Raymond Frank Hancock, Uncle Ray, was born on 9th January 1936, in Bournemouth, the 2nd of 3 children of Horace and Eva May Hancock. After his father retired, the family moved to North Dorset, and Ray and his elder sister Ann went to Blandford Grammar School, travelling by train from Sturminster on the old Somerset & Dorset Railway. Their father died when Ray was about 17.
Ray worked for some time in Cheltenham, as a chauffeur and valet; tall and smartly dressed, with strong opinions. There he met Kathleen, a book illustrator. Ray and Kathy married in 1964, I think, in the beautiful little church at Fifehead Neville where his mother was still living in Green Lane.
Ray and Kathy lived in Gillingham for a while, Ray working for Prudential Insurance. In 1975 he bought a property in Marnhull, where he lived for the rest of his life. He faithfully looked after Kathy through illness; she died in 1999. Tragically his younger brother, Pop, had died just a few weeks earlier.
Sadly Ray distanced himself from the rest of the family about this time. So we especially thank his friends and his neighbours in Marnhull for the friendship and care they gave him in his latter years. We are glad that Ray found further happiness with his friend Paulina; sadly she died about 9 years ago.
Ray's niece Sheila, and her husband Steve, visited Raymond during his final illness, in Hospital in Sherborne and at the Cedars Nursing Home in Shaftesbury. Sadly Ray's sister, Ann, is not well enough to be here today.
We are grateful to the doctors, nurses and staff at Sherborne Hospital and at The Cedars for their care for Ray. Raymond passed away peacefully in the early hours of 23rd December.
It was Ray's wish that after Cremation his ashes should be interred in his parents' grave in the churchyard at Fifehead Neville, where he had often placed flowers over the past 23 years since his mother died.