My mother, Joyce Ferlie, who has died aged 87, was an inspiring teacher of French with a particular interest in promoting foreign languages, Anglo-French twinning and facilities for young people.
She was born Joyce Howlett in Upton, Wirral, and went to a local grammar school, then took a French degree at Liverpool University. Her father was a civil servant and strongly promoted education for women.
After three years as an education officer in the RAF, she met and married Tom Ferlie, my father. They were happily married for more than 55 years and lived in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, for a long period in the 1960s and 1970s. Joyce was active in the Kenilworth community, as one of a new generation of female graduates taking on local civic roles as well as family responsibilities. It was an optimistic time and she contributed to the development of the growing town.
As a long-standing teacher of French at Abbey high school (now Kenilworth school and sixth form), she was noted for her inspiring lessons and her copies of Paris Match, which brought an exotic touch, as did her very modern trouser suits.
She always had an international outlook and was a great supporter of building local links with France. A founding member of Kenilworth Business and Professional Women's Club, she was also an active member of the committee of Kenilworth Youth Club. She became a volunteer in the Workers' Educational Association and the local Anglo-French twinning association after moving to Hook Norton in Oxfordshire in 1980.
After a period in the Cotswolds, Tom and Joyce eventually retired to Exeter to be near my brother, Peter.
Tom died last year. Joyce is survived by me and Peter.