Thanks Dad for your final words, we stand here as brother and sister with deep love and affection for a truly wonderful father. If you see us crying, we’re not sad, it’s a sign of our love for you. If it looks like we’re grieving, we’re not in pain, it’s just a wonderful memory of the joy you brought to our lives. I fear with this speech that, I may take everyone on a guided tour of everything not relevant to the point, much like one of your explanations about almost anything! Oh what we wouldn’t give for another one. You were not lucky in life, for you did not deserve this terrible disease. Everything you achieved was down to hard work and determination, that’s what made you who you were. You’d work an 8 hour shift, and then more at home, improving life for your beloved family, for that you can be amazingly proud. Your love for us, whilst subtle, was abundantly clear, like following Liverpool FC results because it was important to me. You’d follow us across the world from your iPad, which some consider creepy, but we knew it was because you care and love us with all your heart. Every night, regardless of how tired you were or the day you’d had, you’d lovingly read to my little sister, the story of Little Red Riding hood. She’d let you know if you skipped a page or even changed a word, and if she were to quiz you now, you’d know it all by heart. I’ll never forget our bike ride in North Wales, even with factor 50 suncream, you still turned into a lobster! Or the many International Air Tattoos that we attended together, watching the aerobatic performances and taking many photos. You always did what you thought was right, even when it wasn’t, like coming to my sisters aid and telling me off, when all she did was scream because she wasn’t getting her own way! It was just the way you cared, protecting her because you thought she was in trouble. You took our Aunt Sharon in, when she was a teen, just like a little sister, to allow our Nan to spend some time with her new husband. You would walk her to school just like a big brother and even helped out with homework, to such an extent it was the only time she got an A- in Environmental studies, because you wrote the paper! Being typically British males, we never hugged or kissed, that was until several years ago, when I wondered, why am I hugging my father-in-law, but not my own father? I will be eternally grateful to my Dutch family for this, as I would not have been so lucky to have had so many hugs as we did. Dad you taught us many things from changing spark plugs to tyres, and wouldn’t let us learn to drive until we could! We learned to plaster, decorate, tile, wood working, and even plumbing, these skills have been so useful as we did up our own houses. Your perfectionism doing DIY would drive us mad, but now we understand why, the final product always looked better when you did it your way. As a child I’d be drilling or using an electric saw and when I’d least expect it, you’d shout bang, clapping your hands, making my heart jump. Once we were digging the extension foundations near where we’d buried our cat, you said “I’ve just found Splodge!” and whoosh I was gone. You still found it amusing, even though it backfired as I refused to come back out. One year we went to see Dick Whittington at the Dartmouth Railway station. The actors came to pick someone from the audience, but Lily, only 2 at the time, didn’t want me to go and I volunteered you. Being the good sport you are, you got up straight away and headed onto the stage. They asked you to read a recipe out and when you said season it, the actor sneezed on it and covered you in flour, he then said I’ve got green bits in there now Mo and before he had another chance to cover you in flour, you whacked the bottom of the paper plate straight up into his face covering him in flour instead, it caused such a roar of laughter from the audience, followed by a cheer, the actors response was “I wish I’d picked your son now Mo” and I was glad he didn’t. You always enjoyed a joke, even until your very last day. When nurses came to administer medicines, you got them by shouting “Ouch!”, giving them a fright, when the needle hadn’t yet gone in. You asked one very special nurse to care for you at the end, my sister agreed and during your last bath, you showed your appreciation by farting in her face! The gathering song summed up your love for mum perfectly “When I fall in love, it will be forever”, she is the centre of your world and it was truly fitting that you passed on whilst in her arms. You will be watching over her forever more. But SERIOUSLY enough with turning the TV on, we know that you are still here. Surrounded & cared for by loved ones at home, you proudly went your way. None of us wanted to let you go or lose you, but we also didn’t want to see you suffer, for you are a truly wonderful husband, dad, grandad, brother, uncle, friend and person. Nothing will ever replace the hole in our lives that has been created by your departure. Heroes aren’t supposed to die, but here we are. You’ll forever live on in our hearts, never to be the same again. With all our love.