Edna May Upsall

Edna May Hart Upsall, 100, was born on November 5, 1923, in Enfield, England. She died peacefully on August 23, 2024, in Peterborough, NH. 

She spent her school years in Enfield, where she met her future husband, Herbert Charles Upsall. He enlisted with the Royal Navy, and they became engaged. During World War II, Herbert was sent to North America for pilot training. While Herbert was there, Edna remained in Enfield during the Blitz. She and her sisters, along with her mother and aunt, slept in an underground bunker in their backyard. When the war ended, Herbert traveled through the United States, and fell in love with it. He wrote to Edna that he wanted to live in the States. Not wanting to leave England and her family there, she broke the engagement. In Herbert’s words, he had to return to England to “talk some sense into her.” He was successful in this endeavor, and the couple immigrated to the United States in 1947. They were married in New York City the day after they arrived in the U.S. The early years were a challenge, as Herbert contracted tuberculosis. Edna worked as an executive secretary at what was then British Overseas Airways Corporation, now British Airways.

They raised three children in Westchester County, NY and Fairfield County, CT. During these years, Edna was active in volunteer work, and held positions as president of the parent teachers association at the children’s schools. Later, she became active in the Daughters of the British Empire, and chaired the local Chapter, The Golden Hind, in Sarasota, Florida, when she retired. 

She is survived by her three children, Richard Charles Upsall, Linda Upsall Feuss, and Wendy Upsall Wilk, along with their respective spouses, Lori Dobbin Upsall, Charles Edward Feuss, and Ronald Wilk. She has five grandchildren: Kenneth Charles Upsall, Elizabeth Upsall, Charles Herbert Feuss, Anne Hart Feuss, and Heather Wilk, and four great grandchildren. 

There will be a private memorial service. 

Donations, in lieu of flowers, should be sent to Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.