Affectionately known as Millie, Grandma, Gma, Mumma and Edna, family and friends said goodbye to Edna Cheers who passed away peacefully with her family by her side.
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Edna went through many trials and tribulations in her life that defined her character as one of strength and resilience.
Born in Griffith as the fourth child to Reginald and Vera Rand, Edna started school in 1942, riding her push bike to school and Sunday school which were a couple of miles from home.
Sewing and piano were a few of her hobbies, and she enjoyed making many new dresses for church.
With little money, she was able to have piano lessons and eventually purchased a second hand piano, and often played hymns at church and other special occasions. It brought her joy to know her grandchildren continued to play this piano.
After completing school in fourth form, Edna gained employment at Griffith Technical College as a typist. She met the love of her life in Edwin at age 18, sitting next to each other on the back seat of a carpool on the way to a church function.
From then on their romance blossomed despite her mother saying she had to be 21 for marriage. They were married on the April 5, 1958, two days after her 21st birthday. Once married she moved out to the farm in Goolgowi, known as “Allambie”.
They were married for 53 years in 2011, the same year Edwin lost his life to leukaemia.
Times were tough on the Cheers family farm and there were times when one bucket of water had to cover washing potatoes as well as being bath water.
Edna loved her garden of flowers, planting trees and her veggie patch. When the veggies were ripe and ready to be picked, she was often caught putting more in her mouth than the bucket.
She regularly chopped wood, siphon water for the crops, tractor driving, hoeing thistles, just to name a few.
Edna and Edwin had four children, Ray, Ken, Judy and Michelle, with Edna claiming this was exactly how she placed her order.
“Mum was down to earth and easy to talk to. What you saw is what you got. Mum loved people, loved a chat and they would have her full attention,” Michelle said.
At the age of 46 she was diagnosed with brittle diabetes, leading to many highs and lows and of course comas.
“With quiet determination mum would carry on each day attending to her daily chores.”
Her iPad opened her world, with Facebook reuniting her with many old and new friends.
Her Parkinson's meant her hands were shaky, but with a great deal of patience she persevered typing long emails.
”We thank Mum for all she did for us, her strength, love, determination and not to dwell on things in life. Mum was a wise woman and gave great advice, to always deal with situations as soon as possible, but more importantly to give it to God.
“You touched so many lives and you were such a great encouragement to us all,” Michelle said.