Page 74 - BR December 2023
P. 74

December 2023                                                                       December 2023


                                                                                                                                  FUNERAL TRIBUTES


                                                                                                             years as project manager, commissioning one of the largest
                                                                                                             waste disposal plant, that removed the majority of Madrid’s
                                                                                                             domestic  waste.  He  then  returned  to  the  UK  where  he
                                                                                                             managed  many  projects  the biggest being the installation
                                                                                                             of  the  escalators  and  lifts  on  the  London  underground
                                                                                                             Jubilee  line  extension,    worth  £53  million.  After  working
                                                                                             abroad and away in London Mike decided he didn’t want to spend anymore
                                                                                             time away from his family now having Emma and Andrew at home.
                                                                                             Mike  decided  to go into teaching,  doing a  PGCE  at  Southampton  University
                                                                                             and a placement at the Queen Elizabeth school in Wimborne  -  the identical
                                                                                             path his daughter Emma followed exactly 20 years later. After quickly realising
                                                                                             teaching teenagers was not for him, Mike left teaching but continued to use
                                                                                             his  PGCE  in  training  for  many  years.  Mike’s  final  career  change  was  to
                                                                                             Hamworthy Engineering where he was a project manager and then technical
                                                                                             training  supervisor.  Mike  manufactured  several  furnaces  and  taught  others
                                                                                             how to work them. He did this both in Poole and on oil rigs all over the world.
                                                                                             One story in particular Mike liked to tell was when he took a flight to Denmark,
                                                                                             a  small  aircraft  to  a  helipad  where  the  helicopter  then  took  him  to  the  oil

                                    G P Lewis                                                platform  where  he fixed the problem in  less  than two minutes.  Mike’s career
                                                                                             has taken him to over 43 countries, and after getting denied entry to Nigeria
          Interior/Exterior Painter & Decorator                                              because of a South African stamp he decided to get a second passport.
                                                                                             Although Mike had a very busy career, he still had time for many hobbies. In
                                                                                             1990  we  joined  the  Winfrith  sub-aqua  club,  becoming  BSAC  trained  sports
         All aspects of painting and                                                         divers. We had many dives off the south coast of England and out in Gozo, but
         decorating undertaken including                                                     our favourite dives were with the Seals in the Isle of Scilly.
         Domestic, New builds, Refurbs                                                       Another  annual  trip  that  Mike  enjoyed  was  our  skiing  trips  to  France.  Mike
         and Commercial.                                                                     struggled  a  bit  with  mobility  because  of  the  metal  plate  in  his  leg  from  a
                                                                                             motorbike accident. However, this did not stop him and you would not want
         Qualified and with over 30 years                                                    him to be  behind  you while  coming  down the slopes!  Along with  rugby  and
         experience, will offer friendly                                                     motorcycling Mike’s main hobby was being green.
         advice if needed.                                                                   The  house  is  an  encyclopaedia  of  green  energy.  If  anything  is  to  go  wrong
            1st class finish                  If you require a job done hassle free         now,  no  one  would  have  any  idea how  to fix it. Mike  installed  Solar  thermal
                                                                                             and  Solar  PV  panels,  an  air  source  heat  pump  and  a  rain  water  harvesting
            Free written quotes                 by an honest, friendly tradesman            system. Anyone that visited had to have the tour around the property before
                                                   please give Gavin a call on
            Fully insured                      01929 471704 or 07977                        being allowed inside for further lectures on the importance of green energy.
                                                                                             His only weakness was his cars. For his 70  birthday the family brought Mike a F
                                                                                                                                th
            No job too small or big                   047314, Email:                        type Jaguar which was thoroughly enjoyed for about a year before selling it to
            No VAT                                                                          get an electric Jaguar to go with the green look.
                                                   g.lewis515@btinternet.com.

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