L'autre Chef (RIP)

Some of my friends and family will have fond memories of Big Ed who used to cook up a storm for anyone who arrived at their home. He died far too soon from hepatitis caught from a patient.

I wrote about him before after he had died. Eddie was an amazing guy, larger than life in every sense. He was a nurse and latterly a nurse tutor in mental nursing. The stories that were told about him include his throwing away lesson plans and bringing in some home baked bread or some such.

At his funeral, the Chapel of Rest was filled (and many could not get in). We all told our tales of Eddie.

I first knew him when we were both student nurses, and I knew him before I met his wife. He and I and several others met informally at one another's house to play bridge. More attention was given to the wine and the chat than to the cards!

In the Chapel of Rest, The House of the Rising Sun was played, and at the Crematorium, as the coffin was taken through the screen, it was Come On Baby Light My Fire. Both tunes had been chosen by him when he was in the hospice with family and friends all around. There was much laughter in the hospice as memories were shared - of bridge, nursing, holidays in France, and so on.

We all loved him dearly and I still see his widow (how can she be a widow at that age?)

If anyone out there would like to sponsor his daughter doing a 10km run in London, here is the link http://www.justgiving.com/joannadoolan . All funds raised are going to the British Liver Trust in her father's memory.