Turned out she had cancer, she died last year.
Her & her hubby Had spent their whole lives building their fortune. When they found out she had terminal cancer they came to the same conclusion.
She loved it here so she spent the last couple of years of her life restoring the hotel & creating their dream place.
She wanted to build a playground for the kids out the back of the hotel (she loved kids but hadn't been able to have any children of her own) But was in battle with the council over it when she died. They wouldn't grant her the permits. She had ****ed them off rather by applying for permission/permits to alter public property & then doing it (often much more than she had asked about) without bothering to wait for it to be given.
So she died without having finished it. Sad in one way, but also good in a way too I think. Because to die with nothing left to do, is to die without hopes or dreams.
Although she had a tendency to be arrogant (I think she managed to step on the toes of almost everyone in the bay at one time or another
) she was on the whole very nice. I didn't know her very well, but I was sad when she died. She was only in her forties.
I especially liked her because she never told anyone she had cancer, never used it to get what she wanted or to seek sympathy from others. We only found out when she started getting really sick in the last year. The staff at the hotel kept it quiet for her for a while, but in a place this size...
Gotta respect that.
& she never stopped living as if she had all the tomorrows in the world ahead of her. Full of plans & projects right up until the end. So it was such a shock when she did die. Almost like she was too busy to die yet
I hope I have the strength of character to go like that.
Her name was Cushla
