Hi all at CH

I'm Barry's daughter, Karen. Our family would like to thank you all so very much for your kind words on my darling Dads passing.
We read the site some time ago but I have struggled with getting onto the site & figuring out passwords etc, tonight I managed to get into Dads laptop. (he would love the chaos I could create..)

You all gave Dad so much strength, hope, love & faith with your support. He battled this as you all do with your loved ones watching but unable to help. We cannot thank you enough for being there with Dad & offering your support. We are honoured at the naming of the BTC O2 treatment page - Dad would get a real kick out of it. He really was an O2 pusher.

As you know Dad loved a joke, he always had a line to put a smile on your face & warmth in your heart. He "took the piss" out of himself & others as often as he could. He did have a warped sense of humour which he passed onto us two kids.  He called a spade a spade & all knew where they stood with him. He was someone anyone could turn to for help emotional or hands on, he was there.

Nothing about Dad surprised me. He is our hero & we adore him.
He was self depreciating, honest, full of life & love & a student of life.
He kept his humour until the last & his dignity as well. He wouldn't mind me telling you all that after we had been told he was unresponsive in the early hours of the 20th Feb & they expected him to pass, he woke up 5 hours later & had a call of nature, he walked to the toilet with the help of a nurse, had his consitutional, wiped his own backside - he held his pride to the very end. That is the man that he is.


Dad has been called one if life's true gentleman, a true friend, a wonderful man. He was our everything. He was our anchor & moral compass. Mum's life partner. He was our standard to live up to.

I did expect a large turnout at his funeral (as Dad & I would call it - celebration of life) around 150 people showed up to say goodbye, that shows how much he was thought of. We had a party afterwards, the way he would want it.

Dad won't have let on too much that his childhood was not one any child should have to endure to become a loving, honest, open & sharing husband, father & friend. So many people blame others or their past for their bad behaviour, Dad proved that your choices are your own to be the person you are - it is not anyone else's doing.

Put all you have into your day, live it to the best you can & smile as often as you can. Be true to yourself. No matter how bad we think we have it, someone else has it worse.

I would really like to thank Aussie Brian for his support, we had a chat on the phone as I was writing this post tonight. It's taken a long time to do this for a number of reasons, emotional being one of them. This was always going to be tough, but Dad would want to pass on his thanks. He often told me about you all, he was very proud to be a part of something so important & I'm proud of his contribution. It's the kind of bloke that he was.

Dads dream is about to be realised, he & mum bought a 5 acre block in a coastal community north of Perth 16 years ago with a dream to build thier home on it. Dad got to see pictures of the roof on before he passed, it one of only two times I have seen him shed a tear. The house will be complete in a week or so & Mum will move down from the north to realise their dream. We will build the property up just how he wanted it - his still included. Dad would be so very proud.

He's out there smiling down on all of us. Sending a politically incorrect joke our way!

With heartfelt thanks from the Coles family, Nina, Karen & Jason. We thank you so very much.

Karen,

Thank you so much for coming here to write of your dad.  I wish I could have met him in person as he seemed like such a good man.  He was a great example of how to live with such adversity, not just with clusters, but with cancer as well.   

My condolences to you all.

Melissa

Karen,

That was such a beautiful tribute to your father. my deepest condolences to your whole family.

Your father was us so much and he will be missed in great deal in our ch community as well.

I wish your family the best,
Sanna

Thank you, Karen, for letting us hear more about your beloved Dad.  He was loved and well respected in this community as well.  We'll always remember him.
Love to you and your family.

Karen, thank you so very much for taking the time to write such a lovely tribute to your father. Your Dad was a valued and much-loved member here, and he will be very much missed.

Barry did a lot of good here. He will be fondly remembered.

All my very best to you, your mother, and all your family.

George

Thank you for that moving tribute, Karen. Your dad was well loved here and will be missed.
Hugs and continued prayers, nani

Karen, thank you for writing about my friend.  To visit Australia and meet your dad was high on my dream list.  I'm sorry I will not be able to fulfill that dream, but I thank you for filling in so much about him.  His irreverent sense of humor helped me more than one time when struggling, as did his common sense support and encouragement through these pages.  he indeed will be missed by your family, and by this one, and I'm the better for having known him through this phosphor screen.  Your family has been regularly in my prayers since I first learned of his passing.  God's peace and rest to you.

Jerry

Old surveyors never die, they just wander off looking for the lathe stretcher and never come back.

Look up the word *gentleman* and there you will find Barry's name.

My condolences.