9 THE door industry journal winter 2023 Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk Industry News determination. His legacy will live on in our hearts. His cheeky laugh, that huge smile and that twinkle in his eye as an idea popped into his sharp mind.” Many of Roy’s friends from the world of garage doors have shared their memories and their ‘outrageous stories’ and here are some of them. Fred Wing from Essex Garage Doors writes: “Before or after AGDS meetings in Leicester, but sometimes in Glasgow, Exeter or Birmingham, we would have time to chat and sometimes reminisce. “Roy firstly allowed me to join and as was his way, then brought me in closer. We spoke about everything but always his main concern was for families, first his and then everyone else’s, including mine and that of his workforce. “One item that stood out, was when my father took Roy to London with a bunch of Henderson guys and other Garage Door people they landed up in a Club of some sort and everyone was drinking G&T’s but Roy being a young Bolton lad asked for a Pint....but they only had half-pint glasses, so my father went to the pub next door and bought a pint glass and got the club to fill it for him. Amazing what you remember! “Another time on a Henderson trip to Las Vegas with a group of 30, most of the guys decided to go off and explore, for want of a better word, the nightlife!!!! I waved them off and came back into the lobby and Roy was sitting there alone, he asked why I was not going with the group and after a brief discussion we decided that we had both seen enough of the nightlife in question and did not need to see more and we headed off to the tables. “On the return flight, he noticed that I had two suitcases rather than the one I came with and remarked, “was the second case for my winnings!” I explained to him in one way it was, as I used my winnings from the nightlife night to buy many clothes for my young children as they were so much cheaper in the US. He just smiled warmly. “In later life, Roy became a pilot, something that, just like his work life he enjoyed passionately, whether it was business or pleasure, taking to the skies was memorable!! especially for Karen Diggle”, writes Fred. “Once Roy came to our farm in Somerset for a business meeting!! And to visit our pigs. A country day out for the Bolton lad and Karen, his face was a delight when Karen was in with the piglets in the field and she got splattered...He liked the bacon as well.” His family was his epicentre, all he worked for, “Well, along with the odd curry and a pint!!!” Derek Hibbart (now the editor of this magazine) recalls: “I remember visiting the Sonoran Desert Museum in Tucson, Arizona during a trade supplier (Liftmaster) visit to America and Mexico in the 1990s. What I remember, in particular, is Roy standing close to some huge cactuses (or should that be cacti) in his usual attire (suit, collar and tie) out in the baking heat. “Another memorable occasion I will never forget is being with Roy and the rest of the AGDS (Association of Garage Doors Specialists) committee at a meeting at the Hilton Hotel in Leicester in September 2011 when he took a call from his daughter telling him to check the news that was breaking – the event was 9 /11.” An old associate – Gordon Bettany remembers a day of Clay Pigeon Shooting when Roy was just about to shout “pull” when an RAF Chinook came belly up over the hill – What a noise and what a narrow escape. Gordon also remembers Roy preferring fish and chips out of the paper to a gourmet meal at Le Manoir – but that was Roy all over! Roy and Graham Barber, Ex FD at Cardale remained friends and kept very much in touch even when their business connections were over, often speaking and putting the world to rights – They usually agreed that the country would be in much better shape if Roy was PM and Graham was Chancellor. Graham shared this memory – “I was born and bred in Moss Side, Manchester and as a child enjoyed occasional days out to Blackpool. As a result of the outings I looked upon the place with much nostalgia and one of the great experiences of my life was travelling with Roy in a two-seater light aircraft straight and level at around 500 feet along the promenade and Golden Mile. It was a breath-taking experience the memory of which will live with me forever.” Roy loved work as much as he loved life. He never lost his enthusiasm for the industry and for Chamberlain Doors and he made a massive contribution to our industry not only in the UK but across the world and the Garage Door Industry could not have asked for a better ambassador. Thank You Roy.
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