On Friday our neighbour Tom passed away after a long fight against the big C. Tom was an avid Villa fan. He and his wife used to have season tickets. In recent years he had retired to watching games at the pub, but we managed to get him back to Villa Park when we had a spare ticket.
He took my place at Wembley last year (its a long story why I could not go) he looked after my son in my absence and was very disappointed that we failed to achieve promotion.
This season he managed a few games early on, but had to stop as the pain he was suffering got too great for him to walk to the ground and them climb the stairs.
Thanks to modern media he has been able to keep up with the ups and downs of this season, it has cheered him up to see the progress we are making under Dean Smith. Super John McGinn was becoming one of his favourites. Tom had worked hard all his life. He was a builder working in the Aldridge area for many years. Tom admired SJMcG for his hard graft.
Tom leaves his wife Lynne and daughter Sophie. Don’t worry Tom, Tony and I will make sure they are OK. I have some spare runner beans that I will plant in your garden once the frosty nights have stopped. So Lynne won’t miss the veg you used to grow.
I won’t give up my Wembley ticket this year. I’ve not changed my flight back from my trip to Spain yet. But I have the details of the plane I need to catch.
Sad to report you are now another Holte-ender in the sky.
But glad to have known you and shared some some happy times at Villa Park.
