I’m down in Australia and yesterday we buried my dear Nana Rae (Veronica Rae Lloyd, née Waters), who died on February 21. She was nearly 102!! My kids and I were so lucky to have this woman in our lives for so many years. She was a powerhouse and a force. She had a deep husky laugh that demanded she throw her head back to release it. She showered love on every grandchild as if they were the chosen one. She herself was one of nine. She loved food, especially seafood, and she loved cold, cold champagne. She had a love of fashion and turned it into a business; she gravitated toward the socialite gossip pages in the newspaper but still read it cover to cover. She believed women should be educated and financially independent, and she believed in hair rollers and pantyhose. She would have been so happy and content seeing my family last night, sitting around the dinner table at my Aunt's house, eating lasagne mum had made, while we all sweated and coughed from how much we were laughing. Vale Veronica Rae.
—Odette Williams