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May 2019 May 2019
THE BRITISH
OBITUARIES
RED CROSS

Mr Douglas Keogan RIP
Help People In Your Community - The British Red Cross Doug Keogan was born in London. It would be fair to say that Doug had his
(Dorset) Needs You! share of disappointments early on. He didn’t have an easy childhood or
indeed an easy early working life. For some of his childhood he lived in a
From our Poundbury & Poole Shaftesbury Society Home, a very strict disciplined environment. Doug worked
offices, the Red Cross are very hard, studying for exams, in order to enter the RAF, a life he loved. Sadly
working with local hospitals ill health meant that he had to be invalided out of the job that he loved.
and community rehab
teams to offer practical His change of fortune came when he found his real niche in life, working on
support to those who have motorbikes. Doug loved motorbikes, he had one for over 60 years. He did trials
recently been in hospital. The riding and was awarded the ‘ear ole’ Cup, an award for the most persistent
aim of the Support at Home rider who kept falling off! Subsequently Doug became the general manager
service is to help people by of a car sales company which gave him a real opportunity to travel; he
offering encouragement, would travel as far as Scotland to pick up cars. The photos of the showroom in
p r a c t i c a l h e l p a n d their home that Alison put together for Doug’s birthday are incredible to see.
emotional support, for a few Perhaps this love of cars and motorbikes gave him his wanderlust as he
hours per week for a period developed a passion for travelling especially motor homing. Doug and Alison
of up to 6 weeks. Our team had many motorhomes and when they couldn’t travel and stop away as
of staff and volunteers they used to, they still went out in their day van every day.
provide support to aid recovery and aim to prevent readmission into hospital. The
service is available to people aged 65 and over, however we are unable to Doug was a very hard worker; successful as the hardworking General
provide personal or medical care. Manager in car sales, he also worked very hard in the home; windows, sinks,
bathroom- were all spotless after his ministrations. When he could no longer
Do you have a couple of hours to spare each week? Would you like a chance to ride on his beloved motorbike Doug’s absolute favourite activity was to be
work with a variety of people from different walks of life and make a real out in his workshop- he loved sorting out his tools and smoking his pipe.
difference to their lives? If so we would love to hear from you. We are currently Doug had a wicked sense of humour – he wrote poems- poems such as ‘an
recruiting for a range of volunteering roles in Dorset. Roles include: Support at ode to a lost maiden’ when Tricia got lost one day. He could be hard at times
Home, Crisis Response (helping respond to Emergencies in the local area),
and sharp tongued on occasion but he often spoke with a twinkle in his eye.
Mobility Aids (Dorchester & Poole) & Tutor Volunteers.
He had a strong Christian faith and said his prayers everyday. Doug made an
For more information on volunteering please contact Ella Coates impression on those around him-the local youngsters would all look out for him
ellacoates@redcross.org.uk Tel: 07860402300 or for information about the Support when he went on walkabout. He was kind and would do anything to help you
at Home service Dorsetsupportathome@redcross.org.uk if he could.
In the words of Alison, his wife, Doug was a perfect

The British Red Cross in Dorset gentleman.

When many people think of the British Red Cross, their thoughts turn to
Emergency Response work overseas or First Aid. The emblem is recognised all Memories of my grandad by Jeffrey Carr
over the world and it symbolises impartial help and assistance to those in need. He was a good husband, father, amazing
However not everyone will be aware that there is a huge range of services
helping people in crisis, right here in the UK; from supporting people after a stay in grandfather and a great-grandad.

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