Lavender Davy, the former professional actress who became a stalwart of the community of West Lavington, near Devizes, has died after a brief illness.

Mrs Davy, born in Bishop Waltham, Hampshire, spent her early childhood years in London during the Blitz, attending different schools in the south east of England, as was quite common in those disruptive times.

Her parents were Christian Scientists and, although she did not inherit that particular aspect of Christian belief, it may have been that early discipline that gave her such strength in persisting against life’s problems.

Having completed her secondary education she attended drama school and began a career in repertory theatre, before becoming involved with the BBC until her marriage to Hugh Davy and the birth of six children which resulted in a more domestic existence, though even then she worked to help Mr Davy in running his garage business.

Upon their arrival in West Lavington in 1975, the couple soon became involved in village activities, he as chairman of the local Conservative branch, and Mrs Davy profiting from her training and professional experience in drama, as a member of the Lavington Amateur Dramatic Society, first acting, then directing and ultimately taking the role of president.

She was particularly anxious to involve the young in the experience of being in a play, as a result of which children throughout the village featured in the cast of her pantomimes, almost outnumbering those in the audience.

This idea of participation was given further evidence by public summer productions for lots of children in the Davy garden, with refreshments and a swim in the Davy pool to follow for all participants.

As with children, so it was with adults. Lavender organised and led the carol singing (open to all) throughout the village each Christmas, ran the Progressive Dinners – eating and drinking from house to house – and helped the arrangement of suppers after the carol service at West Lavington Church.

All these things demonstrated her concern to engage members of the community in fundraising through sociable village pursuits.

As if life were not full enough, she still found time to run the clothes shop at Dauntsey’s School, to be the secretary for the PCC for 30 years and, until recently, to run the cake stall at the annual fete and to sing with Dauntsey’s Choral Society.

And this concern with music reminds that her greatest contribution to the life of the village was to be found in her running of the West Lavington Church choir for more than 35 years.

Few village churches enjoy the benefit of a choir nowadays but thanks to her energy there has been a constant band of enthusiastic members, with a variety of performances, culminating in a triumphant rendition of Fauré’s Requiem on Good Friday, conducted by Mrs Davy only three days before her death, the poignancy and irony of which is obvious.

She will be remembered by all who knew her for her infectious enthusiasm and apparently indefatigable energy in whatever she did.