Monica Mullett

Monica was born to Ethel and Ernest Smith in Epsom, county of Surrey, England. There was 4 stepbrothers Gordon, Derek, James and David and a sister, Angela. Growing up, Monica trained as a Nursery Nurse but spent much of her early working life in business administration working for a cigar importer, a Veterans support agency, a Trades Union (think Teamsters) a magazine publisher, an insurance company and two entrepreneurs, often at Personal Assistant level. She also worked as a Beautician for a while and even did a stint in the British Consulate in California. Monica had two sons Victor and Philip from her previous marriage. Following a divorce, Monica met her current husband, Terry, in 1980 and they married in 1983, spending 43 years together. Monica and Terry purchased their first house together in the village of Wing, Buckinghamshire, England from where both commuted to their work. By this time, Monica had established herself as a very capable Sales person working for the major French perfume houses such as Channel, Dior and Yves Saint Laurent in London’s major Department stores, Harrods, Fortnum & Masons and John Lewis & Partners among others. She finally became the Concession Manager for the House of Lancôme in Harvey Nichols’ store in Kensington, a position she held for some years. The long commute began to take it’s toll and so she retired from the daily grind in the late 80’s. Monica immersed herself in growing produce on a village allotment, digging the soil by hand and growing enough vegetables to feed the extended family and some deserving widows in the village. It was at this point that Monica became interested in Bobbin Lace making and Belly Dancing! Monica and Terry moved to a larger house in 1994 where she continued with her produce cultivation on a new allotment and her two other niche interests. There came a point in time when Monica got bored enough to seek and gain new employment at a Lloyds Bank in the nearby town of Dunstable where she worked in the back office processing checks etc. However, Lloyds reneged on the promise of further training and so Monica handed in her resignation. Not long after, Terry’s company made him redundant but a position opened-up in the parent company based around the Atlanta area in the USA. Terry and Monica emigrated to the USA in January of 2000 where they settled in Cumming, Georgia and, over time, became American citizens. Monica continued her Belly Dancing activities with a local group, Desert Sky, who performed for the residents in local Assisted Living facilities and also at Belly Dancing gatherings further afield such as in Charleston South Carolina. Monica had travelled quite extensively prior to moving to the USA and had visited such places as France, Italy, the then Yugoslavia, India and the Philippines but then extended those experiences by cruising with Terry and the Belly Dancing group to the Caribbean where they visited the Bahamas, St Thomas and St Johns and St Martin. Sadly all this came to an end as Monica’s health began to deteriorate after she had her first stroke in 2017, two more in 2019 and a fourth in 2021 when she became dependent on a wheelchair. There were further health setbacks over the years culminating in the most recent when she needed her gallbladder removed in early April this year. Monica did not respond well to the procedure, which was successful, and really did not have the strength to fight back and so, despite two weeks in the hospital and over a month in skilled nursing, Monica was discharged home into hospice care on the May 18th.. Sadly, she continued to weaken and passed away in the early hours of May 28th. Monica was a fun-loving, adventurous mother and wife, talented in many different ways with a contagious smile that lit-up the room. No description of Monica would be complete without mentioning her incredible talent for cooking in which she excelled – according to Terry’s children James and Paula, especially her rendition of American Angel Food Cake. Monica will be sadly missed by all who knew her, none more so than her close family for whom there is now a gap at the table. Rest in Peace Monica, you deserve it my love.