Eulogy We come here today to pay our respects, and honor the memory of Dave Dorrell Dave was born as Leslie Samuel James (named after his uncles and grandparents) to Valerie and Thompson on December 4th 1960. He was the long awaited son, with 4 elder sisters. Born in Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland, Dave was brought south in 1965. This was a formative experience as he flew with only his older sisters, Maggie and Kathy for company. Dave loved the trip as there was no adult supervision but he was sick all the way and not able to make the most of the freedom. As Dave lived with 4 sisters it was felt that boarding school was the best place to send him to get a bit more male focused education. Dave was always a cheeky little boy and forever telling and playing jokes. However at his first school for boys in Burgess Hill his love of playing the joker soon got the better of him. He was soon thrown from the 3rd floor window by the other boys but things got worse when he fell onto the drive only to be run over by a delivery van. As you might imagine once he recovered he never went back to that school, despite this incident he never gained a fear of heights and always maintained his sense of humour. His next school was the local state school where he became a member of the church choir with Marie, Maggie and Kathy. Dave demonstrated his business skills early on, quickly learning that the choir was paid for weddings so the only practices he ever attended were those on a Tuesday prior to a wedding on a Saturday. Soon Dave was sent to another boarding school and this time it was a mixed school. Dave like the school, typified by an incident that happened when Maggie visited. Unable to find Dave she was directed to the vegetable garden. Here she found Dave in a shed with a female student. On saying “hello” she was met with a “hang on I am busy”…..anything else is too much information. After school Dave joined the army cadets and when he was old enough he joined the TA and then the regular army. He got to the dizzy heights of Corporal in the Royal Army Medical Corps. Dave served our Queen and county, most notably during the Falklands Conflict with pride and honor. But like most service men he did not speak about his experiences. During this time he met Cheryl and Dave became a proud father to David. Although Dave and Cheryl later separated, Dave continued to care for David for 5 years as a single parent. I know Dave would have loved to have spent more time with David but circumstances prevented this. Despite the separation Dave and Cheryl still remained friends. Later he met Yvonne they were blessed with a daughter, Sharlene and although that relationship also didn’t last he always looked after his responsibilities. After leaving the army Dave stayed with Maggie in Poole Dorset for a few months. During this time he developed a strong bond with his niece and nephew, Sarah and David. When Maggie was posted abroad Dave found accommodation locally and became a Diamond cutter, in his spare time Ice skating and playing paintball. Fishing was another hobby that Dave enjoyed but he never really caught much until a trip to Pitlochary in Scotland. Within a few minutes he had caught a huge salmon, which has gradually increased in size over the years In November 1990 shortly before his 30th birthday Dave went on a blind date with his mate Rob just to make up a foursome, a blind date that lasted! After a brief long-distance relationship Dave moved up to Yateley where he and Liz settled in together. Dave and Liz soon found they shared a passion for music, and travelled to many live concerts together, mostly to listen to Tina Turner, Rod Stewart and Diana Ross. At one concert Dave had the opportunity meet Diana but was unable to move as he had managed to break a couple of ribs. Dave soon found employment as a security guard where he provided security for the likes of Little & Large and also managed to attend Stings wedding. Dave quickly learnt that Liz spent most of her spare time as a swimming coach for the local club Rushmore Royals so he decided to join the club and worked as a voluntary pool-side assistant. Dave loved working with the children and proved to be extremely patient and always gave the children encouragement. One of his young swimmers, Emma, later became a coach herself although sometimes the two of them weren’t a lot of help as Dave was too busy telling Emma jokes whilst Liz was left coaching by herself! Dave continued to coach despite his declining health. During their time together Dave and Liz travelled to many lovely places, although Dave did get a reputation for sampling the local hospitals including Raffles hospital where he received 5 star treatment including his own personal nurse. On another occasion Dave and Liz were invited to their friends Sharon and Andy’s wedding in Antigua which was filmed as part of the BBC’s back to the floor series, although Dave nearly didn’t make it as the week before the trip he managed to fall of the second rung of a ladder and break his arm. This was frustrating for Dave as he wasn’t allowed to swim in the lovely Caribbean waters as he couldn’t get the cast wet. Eventually Dave decided that he wanted to move back into the building industry, and was given a job by Neill with Dyno-roofing. When the franchise changed Dave went out on his own, setting up DJD Roofing. He was a hard worker and it wasn’t uncommon to hear of Dave working in all weathers, answering his phone from a rooftop. The business grew mainly through recommendations and boasted a client list that included English Rugby captain Will Carling. Throughout this time Dave had been dealing with diabetes but at no time did he let it ever stop him working and was still climbing roofs even when his kidneys started to fail. In fact over the 18 years that I have known Dave he has never complained about his health. Dave loved to watch the Olympics and in the last few weeks he fought to gain control of the hospital wards TV remote control just so he could watch the Olympics, because, as he put it “I deserve to as I am their longest resident” During this time Dave had many visitors, both family and friends, I know he appreciated the company, especially that of his niece Chrissie who always managed to find the time to pop in and see him. I want to say a huge thank you to all the doctors, nurses and the Dialysis team of Beacon ward at St. Hellier hospital for all their dedicated care, despite having to put up with Dave winding them up! Dave will be sorely missed by all of us, especially by Liz, David, and his 4 sisters Dot, Marie, Maggie and Kathy. So I conclude by asking you all to remember the fun loving Dave who loved life, worked hard and always looked on the bright side.