I thought it would be appropriate to write a few words about Geoff my husband and homes for change resident who passed away recently. Geoff was originally from the Wirral but had lived in the Hulme crescents very briefly in the 1980s during his new age traveller wanderings. He moved to Manchester in 2006 after his mother died, picking a rented flat in West Didsbury opposite his best friends Barney and Paula. He started self employed work with Manchester Light and Sound as a stage builder around this time. We started dating in 2009 and he came to know about Homes for Change when I moved in to my first flat here in 2010. He was in the P&I working group, particularly enjoying meetings where Gary the dog was presenthe loved dogs and had a soft spot for Gary. In his spare time Geoff was involved in Live Action Role Play or LARP and enjoyed planning events. He was particularly good at making props for this and it was always 4 the big yeller
lovely to see him getting excited about a new project. One of the characters he played was a pirate and he often had birthday parties with a ‘dress like a pirate, drink like a pirate’ theme. He was also extremely well read and devoured books at astonishing speed- I bought him a kindle early on in his illness as I just couldn’t provide the amount of books he needed to keep him occupied! He loved a wide range of music but was probably most comfortable in Rock pubs drinking his beloved Guinness extra cold. He had been diagnosed with Kidney cancer which had spread to the lungs in September 2012. We were only made aware that the cancer was not curable in June 2013 about a week after he signed his HfC tenancy. He’d been looking forward to having a flat here for a number of years and so was very pleased to be moving in at a time when it was clear he had limited time left. On the day we found out he wasn’t getting better I told him he had to have the pet rats he’d been planning on to the point of obsession and he had to marry me. He agreed that both would have to be done. We married in
July with only close family and Barney and Paula present. We had a big party in a scout camp in September – it was a fabulous day and so great that Geoff’s friends from across the country could come together. We were told in October that the immunosuppressant drugs he was taking (this is what made his ginger hair turn snowy white) had stopped working. At this point we knew he had months to live. Unfortunately, the breathing problems he was having caused a lot of problems and so he deteriorated a lot quicker than this. His death was very peaceful, with me at his side. He wanted a woodland burial and so this is being planned. We will be in full pirate regalia as this seems the only fitting way to do it. His three favoured charities were Cancer Research, Macmillan and The Christie. I’ve been asked to set up donation sites in his memory and will let you know if we manage to do this. His pet rats or ratty girls as he called them will still be in the coop as they will move over to my flat shortly. Siân Evans.