Aileen Mulligan (née Nettleton)

Aileen was born in 1929, her father was an electrical engineer with the Sheffield Electricity Corporation. She attended Sheffield High School during the war years, when Sheffield suffered severe bombing due to it being known for steel production. Aileen was one of the children evacuated by the school for safety to Cliff College, Calver so she lived away from home for quite a period of time. Once, on returning home during the holidays a bomb landed near to where her family lived on Abbey Lane and she was knocked over as she returned home. During her final year at Sheffield High School she was made Head Girl. 

Aileen studied administration at Manchester University with a view to taking up a career in social science. She was presented to Queen Elizabeth II when Her Majesty visited the university to receive an Honorary Doctorate of Laws. Aileen remained at Manchester University for Post Graduate training in Psychiatric Social Work and then worked for several years in the Department of Psychiatry at the university.

After a broken romance, she decided she needed to get away, so in 1962 she followed a friend and applied for work at the Institute of Living in Connecticut, USA. Although she never intended it to be so, America became her home for the rest of her life. Two years after arriving, she was married to the love of her life Russell Mulligan who worked with the Newington Education Department near to Hartford, Connecticut. 

As her career in social work came to an end, Aileen pursued her interest in Interior Design and undertook various courses before starting her own business. She and Russ lived happily in Newington and often returned to the UK to visit Aileen's parents, now retired to Devon. When Russ retired, they sold up and moved to Stonington, Connecticut on the coast. Aileen and Russ built a new life for themselves in retirement with many new friends and hobbies, such as painting and travelling - particularly to their favourite city, Venice!

For many years they visited Venice for several weeks each summer to "house sit" for a family who headed to the hills to escape the heat. They fell completely in love with the city; its galleries, museums and general ambience. Aileen then decided she'd like to spend more time in the UK, so her goddaughter found her a cottage to rent for around three months each summer near Teesdale. She loved spending time in England, watching Wimbledon and cricket on TV. 

Aileen was an artist. After retiring from her interior design business she discovered icon painting, she had always loved icons ever since seeing a stunning exhibition of them in Venice. When she learned of a class in painting icons at the St Michael's School of Sacred Arts she signed up and this became the first of many classes where she also met many good friends who shared her passion.

Aileen held many interests and she loved to learn. She played many sports - tennis, golf, gliding, sailing and driving fast cars. She was an avid reader, knowledgeable in art, music and gardening. Aileen was philanthropic and charitable, funding scholarships devoted to gifted singers and students in memory of her grandmother who had to give up a promising singing career due to financial difficulties.

Towards the end of her life, one thing that stood out was Aileen's personal courage, clear-sightedness and self-awareness. She was clearly not just religiously minded but very thoughtful and well-read in all things spiritual. She read books from spiritual traditions across all religions and was an active member of her local church. 

She passed away in July 2024, a beloved godmother, aunt, cousin and friend.