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Wesley
Gordon's brother Henry had come to England a year previously and
lived in Howard Street. Henry borrowed a car and picked Wesley up
from the airport.
Wes
had no problems finding work and his first job was as labourer on
the city's new bus station. His wife also came from St Catherine
in Jamaica in the same year 1960 but then they didnÂ’t even
know each other.
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| Myrna
worked as a nurse |
They
met in Gloucester Park and married in 1964. Despite both having
planned to stay for only five years, they now see Gloucester as
home, and have no plans to return to Jamaica except on holiday.
Myrna
also came directly to Gloucester to stay with a relative - her cousin
Pearl, who had sent her a letter giving instructions on how to get
there from the airport.
Good
Samaritan
She
recalls the first person from Gloucester that she met was a lady
on the train from London. Her 'Good Samaritan' helped her get off
at the right station, wouldn't let her get a taxi and insisted on
giving her a lift. Despite it being the early hours of the morning,
the lady waited to see if she had the right place. When it turned
out that her cousin had moved, she took Myrna to her new address.
I used to fill my hot water bottle and
carry it under my coat. If I could have walked I would have
gone back home.  |
| Myrna
Gordon |
She
found the March cold difficult to cope with and remembers not being
happy at first. "I used to fill my hot water bottle and carry
it under my coat If I could have walked I would have gone back home."
Her
first job was at Holm Hospital in Tewkesbury in a geriatric ward.
She remembers being taken care of and called "my little girl"
by the sister who knitted her a woollen hat. Her first wage packets
were spent on buying warm clothes.
Now
very much a part of their local community, the Gordons opened their
own off licence and general store in Millbrook Street in 1972. Myrna
sadly passed away a few years ago but Wes still runs the store.
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