My aunt Beth Tinsley, who has died aged 90, was principal secretary at Manweb, the regional electricity suppliers for Merseyside, north Wales and parts of Cheshire.
After a brief period working at a Liverpool chandlers, Beth joined Manweb as a secretary in the late 1950s. Following her mother’s death in 1965, and the move of her office from Liverpool to Chester, Beth relocated, along with her sister Nesta, and her father, to Bromborough on the Wirral. Beth rose to principal secretary, where she remained until her retirement in 1986.
Born in Woolton, Liverpool, Beth was the fifth of 10 children of Lillian (nee Forgham) and George Tinsley, a coachman. She attended St Peter’s school in the village until the age of 14, then studied at the Machin and Harper’s Commercial College in Liverpool courtesy of a war memorial scholarship (about £12).
A keen walker and climber, whose experience ranged from the Dolomites in Italy to the Welsh hills, Beth loved mountains and was an active organiser in local rambling groups.
As a young woman she travelled to Scotland by rail and bus to walk, at a time when few without cars did, staying in youth hostels. Major hiking achievements included the Haute Route, 112 miles between Mont Blanc, France, and the Matterhorn, Switzerland, in 1962.
Her other skills included cookery and home brewing. She had a great love of theatre, art and classical music, with a particular passion for Beethoven.
Deeply interested in the world around her, Beth, a lifelong socialist, would freely discuss politics and current affairs. There was no holding her back when giving her opinions of the EU referendum and the US election, even from her hospital bed. Yet she made us laugh and was a fantastic mentor to her nieces and nephews.
Nesta died in 2002. Beth is survived by her siblings Lillian, Joy and John, and her nieces and nephews.
