Maria Ann Hards

Maria was our first child, she was born at 22.20 on 28th February 1979, weight 7lb 5oz. Everyone who
met said that she was a beautiful little girl. Her daddy was in the army when she was born and when
she was only a few weeks old he was transferred to Germany. So we went to stay with my mum until she
was old enough to fly at 6 weeks, we went up to London to get her name put on my passport.

The day arrived and we were finally able to fly out to be with her daddy and be a proper family. She
was such a beautiful little girl. She had the usual new baby types of illnesses in the short weeks
that we were together as a family in germany.

Her daddy was sent away on site guard in early June and everything was fine until 8th June 1979 when
I woke up and realised our home was too quiet I went and looked in her carrycot, she was just lying
there so peacefully. I picked her and ran to my neighbours and cried that she was not breathing,
they called for the doctor and tried to resusitate while they were waiting but were unable to get
her back. We brought her back her to London because we always knew that someday we would move back
to london.

She would be 30yrs old next february and I still miss her all the time and wonder what she would
looked like as a little girl, teenager and now as a young woman. I hope we will meet again one day.