My friend Jenny Gason, who has died aged 75, was for nearly 40 years secretary to the bishops of Truro in Cornwall, holding that job from 1964 until 2003. During that time she acquired an encyclopedic knowledge of the diocese and all its clergy and parishes.

Jenny was born in Farnborough, Hampshire, to Anthony Wyndham Gason, a lieutenant in the army, and his wife, Patricia (nee Russell). Educated at Downe House school near Newbury, Berkshire, then Cheltenham College of Art (now part of the University of Gloucestershire) and finishing school in Switzerland and Paris, Jenny had all the social skills needed to make life easier for everyone she met, both at work and at home.

Her mother’s family had roots in Cornwall, and so, at the age of 20, after finishing secretarial college in London, she moved to the county. There, in 1963, she was interviewed by the bishop, Maurice Key, on the day that the US President John Kennedy was assassinated. She got the job and settled in Truro. Following her parents’ divorce, for many years she shared her house with her mother and younger sister, Kate.

Jenny always lived life to the full; she loved the sea, both for surfing on old-fashioned surfboards (no wetsuits for her) and sailing. She acquired a small wooden sailing boat, and later a Laser, which she sailed with her spaniel Poppy for crew. She loved skiing and played tennis regularly with friends. As illness reduced her mobility in later life, tennis was one of the things she missed, though she was still an avid watcher of Wimbledon.

The other passion was the Cornish Buildings Group, of which she was honorary secretary for many years. Her interest in buildings and gardening gave scope to the artistic side of her character, and she won prizes at local flower shows. Her parties and picnics were famous, as were her meringues.

She is survived by her sisters, Veryan and Kate, and by Veryan’s children and grandchildren.