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Estate stood still for little one's farewell

14/11/2007

TURF Hill came to a standstill on Friday 7 November 1975 for the funeral of Lesley Molseed.

Crowds of neighbours stood in silence outside her Delamere Road home while a further 150 lined the street, where all the houses had their windows blacked out.

Floral tributes filled the front garden while the more personal tributes were inside.

Detectives joined close family members inside the house for a brief service conducted by the Rev J K Ramage, minister at Trinity United Reformed Church.

Lesley’s father Fred Anderson and stepfather Daniel Molseed were among the pall bearers as her coffin was brought out to the 10-car funeral cortege, which took it to Rochdale Cemetery.

At the cemetery chapel Mr Ramage gave a short address in which he said: “Such a time as this, there is little we can say and there is much we can think.

“Questions that arise of the problems that face us do not have an easy answer. But the one thing we can be certain of is that the love of the Lord for his little ones is constant and real.

“And for Lesley there is the fullness and wholeness of life, which is the complete realisation of all her potential.”

As Lesley’s coffin was lowered into the grave several friends and relatives broke down in tears.

The mourners included Mr A N Naylor, the chief education officer and many of her friends.

Among the floral tributes were those from the mayor and mayoress, Councillor John and Mrs Carroll, Turf Hill Tenants’ Association – and a simple spray of flowers and a card which said: “To Lesley, from class six.”