Ann was born near Bridgend in Wales on 28th July 1933.  She was the 1st child born to Wilfred Henry and Violet Prudence Thomas.  Her full name is Prudence Ann but she was only ever known as Ann.  She has one sister, Margaret.

When Ann left school the family moved to Dorset where she joined the local swimming club and it was here that she met her husband John.  Shortly after Ann started her nursing training at Dorchester Hospital.  Ann and John married on 20th March 1954 and started their married life together in Bridport.  Both keen swimmers they spent their free time at the local swimming club.  No nice indoor pool for them; they went swimming in the river and sea at West Bay!

Their first daughter Pat was born the following year and shortly after they moved to Weymouth where their second daughter Lyn was born.  The next move was to Newport in South Wales until 1960 when they moved to Southampton.  

Ann returned to nursing for a short time when her children were small. working at Southampton General Hospital.  John was a baker and confectioner and worked for the Union Castle Company that sailed between Southampton and South Africa every 8 weeks.  This meant he was away for 6 weeks and then home for 2.  Ann had to become very efficient at managing on her own!  In 1963 Ann's mother was taken ill and the family moved to Shirley so Ann could care for her parents.  Her father was the Treasurer of Pirrie Park Bowling Club.  Ann and her mother would often help out by preparing the teas following a match.  She also served behind the bar in the club house after the match and during all social functions at the club.

Her father died in 1976 shortly after retiring.  Her mother died suddenly aged 80 in 1990.

When John joined the Royal Fleet Auxiliary service in the mid seventies Ann was allowed to travel with him on some trips.  With her children now grown up she was able to visit Australia, The Caribbean and America as well as other destinations in Europe.  When John was away in the 1st Gulf War, Ann helped set up a support group for those whose partners were away, which proved very popular.  She was a very good organiser!

Ann enjoyed gardening and had a greenhouse where she would grow a variety of flowers, fruit and vegetables from seed.  She ensured the family had colourful pots of flowers for the summer.  

Once John retired they continued to live in Bursledon near Southampton.  Both became active members of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Retirement Society and Ann would make cards for all occasions that were sold to raise money for members in need.  There were both extremely proud and honoured to have been nominated to attend a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.  Unfortunately on the day of the party the heavens opened and London was flooded by a torrential thunder storm but they still had a wonderful time.

In 2014 Ann and John celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary and they were both very proud of the card they received from the Queen which was framed and hung on the wall.

Unfortunately 2014 proved a bad year as Ann slipped whilst walking home on some mud and badly broke her ankle.  This resulted in her staying in hospital for 6 weeks.  With John's dementia progressing rapidly it was unsafe for him to be left on his own and with the family all working he went into respite care.  When Ann came out of hospital John returned home but it was becoming harder for them to manage and like many of their generation did not accept help readily!  In November 2014 Ann became unwell and spent the next 2 months in and out of hospital until she was admitted at the end of January and there she stayed until being discharged in May.  John was now in permanent care and after just 5 days at home Ann fell and was taken back to hospital.  Reluctantly at first Ann accepted that she was not well enough to manage on her own at home and agreed to go into residential care.

Whilst her care needs were very different to those of John she moved into the Beeches Care Village in Liss where John was also a resident, meaning they could see each other whenever possible.  Ann settled into her new life well and enjoyed the company of the staff and other residents.

Unfortunately Ann was taken ill again in January and transferred to the QA Hospital where she learned she had cancer for which treatment was not possible.  On returning back to the care home she told the staff that she had had a lovely life and had been lucky enough to travel the world.  She leaves behind her husband John, daughters Pat and Lyn, son-in-laws Ron and Colin, grandchildren Peter, Gareth, Vicky and Andrea and great-grandsons Rhys, Oliver and Finlay.