Sadly, with all the problems that have been going on with the corona virus, it came as a shock when we were told that Betty Cooper, our long serving Branch member, had sadly died on the morning of April 23rd. Betty had been a branch member since the 70s, quickly taking over the job of secretary, a position she held until recently. Unfortunately, her failing health meant she had to step down from the role of secretary, with Iain Ross taking over.

Knowing how much she had done for the Branch and the Club,and to celebrate her 25 years as secretary, Iain contacted the CEO of Ipswich Town, Simon Clegg, and a presentation evening was held at The Hundon Plough, on Friday 15th October, 2010.  Betty was presented with a bouquet of flowers from The Branch, and another from Liz Edwards, plus an engraved glass vase to put them in,  on behalf of the Supporters Club. Simon Clegg presented her with a photo of the ground on behalf of the club, then invited her and a friend to join him in the Director’s Box for the next home game. Betty invited Eddie Last to join her. They met several players, and were looked after by John Walk. As Betty and Eddie entered the ground on their way to The Director’s Box, an announcement was made over the tannoy detailing Betty’s accomplishments, and 19,00 people in the ground gave her a well-deserved round of applause.

Betty devoted a lot of her time to The Branch and to Ipswich Town Football Club. Every meal the Branch organised, she was there. Every time we organised a quiz, she was there in a team. It was a similar story with car boot sales, stalls at the Big Bash, and The Easter Egg Hunt.She also supported the concert we arranged, starring Matt Munro Junior. Every year, she attended the Player of The Year Dance, and often made presentations to players  who received awards.

She went to the UEFA Cup final At AZ Alkmaar, and later visited Moscow, Helsingborg, Milan, Avenir Beggin, and Slovan Liberec. She also endured a long coach trip to see Ipswich at Aberdeen.

In closing, we would like to add that we will miss her very much, and will also remember and respect all the work she did. Thank you Betty.

Iain and Derek