Tribute is paid to Spalding jewel
Tribute has been paid to a familiar face from a much loved Spalding jewellers.
Denise Dryden, who will be remembered by many for her warm welcomes in Spalding jewellers Dryden & Son, has passed away aged 82.
Mrs Dryden’s daughter, Sarah Mason, has paid tribute to her mother who she said lived and breathed the family business, which Denise ran in Market Place with her husband Ken with whom she would go rally driving when they first met.
Sarah said: “The business was a big part of mum.
“Mum and dad lived and breathed the business and even though she married in to the family it was in her veins.
“Mum joined dad there in the mid to late eighties, after having worked as a bookkeeper in the town, and that’s when it became the business that we all remember with my dad and brother, Richard, working upstairs, mum working downstairs and I would join in when I was on holidays too - it was a real family enterprise.
“She was very proud of the business and she took great delight in providing a service and the joy that it gave.”
After Ken passed away in 2004, and Richard passed away the following year, Denise continued to run the business with Sarah until its closure in 2015.
Sarah explained that Mrs Dryden, who was diagnosed with dementia and went into care in 2016, never stopped being “Mrs Dryden of Dryden & Son”.
She said: “Even in the care homes the staff knew mum and they had bought presents or even their engagement rings from her. She was wonderfully looked after.
“The shop has been gone for a while but the memories live on - and mum never stopped being Mrs Dryden of Dryden & Son.
“She ruled the roost in the care home and always made sure she looked the part with her hair and nails done.”
Mrs Dryden was also heavily involved in Spalding Action Medical Research, sitting on the committee for many years, and doted on her grandchildren Jack and Darcey.
A funeral will take place on Friday, March 19, at Surfleet Crematorium at 2pm. Numbers are limited due to Covid-19 restrictions.
