Choir Men die within days of each other

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Choir Men die within days of each other

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Churchdown Male Voice Choir is paying tribute to two of its members

who died last month.Charlie and Den Ripley who both had a

great love of singing passed away within a week of each other leaving

the choir remembering their much-loved friends.

The group described Charlie, 56, as a realistic, honest, funny, and

loyal man who was a friend to everyone.

Born in Mitcheldean he attended East Dean Grammar School and then

took up an Engineering apprenticeship at Dowty Mining in 1968. He

then became a planner at Dowty Hydraulic Units.

From his late teens he suffered from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

(CMT) a hereditary condition which causes wasting and weakness of the

muscles.

But was said to have borne his illness with great courage and dignity

and was a shining example to people suffering from similar illnesses.

Barry Woods, publicity officer for the choir said: " He never let his

condition spoil his enjoyment of life and was a loyal supporter of

Gloucester Rugby Club and could often be found on the touchline at

Twickenham.

" He was a keen cricket fan and also enjoyed a day at Cheltenham

races. But his greatest enjoyment was singing and he had a pure tenor

voice. "

A member of Churchdown Male Voice Choir for more than 30 years, he

also sang duets with a choir colleague entertaining audiences and

raising money for CMT United Kingdom.

He died from pneumonia at Cheltenham General Hospital on January 20

and was cremated on January 28.

Members of Churchdown Male Voice Choir were there to sing a final

song for him. He leaves a widow, Helen and a son and daughter, Neil

and .

Friends and colleagues of Den Ripley were also shocked to hear of his

sudden death on January 13 after a short illness.

Born in Portsmouth, Den joined the gas board as a fitter at age 16,

moving around the country until 1971 when he settled in Cheltenham,

as District Service Manager for Gloucestershire.

Friends said he had a great love of rugby which came about after

watching his son Graham playing for Old Pats.

He later ran the line and was well known for organising the beer draw

each week.

With his great devotion to Old Pats it was fitting that he was made

an honorary life member in recognition of the thousands of pounds he

had raised for the club.

He and his wife Mo were also regular visitors to Cheltenham Cricket

Festival where they helped in the running of the hospitality tent,

raising money for the rugby club.

Along with rugby, his other great love was singing with Churchdown

Male Voice Choir after joining in 1994.

Mr Woods said: " He loved singing and also enjoyed making people laugh.

" He often kept the choir amused whilst on tour with his Norman Wisdom

impressions and appeared in recent years as Father Christmas at the

choir's Christmas concerts.

Before his funeral on January 22 the choir's favourite soloist Sue

Black sang Pie Jesu from Requiem by Lloyd Webber.

The choir then sang some of Den's favourite songs including The Lost

Chord and The Rose.

An adored grandfather of five, Den leaves a widow Mo, two children

and three step-children.