I attended Big Al's funeral yesterday in a lovely church just outside Matlock in Derbyshire. The church was virtually full. Alan's two children, and then his two sisters, presented a beautiful celebration of his life, right back to his prosecution by the then GPO for running a pirate radio station!! It was so nice to hear a down to earth vicar, who was actually able to speak of Alan from first hand knowledge, rather than, as so often happens, things he has been told about the person. Alan had done a lot for the church.
It will be no surprise to any of you, but it was delightful to hear adjectives that resonated exactly with those used by everyone of you who paid their tributes on this thread:
generous with his time, kind, committed to everything he did and helpful. But it will also be no surprise that he ably demonstrated these qualities in his personal and family life, as well as his professional life. The closeness and mutual love he shared with his family came through as strong as the signal from his wee radio station.
The subsequent committal at the crematorium also majored on his dignity until the end and the concept that, although his passing occurred at much too young an age (he never let me forget that he was younger than me), it was the manner in which he had enriched the lives of those who knew him that took precedence to the sadness of his passing.
Goodbye Old Pal. Maybe see you again one day.
