Judith Hallinan
We first met John, Pat, Clare and Tom when we moved to Belbroughton in 1983.
Clare, and my daughter Claire, became friends at school and through this we also came to know John, Pat and Tom. We have so many happy memories of nights at the pub, dinner parties, picnics in their lovely garden and, after we moved away, of meeting half way for a pub lunch.
If we ever needed advice on a pub to meet up at, the first port of call was always John who had an extensive knowledge of pubs across the UK.
A yearly highlight for us was Henley Regatta when John and Pat would arrive and stay with us. At the end of the day we always had a lovely evening discussing the day’s racing over a good glass, or two, of wine and catching up on any Belbroughton news. A few years ago I joined them at Henley Regatta and we had a wonderful day drinking Pimms and enjoying the racing. On one visit down they were attending the Farnborough Air Show and I, unfortunately, became locked in my bathroom! This was when I realised that DIY was not John’s strong point and it took Pat and a sturdy screwdriver to free me. We had a many a laugh at that incident!
John was a wonderful person and a true Gentleman. He had a very quiet sense of humour but always made us smile and was a fount of knowledge. His service to Belbroughton Village, the Church and to bell ringing will be remembered for many years.
I will miss seeing your lovely smile but will remember the good times we had together.
Judy Hallinan