Who We Are

I was born in Wood Green, London in 1935 and evacuated during the war, first to Bournemouth, then to Lancashire (fortunately both times with relatives!!). I left school aged 17, took a short-term job with British Rail before joining the Army for National Service and spent 19 months in Libya. On returning to civvy street, I spent my working life as Transport Manager for three major national companies, retiring at 63. I ended up in Norfolk, where I became a volunteer Little Tern warden at Winterton, working with the RSPB and Natural England.  I then graduated to seals at Horsey through my connection with Natural England for the 2004/5 season, when there were less than 100 pups born! I have chaired FoHS since its formation ten years ago, and this year was privileged and proud to be awarded the BEM for services to Norfolk seal conservation.

Born Birmingham 1941.  Moved to Norfolk in 1972 to help a friend in a local hotel and continued in hotel and restaurant work for several years until retraining in 1989 to join the Housing Department of Norwich City Council. For 10 years I worked seasonally as a retirement job with the Broads Authority in a Broads Information Centre, and then at their Norwich office.  The Broads Authority shared management of the Horsey Seals Project so that is how I became involved and signed up as a seal warden in 2006.  When Friends of Horsey Seals was set up in 2011. I agreed to take on the post of Secretary.

After night shift as a 19-year-old nurse, I’d walk to my local beach to swim with the harbour seals that often appeared. My nursing career meant I moved often. I was a Ward Sister on the Orkney islands, managing a new 30 bed ward for adults. I’ve always loved animals, spending spare time looking after our pigs, ducks, chickens and dogs (collies) at our Croft.  We had a colony of grey seals on the beach nearby.  When my Husband’s Coastguard station closed, we moved from Orkney to Norfolk. My local beach was Horsey and in 2000 there were only a few grey seals there. I became a seal warden and then a trustee on the committee.  I am now the FoHS fundraiser, educator and I mentor new wardens and look after our mobile information unit. I also administrate our newly installed exclusive Warden’s only rota and news feed site hosted by Three Rings.

Born in Newcastle-on-Tyne.  After school I nursed, was a WRAF Officer for 7 years and co-owned a residential riding business on Dartmoor. I then trained as a journalist, writing articles for national magazines before landing a job on BBC Radio as a newsreader, war correspondent (1^st Gulf war 1991) and program producer. I transferred to BBC TV as a reporter, news producer, and finally forward planning producer for BBC Look East. Retired after 25 years. My helicopter pilot husband got a job in Florida, where I worked for the Advanced Public Affairs Team of the American Red Cross, travelling to major disasters all over the US.  I also volunteered for a scheme protecting loggerhead turtles. In 2015 we returned to live in Norfolk, and shortly afterwards I became a seal warden which I love.