Wilf Mound 1916 -2012
Wilf Mound lived in Wedderburn Road for some years and so the news of his death in October 2012 was met with much sadness among his neighbours and friends. His wife and family paid some wonderfully warm tributes to Wilf and have kindly allowed some of these to be shared on our website.
Early Years
Wilf Mound was born Lygon Bank, Malvern in 1916, not far from where his father, Frank Mound worked as a sergeant at Malvern Police Station. He attended North Malvern School and shared many strong memories of growing up in the area with his family. He loved the circuses and fairs that arrived each year on Link Common, with the big top, steam organs, merry go rounds, helter skelters and sweet stalls. Living so close to the railway also provided many hours of fun such as, “climbing over the leeside of the bridge near Moorlands Road, hanging by his fingertips and waiting to be encompassed by steam from a passing train!” From Wilf’s bedroom window he once watched the Aurora Borealis, a spectacle that is denied us with our modern day light pollution.
Working Life
Wilf Mound began work at the age of 14 as a telegram messenger boy at Great Malvern Post Office. Two years later he entered an apprenticeship at Abel & Smith, an electrical firm in Worcester, and would later work for his brother and eventually the Midlands Electricity Board. Wilf has shared some wonderful accounts of his work during the war years, some of which can be read on the BBC’s WW” People’s War (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/14/a9023014.shtml). Other stories are available describing the wartime bombing raids visible from Malvern and what it was like to be a civilian during the war. At his funeral, the family recounted Wilf’s involvement in installing Malvern’s first air raid siren, in 1939. It was positioned on top of the Council House and its weight meant the building had to be reinforced. Wilf was involved in wiring up many of the new buildings that were constructed to accommodate the newly arrived radar scientists. He also recalled the thousands of sailors who trained at HMS Duke.
Marriage and Hobbies
Wilf Mound married just after the war. In the 1960s they found a plot of land in Wedderburn Road and built a bungalow for their growing family. In 2012 he and his wife happily celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary before he died. His many hobbies and interests included a love of dancing, ballroom and sequence dancing, as well as gardening, walking and local history. Wilf remembered seeing Sir Edward Elgar riding his bicycle in town but was “quite perplexed by George Bernard Shaw who waved him away and refused to sign his book..!”
Legacy
Wilf’s devotion to his family was mutual; the printed eulogy that was handed out to all those who attended his funeral, bears witness to the very high regard he was held in, by his family, friends and all who knew him.
“He was a quiet man, yet a sociable man. He had great humility – we can’t recall him ever blowing his own trumpet. He had dignity. He had strong principles but would always listen to your point of view. He was funny, quick thinking, with an amazing memory for detail, which served him right to the end. He loved animals and nature, puddings, boiled sweets, Eccles cakes and family get togethers. He always did the best he could – and if he could do anyone a good turn, he would.
Wilfred George Mound, 1916 to 2012, a Malvernian, a man of integrity, love and inner stength. A very hard act to follow.”