Happy Childhood Memories By Maria Lonergan

A Memory of Heswall.

I stayed at Heswall Children's Hospital from Janurary 1980 to June 1980. I really enjoyed my time while there so much, that when my mum decided it was time for me to leave, I was so upset. I wanted to stay.
When I first arrived I had to stay in for 3 weeks with no weekends home, to help me get used to the place.
I remember so much, I feel it was such an important part of my childhood - a happy time, with lovely memories.
I was on Hugh Owen Thomas Ward (H.O.T.). The beds were all in a line as if it was a proper hospital ward, I was towards the very back of the ward as I was one of the elders.
The nurses I remember are Sister Chubb - a lovely lady, Nurse McBride, I remember her freckles and short black hair, Nurse Parr and the night nurses, Nurse Williams - who liked to knit - she sometimes allowed me to sit next to her if I could not sleep, and a lot of the time I ended up in the kitchen helping myself to a biscuit. Nurse Alexander - one time she brought me in a pair of cowboy boots. I remember my school teacher, Mrs Hawkins. Her long black straight hair and perfectly painted nails. Wally Atkins was the ward caretaker with another man, James, we all loved them.
I remember most of the other children on the ward - Davina Roberts, who I still have a photograph of, Caroline Long, she was a diabetic and I worried about her terribly, Fiona, with short blonde hair, Daniel, David, Jonathon and Donna - she used to climb everywhere. Tracey from St Helens or Warrington, and Elizabeth who was only 4, she was in the first bed.
Across to the boys' ward was David Langley, Boothy and lots of others.
On the older ward upstairs was a lovely girl named Vivien, and Donna and Robbie Salter.
I would love to hear from anyone who was there at that time.
My name at that time was Maria Lonergan