Popular Haverhill mum and grandmother Janet Goodsell remembered as a ‘friend to all’ following her sudden death

A popular Haverhill woman, described as a ‘friend to all’ who will be ‘fondly remembered’, has died at the age of 67.

Janet Goodsell was at her home in the town when she suffered a heart attack on February 27.

A mum to Hayley, 38 and Chris, 40, and a grandmother of three, Janet was a well-known figure through her job as a merchandiser for Tesco.

She had also been a volunteer at the New Cangle Primary School PTA and made many friends in her time helping to run the former Haverhill Rangers youth football team, from the late 1980s to the mid 1990s, a team managed by her ex husband Steve.

Steve, who remained good friends with Janet, said of her time volunteering for the football club: “There will be lots of people who were young people at that time but now adults with children of their own who will remember Janet fondly.

”There are lots of Haverhill connections going back to the late 1980s.”

Janet has worked for a long time at Argos, when it was in Haverhill town centre, before moving on to become a merchandiser at Tesco, mostly at the Haverhill store.

Steve, who lives in Southend-on-Sea, continued: “Although she was 67 she continued to work and had planned to further reduce her hours and retire fully so she could spend more time walking, going out with friends and to concerts at the art centre, which is where we are having the wake because that was where she loved to go.”

While her son and daughter were pupils at New Cangle, Janet was on the PTA and helped to organise many fun days and fetes.

She also helped at Haverhill Rangers, as Steve explained: “Her role was very much supporting what was going on generally.

”She did matchday catering and people loved to come because she was always friendly and loved to chat and there were some very good friends that were made.”

Janet also helped organise trips for the young players to professional clubs for matches or coaching sessions.

Through a family connection, she was also heavily involved with Valence United, a large youth football club in Dagenham.

Steve added: “She was a friend to all. I can’t think of any person who would have a bad word to say to her.”

Janet’s funeral took place yesterday at Cam Valley Crematorium, followed by the wake at Haverhill Arts Centre.