have a very energetic branch of the University of the Third Age, a national organisation run for retired people.  Members can learn new languages, read and talk about books, play a variety of sports, go walking with or without  cameras, attend monthly lectures on a variety of subjects and meet up with like minded retirees.

Rosalind belongs to her local residents association and an offshoot of this group meet in the grounds of the Holy Ghost Cemetery once a month.

“We help tidy the graves and keep down invasive weeds to enhance the work that the council staff do. Many local people walk through the cemetery and enjoy its peaceful atmosphere and the wild flowers and spring bulbs.”

Last year several of the local residents became involved with helping three local artists paint the murals under the railway bridge in Vyne Road, on the back of some garages in Lyford Road and on the backs of two garages in Soper Grove.  Rosalind was part of this group and found it a very positive experience, passers by made friendly comments and all the helpers learned new skills.

January 2025