Although Doreen Lung spent most of her life in the United States of America, she always longed for Watford and her memories of growing up in the town.

“She visited England as often as she could and kept up on current events through her family who resided there in years past,” her eldest daughter Deborah Placek recalls.

“Sadly, they are all gone now, including my dear mom who was the youngest of 13.

“Her memory was as sharp as a tack up until the very end. She continually spoke of her favourite place, Oxhey Park, her years of work at Sun Printers, her schooling at Victoria School for Girls.

“She ordered every nostalgia book on Watford that was ever printed and loved family history and genealogy.”

Doreen Ann Wilson was born on December 15, 1943, in Watford to Mark and Risify Wilson. But her life was to change when she met Howard Lung, an American airman from Hawaii, who was stationed with the 7531st Air Base Squadron in Bovingdon.

Watford Observer:

Doreen and Howard's wedding day

The couple married at St Matthews Church in 1961 and then moved across the Atlantic, first to Fort Worth in Texas, before relocating to Oahu, Hawaii, in 1963 where Howard and his family were from.

After having two children, Deborah and Jacqueline, Doreen devoted her life to being a full-time wife and mother and helped in her daughters’ classrooms at Waimanolo School.

Although Doreen did not attend secondary school while living in England, she did attend night school after moving to America and obtained her high school diploma in 1973.

Once Deborah and Jacqueline had grown up and left for college, Doreen began working in retail and continued for approximately ten years before retiring to relocate to Southern California with her husband in 2001.

Watford Observer:

A newspaper cutting of the couple's wedding

Watford Observer:

Deborah said: “She was a strong advocate for animal rights and was an ongoing supporter of the Hawaiian Humane Society for over 30 years. In fact, there is a memorial garden bench with her name engraved at the Humane Society in Honolulu.

“Through the years, she supported many other Animal rights organizations, Veteran support charities and the children's charity, Smile Train.

“Mom will be most remembered for her generosity and big heart. She had great empathy for the underdog and those in need or suffering. She was also the strongest woman we knew, moving at the young age of 17 to the other side of the world, to live on an island with a completely different culture and peoples.

“Her family, especially her daughters and grandchildren, were the world to her and she made sure we knew how much she loved us every single day.”

Doreen died peacefully on July 18, 2020, in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, aged 76.

She is survived by her daughters Deborah Placek and Jacqueline Fitzpatrick, and grandchildren Emma and Nicholas Placek. She is also survived by sister Daphne and many nieces and nephews in the United States and England.

Doreen was preceded in death by her husband, Howard, of whom she was married to for 57 years, her parents, her sisters - Eva, Barbara, Janet and Maureen - and brothers, Jim, Mark, Charlie, Gerald, Johnny, Derek and Peter.