Teresa Elizabeth Higgins

Teresa E. Higgins passed away peacefully in her sleep on Friday January 22, 2016 at Kearny Mesa Nursing Center. She was 88 years old. Teresa was born in Wembley, England on July 31, 1927. She was the middle child of Reginald and Joan Taylor. Her strong will and love of music was apparent at an early age. She left home at 16 to attended the Guildhall School of Music to study opera and later earned a two year degree in business from Kilburn Polytechnic in London. During World War II she had the privilege of performing for the allied troops as they were training for the Normandy invasion and later was the cast member of many London operas. After the war she worked for Trans World Airlines (TWA) and was instrumental in setting up their first office in Beirut, Lebanon. She later moved to New York City where she met two of her lifelong friends Jean Campbell and Zaida Boomis. They shared an apartment in Manhattan and spent most of the late 1950’s enjoying the single life and culture of New York while working as executive secretaries for some of Manhattan’s top businessmen.

Jean introduced her to her future husband Tom, a freelance cartoonist, at one of their many parties and they were married soon after. In 1964 she had her twin son’s Patrick and Tim. After spending a few years trying to raise two kids in the big city they decided to move to the country. They bought a 50 year old hunting cabin in the small town of Grahamsville, NY in the Catskill mountains and moved there in 1970. Although it had no central heating, insulation, TV, or even a working bathroom they set out to make the small cabin a home. She loved cooking, reading and taking long walks in the woods with their four cats and Labrador retriever. With the help of many great neighbors she learned traditional canning, vegetable gardening and how to drive in the snow. She began work as executive secretary for the owner of Sullivan's Department store in nearby Liberty, NY and later for the President of VAW of America, a multinational German aluminum manufacturer at their plant in Ellenville, NY. During this time she was very active in the local community as a member of the ladies auxiliary of the VFW, a board member of the Daniel Pierce Library, and a district commissioner for the Boy Scouts of America. She continued her passion for singing as a member of the Grahamsville United Methodist Church. In 1984 the family moved to San Diego and Teresa continued to work as an executive assistant for a number of local companies. In 1986 she joined her son Tim’s part time plant service and later, with the help of Patrick, they expanded into flowers and special events. The business grew and after 10 years split into Artistic Florals and Plant Pros under the ownership of Patrick and Tim respectively. She then worked for a few years for The French Gourmet before her retirement. During her time in San Diego Teresa was very involved with many civic and business groups to include The Downtown Partnership, LeTip of La Jolla, San Diego Chapter of NACE founding member), South of Broadway Women’s Club, The Ecumenical Council of San Diego County, The Gaslamp Association, The Navy League, the Downtown San Diego Lions Club and on the board of CONVIS and The San Diego Chamber of Commerce. Of course she continued her singing as member of the choirs of St Marks United Methodist Church, San Diego First Assembly(City View) and later at Kensington Community Church. She is survived by her sons Timothy (Cynthia) and Patrick (Derith Mason) both of San Diego, her stepdaughter Gail Higgins (Jasja Boelhouwer) of San Diego and her grandsons Sam, Max and Dominic as well as many inlaws nieces and nephews from England and New York State.

Her memorial service will be held at 11am on Saturday February 20, 2016 at Kensington Community Church, 4773 Marlborough Dr, San Diego, CA 92116. In lieu of flowers the family requests a donation in the name of Teresa Higgins to the San Diego Lions Welfare Foundation,

310 Market St, San Diego, CA 92101 619-239-3539