Joan Tubbs Eulogy
Joan was born locally in September 1938 and was an only child. Her early years of childhood were during the Second World War, where she first attended Primary School in nearby Ludlow Road and then Northmead Secondary School in Stoughton. Her home has always been number 9 Ridgemount, as her father was a local builder who moved into the house upon completion.
The Guildford that Joan was born into was very different from now:
· The Cathedral's construction had only just been started
· There was no University until 1966 so there were no students roaming up and down Ridgemount
· Guildford's famous one-way system was only introduced in the early seventies - Joan mentioned to Philip about cycling up Bridge Street while a schoolgirl, ie cycling against what is now three lanes of traffic flow downhill
· Onslow Village was still quite new having been built in the early 1920s
· The Lido had only opened in 1933 so again was brand new
· The Odeon was still at the top of the High Street
· There was no Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, it opened in 1965
Joan was very much in the mist of all this, as after she finished her schooling she soon joined the Guildford Police Force. And this association with all things local continued throughout her life (by the way she continued to kept her police truncheon by her front door in case she need to sort any trouble!)
It was in the early 1960's that her family brought one of the small units of 4 shops along Madrid Road, which is now the site of the Direct Pharmacy. The store the Tubbs family opened was a general hardware shop and was basically an Aladdin's Cave of anything DIY - it you wanted a single wood screw they sold it. Joan, her mum and dad all worked in the store and the business was successful and they acquired a second adjacent unit where they set up the local Post Office and Joan became the Post Mistress. And Joan therefore became a stalwart of the local community. The business survived the big floods of 1968 where due to the junction of Guildford Park Road, Madrid Road and Ridgemount being a low point, two feet of flood water flowed through their shop and Post Office.
In the late 1980's the whole site was redeveloped to its present form and Joan retired from work to care for her parents in their Ridgemount home. She also was very active in many outdoor interests including photography, bird watching, gardening and walking. She made use of a camper van she purchased to travel around the UK visiting the countryside.
Her interests in the countryside combined with her photography meant she was in demand giving illustrated talks to local community groups about the environment. And her community links meant she was a prominent member of the Onslow Village Gardening Club where she won a number of prizes for her vegetables and flowers.
In her later years she retained her keen interest in the local community, and held well researched views on all kinds of activity in the borough. She was proud of being a local lady and she was particularly vocal on things she felt were negative in the community, such as the Cathedral's proposed housing development. She had a quick and active mind, she loved sports especially cricket and right up to her passing would want to talk about England's international sporting performances - she would have made a great manager!
She was a huge local personality who will be missed.