Janet Cecilia Bowers
22-08-1938 - 06-03-2026
22 May 1938 – 3 March 2026
Janet Cecilia Bowers, a much-loved member of the village community of Whilton, died peacefully on 3 March 2026, aged 87. She was remembered for her devotion to family, church, gardening, nature, animals and the many organisations and individuals she supported throughout her life.
Janet was born on 22 May 1938 in Redhill, Surrey, to Celia and Lawrence Dunne. Her father was a jeweller working in London and, during the Second World War, his specialist skills were put to use making precision balances for the military. Janet recalled being carried to safety by her mother during bombing raids.
After the war, with London’s infrastructure badly damaged and employment scarce, Lawrence secured a position in 1947 as manager of Knights & Son, the principal jewellers at the bottom of the Drapery in Northampton. This brought Janet to Northamptonshire, where she would spend the remainder of her life.
Janet attended the Roman Catholic Notre Dame schools in Northampton, where she formed a lifelong friendship with Barbara, a friendship that began at the preparatory school and continued throughout her life. Janet and Barbara both passed the 11-plus examination and scholarships, remaining together at the senior school. Janet showed an early artistic talent, particularly in sewing and handicrafts.
Her childhood homes included Abington Grove and later a bungalow in Rushmere Road. Her love of gardening developed through working alongside her father, while her mother taught her to cook, a skill that remained useful throughout her life. Janet also developed a lifelong love of dancing, learning ballet, tap, Highland and ballroom dancing.
After leaving school, Janet worked at Marks bookshop in the Drapery, where she became head of the Ordnance Survey and maps department. In 1957 she met Ken, and after four years together they married in 1961 at St Peter and St Paul’s Church in Abington, known locally as the “church in the park”. Their wedding celebrations took place in the family garden in Rushmere Road, with the family dog, Una, much in evidence. The couple honeymooned in Conway.
Janet and Ken initially made their home at Meadow Close in New Duston. Janet subsequently worked with her father in the family jewellery business, cycling to and from work each day. It was during one of these journeys that she spotted a dog in a pet-shop window. The dog, Pip, was taken home inside her coat, beginning another chapter in Janet and Ken’s lifelong affection for dogs. They later owned five English Setters: Tess, Lucy, Heidi, Sophie and Ellie.
Janet's love of the countryside and outdoor life was a defining part of her character. Childhood holidays included narrowboat trips and visits to farming friends in Wales and Yorkshire, where she learned to assist with lambing. After her first experience, she returned to help during lambing seasons for many years.
Janet experienced significant personal losses during her years in Duston. Her mother died from cancer at a relatively young age, and in the mid-1970s her father was tragically killed in a road accident.
In 1976, Janet and Ken moved to Whilton, where Janet embraced village life wholeheartedly. She became involved with the History Society, Women's Institute, Unblinc and the village gardening club, among many other activities. Her creativity and practical skills were particularly evident in the garden she created herself, including a terrace, rockery and pond. In her greenhouse she grew flowers, salad crops and a wide range of vegetables, with vegetables being her particular preference. As a long-standing member of the gardening club, she regularly opened her garden to the public during village Open Garden events.
Janet also played an important role in establishing and supporting Whilton Spinney, the village nature space. She was an accomplished watercolour painter and exhibited her work locally.
Her commitment to St Andrew's Church, Whilton, was central to her life in the village. She served the church in numerous capacities, including as one of its longest-serving churchwardens. She took on many responsibilities quietly and diligently, often working behind the scenes. These included organising Christmas decorations and Mothering Sunday posies, preparing Christingle services, arranging flower and church-cleaning rotas, and supporting services during periods when the parish was without a priest.
Janet took particular care to involve children in church life, encouraging them to read lessons, take collections and distribute service sheets and hymn books. She was also an active member of the Spencer Benefice and consistently supported its activities.
Her involvement with the church led to another lifelong passion: bell ringing. John Townley taught her to ring soon after she arrived in Whilton, and Janet became a committed member of the ringing community and an enthusiastic advocate for encouraging others to take up the art.
She joined the Peterborough Diocesan Guild of Church Bell Ringers in 1977 and served as secretary of its Daventry Branch from 1986 until 2014. In that role she organised the branch's annual coach outings, characteristically reminding participants to “be there prompt”. Her meticulous minute-taking for both branch and tower meetings became something of a local institution.
Janet also played a significant part in the major project to augment Whilton's six bells to a ring of eight in the mid-1990s. The new bells were cast by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, and the tenor bears the names of Janet Bowers and Harold Haynes, as churchwardens, together with the incumbent, Canon Jim Richardson. Janet was very much a hands-on participant, helping to remove the old bells and rehang the new ones and showing no hesitation in climbing into the bell tower to undertake the work.
Her own ringing achievements included ringing her first peal at Whilton on Easter Sunday, 19 April 1981, when she rang the second to Plain Bob Minor on the original six bells. She subsequently rang numerous quarter peals, including caters and royal at Daventry. Her final recorded quarter peal was Plain Bob Triples on Whilton's new eight bells on 5 December 2010. In recognition of her longstanding contribution to ringing, Janet was elected a Life Honorary Member of the Peterborough Diocesan Guild in 2015.
Beyond her formal commitments, Janet was known for her practical kindness and willingness to help others. She regularly assisted older and infirm residents of Whilton, taking them shopping and helping with everyday tasks. She was equally happy to look after their animals while they were away. Her contribution to village life was often quiet and unheralded, but deeply valued by those who benefited from it.
Janet's devotion to Whilton was perhaps best expressed by the observation that “Whilton was Janet's family”. She gave the village decades of service, friendship and care, approaching everything she undertook with determination, diligence and high standards. She was thoughtful, capable and generous with her time, and her absence leaves a significant gap in the community she served for so many years.
Janet's funeral took place at St Andrew's Church, Whilton, on 30 March 2026, attended by around 50 people. The service was accompanied by half-muffled church bell ringing before and after the funeral. At the close of the service, her coffin was carried from the church to the music of How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?, a fitting tribute to her lifelong love of dogs. Donations were collected for the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, followed by refreshments provided by the village in the village hall.
Janet is survived by her husband, Ken, and by the many friends and members of the Whilton community whose lives she touched. Her legacy lives on in the church, the bells, the garden, the village nature space and, above all, in the many people she helped and encouraged during her long and active life.
Author: Justin Baker and Geoff Pullin
