99 years old and saying goodbye to Rye

Rachel Sarrieddine has been a Rye resident since the 1970s and has recently left, aged 99, to be closer to her loving family. Hers is a remarkable story and by chance it came to me so that other Ryers might enjoy it.

She was born on 23 November 1926, and six weeks later came to Rye for the first time. Her parents, Joan and Harold Vincent Marrot, owned a holiday home called Robin Hill, opposite the Mermaid Hotel, and to her, Rye quickly became a place of familiarity and affection. She returned again and again as a child, spending family holidays there with her two younger brothers, forming a quiet, lasting bond with the town.

Her father, an author and publisher, moved easily in literary circles. He was a close friend of E F Benson, who became godfather to one of her brothers, and he wrote a biography of John Galsworthy, who was godfather to the other. Creativity and thought were part of everyday life, present without ever being overstated.

She trained at the Chelsea School of Art, where she met Faith Winter and, for a short time, ran a small pottery with her. Although the pottery did not last, the experience stayed with her. She later worked as a florist in the King’s Road in Chelsea and then for Littlefield Manor Flower Arrangers near Guildford, developing a practical, disciplined approach to making things beautiful.

In 1970 she returned to Rye permanently, now in her mid-forties, bringing her daughter with her. They lived in Church Square, renting several houses over time from the Bligh family. She worked as a painter at Iden Pottery and later at David Sharp Pottery, becoming highly regarded for the quality of her work. She is mentioned in Potteries of Rye by Carol Cashmore as probably the best painter working for Iden Pottery between 1971 and 1975.

St. Mary’s church became central to her life. She served on the Parish Council, taught Sunday School for many years, and made embroidered garments for the church, including a cope that is still remembered. Her close friends in Rye included Geraldine Bromley, Janet Wadhams and Pam Buxton, whose support helped her move into Devonport House sheltered housing at the foot of Conduit Hill, around 2014.

At the start of Covid she fell at home and broke her hip at the age of 94, spending a month in Conquest Hospital. Despite this, she returned to Devonport House and continued to live there semi-independently, supported by a strong local community. During that time, Jempson’s provided exceptional help, phoning her to take grocery orders and delivering them when travel and contact were difficult.

She remained active and engaged well into her 90s, even giving a talk at Devonport House about the things she had created over a lifetime — pottery, embroidery, painting — not as achievements, but as companions to living. Recent birthdays were celebrated at The King’s Head and plans remain to return for her 100th.

Now, with the birth of her great-granddaughter Penelope in March 2025, the time has come for her to leave Rye and live with family in East Grinstead, closer to her grandson Jack and his family. It marks the close of a long chapter in Rye — not a severing, but a natural change — after a lifetime shaped by creativity, service and deep connection to place.

Image Credits: Rosie Rose , Rosie Rose .