Constance (Con, Connie) Isabel Beattie
Constance Isabel Beattie was born on the 23rd July 1929, a sister to Win, Angus, and Don. She was known as Con, or Connie. As her father Archibald Thomson was a Congregational Minister, the family moved frequently to different churches and Connie was educated at boarding schools. When a young child, Connie contacted measles which affected her eyesight and at the age of seven, tuberculosis (TB) in her hip and spine. She was sent to Treloar hospital.
After an education interrupted by illness and World War Two when she was evacuated to Devon, Connie went to art school, then started nursing training. She became a chiropodist where in Edinburgh, Connie met her future husband Quinton, also a chiropodist. Connie and Quinton were married in September 1951 and had a daughter Fiona. They practiced chiropody in Wilson Street, Derby and lived in Whitehouse Cottage, Dalbury. In 1961 Connie and Quinton established the Derby Samaritans and they were very involved in the local community of Dalbury.
After Quinton’s death in 2014, Connie continued to visit Fiona and their three grandchildren, Angus, Duncan and Alice in Kansas City, USA. In her final years Connie lived at The Dovedales, Mickleover before moving to Brookfields Nursing Home. Connie’s interests included nature, art, music and antiques and she was very proud of her Scottish heritage.
