A FAMILY have paid tribute to a mum and grandmother in Torfaen who was a "stalwart of the community" and wrote one newspaper column every week for 20 years, never missing a week.

Doreen Harrison, a gifted artist and colourful storyteller, died a few weeks before her 90th birthday on March 25, 2024.

The 89-year-old was known to have "great loyalty to Pontypool", the area in which she lived in Torfaen, although she was born in Huddersfield in Yorkshire on April 13, 1934.

South Wales Argus: Left to Right: Rachel Harrison, dad Richard and mum DoreenLeft to Right: Rachel Harrison, dad Richard and mum Doreen (Image: Rachel Harrison)

Doreen and her husband Richard made their way to Pontypool in Wales from the North of England, having met and got married 64 years ago in September 1960. They were described as "stalwarts of the community and Christian life in the Valley".

For twenty years, Doreen wielded her pen and wrote one column a week for the Pontypool Free Press, a weekly Welsh newspaper put out by Newsquest.

South Wales Argus: Doreen wrote columns which were then reprinted in one of her books. This one is called 'Mountains of Safety'Doreen wrote columns which were then reprinted in one of her books. This one is called 'Mountains of Safety' (Image: Rachel Harrison)

Her daughter Rachel, 62, said: "She began writing her column in the Pontypool Free Press in the year 2000 and for the next 20 years, to our knowledge she did not miss a single week.

"She had a great loyalty to Pontypool and she would frequently write columns using local, sometimes world or family news to illustrate her faith in God and provide a message of hope, a wry observation, or a humorous anecdote where it was needed."

South Wales Argus: Doreen wrote columns which were then reprinted in one of her books. This one is called 'Recycling Headache'Doreen wrote columns which were then reprinted in one of her books. This one is called 'Recycling Headache' (Image: Rachel Harrison)

Those that attended local schools in Pontypool might remember Doreen as a raconteur (great anecdote teller). Children might remember the way she told a story in a colourful way in assemblies, or they may remember one of the books that she created.

Her daughter Rachel, said "She was very creative with a pen, her language and with an artists paintbrush and her columns utilised these gifts very effectively."

South Wales Argus: Doreen was known for her loyalty to PontypoolDoreen was known for her loyalty to Pontypool (Image: Rachel Harrison)

South Wales Argus: Her daughter said: She began writing her column in the Pontypool free press in the year 2000 and for the next 20 years, to our knowledge she did not miss a single week.Her daughter said: She began writing her column in the Pontypool free press in the year 2000 and for the next 20 years, to our knowledge she did not miss a single week. (Image: Rachel Harrison)

Doreen Harrison is survived by her husband Richard (86), her two daughters Rachel (62) and Ruth (60), Ruth’s husband Jason, and their three children, Max (27), Rachel (25) and Lotte (21).