Pam and Colin’s relationship had started with music, and that continued to be a highlight through all their years together. Pam was a dedicated ballet fan, and although Colin was not particularly enamoured with the balletic arts, his appreciation for the musical accompaniment meant that their artistic interests continued to be complementary all through their lives. Pam passed in 1999, with simple dizzy spells sadly leading to a very difficult and operation-filled final 6 months. This left Colin alone at 18 Vale Drive for the first time in almost 45 years. He made some immediate changes at the house, but of course his closeness to Pam did not change, and he thought he had seen her at least a couple of times in the first few months after she passed. Grandchildren and great grandchildren became the focus of his life, with Lucy still needing his guidance as she grew up and Katy having children of her own (Chloe and Connor) in 1998 and 2002. However, Katy and family later moved north away from Barnet, and Colin was finding Vale Drive too big to handle. So in 2004 he left Barnet, after 50 years, and moved to be near Heather and Lucy in St Albans. When Lucy went to University in Bournemouth Colin had another decision to make, and Brian’s long held suggestion for him to take the plunge and move to Canada finally bore fruit. Of course, Colin had a family role to play in Canada, with new grandchildren Colin Robert born in 2002 and Catriona in 2005. A comfortable basement with stairs up to the kitchen to give him exercise (he never wanted to live in a house without stairs) and a comfortable chair with a TV showing near 24-hour football was all else that was needed. So in 2009 he moved across the Atlantic, at the age of 80. The immigration process was slow, and it was a sad irony that the final component of the last part of the process, the health check, came through on the day Colin was diagnosed with acute leukaemia in March 2014. After frantic efforts by Brian and wife Francesca to make sure his final months would be as comfortable as possible, Colin made the decision to move back to the UK. Being the man he was, he wanted to be close to as many family members as possible. Escorted by Brian, Colin arrived in Darwen, Lancashire in May 2014 and lived his last 3 months in comfort with grand-daughter Katy Quayle and family. Other family members also visited. He was not given to much fuss and did not think it necessary to directly inform everyone of what was going on. The effort of “entertaining” visitors was also perhaps a factor here. Although tired, he felt he was doing well and wondering “what all the fuss was about” right up until his last few days, when he fairly quickly went downhill. He passed on the morning of August 4th, in peace and with his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren having seen him shortly before, and with his son present at the final moments. Rest in Peace, Father. And thank you, for everything.