A lasting memorial to a much- loved local described as “the heart and soul of Kippen” will be part of a special ceremony in the village on Sunday.
Winnie Dunlop died on March 31 this year at the age of 93.
On Sunday, October 23, a tree will be planted in the grounds of Kippen Parish Church in her memory.
The Prunus Royal Burgundy will be a tangible reminder of Winnie’s contribution to the village, albeit she will never be forgotten.
Winnie was brought up in her early years in Partick before moving to Knightswood in her teens.
Her grandparents had a house in the Burnside, in the old kirk, in Kippen and during the war she was evacuated to stay with them.
However she remembered well the bombs falling in 1941 during the Clydebank blitz where her primary school in Partick was hit during a raid.
Winnie was often out in Kippen and met her husband ‘Jackie’ who lived at Glengyle cottage, Oakwood and they were married in 1950. They moved into the newly-built houses in Oakwood at number 15 in 1954, moving to number 24 in 1958 where she lived until March this year and where her four children (one son and three daughters) always referred to as home.
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Winnie was keen on photographs and almost to the end meticulously filed her family pictures, filling 71 albums.
A village spokesperson said: “She has left a large family who are all sad at her passing, but in the end she had a lot of pain and she wanted to join her husband who died suddenly in 1998.
“A ‘stalwart of her community’ does not begin to describe Winnie Dunlop.
“She was at the heart and soul of Kippen for most of her life, involved in the church, Guild, WRI, the Reading Room and heritage project among others - and has even washed the local football team’s kit.
“In 2012, Winnie celebrated 50 years as the Kippen correspondent of the Stirling Observer. Described as the paper’s eyes and ears in the village, Winnie supplied news from all organisations in Kippen on a weekly basis.”
Observer reporter Kaiya Marjoribanks said: “If Winnie didn’t know something about the village then it simply wasn’t worth knowing.
“Her enthusiasm for life in the village and ensuring its people and activities were recorded and highlighted for generations to come was inspiring.
“She was admired greatly by everyone at the Observer and many of us looked forward to our regular visits. Winnie was certainly a font of knowledge - but she also took a great interest in our lives and our families which was incredibly touching.
“It was a privilege to have known Winnie. She was a Kippen legend and an Observer legend for all the right reasons - but she was also always genuine, warm, kind and welcoming. She is hugely missed.”
