FRIENDS and neighbours have shared their fond recollections of the elderly man who was knocked down and killed at a notorious accident blackspot just yards from his home last week.
Geoffrey Rowley, who was 83, died after being struck my a motorbike while crossing Woodford Green High Road, near the junction with Bunces Lane, last Wednesday (April 28) making him the second fatality in the same stretch of road inside six months.
People living near Mr Rowley's home in Wensley Avenue, which is only a minute's walk from where he was killed, have paid tribute to a kind and gentle man, who was married to his wife Violet for over 50 years until she died in 2008.
Albert Lilley, 79, said: “He was a genuinely nice person, he was very well-liked and respected by everyone.
“He was always happy to do things for other people I was in hospital a few years ago and I remember he came to visit me, it was things like that, the human touch he had.
“He was an Arsenal fan and he got his first season ticket in 1938. Other than during the war years, when there was no football going on, he kept it going right up until this year, so I shouldn't wonder if he was the longest season ticket holder.”
Mr Rowley had a distinguished career in the both the military, serving as Royal Marine from 1944 until 1947, and in public service, as the deputy clerk of the City of London – during which time he was responsible for organising the Lord Mayor's Show – and then as clerk, from 1982 to 1991.
He was honoured for his work with the City of London by the Queen in 1989, when he was made a CBE.
Mr Lilley said: “I remember when my Mum was alive we used to watch the Lord Mayor's Show in television and she'd say, 'There's Geoff on the screen', and there he'd be, in all his finery with his head poking out of the carriage.”
He also said he believed Mr Rowley was wearing a dark suit at the time of the crash, and had been coming back from a function in central London. He added that he himself had crossed the road at almost the same point on his way home just minutes before.
“I'd just come out of The Cricketer's pub only about ten minutes before, and I only just missed him. If I'd have been there I would have said 'Hello Geoff' and he might not have crossed where he did, but you don't know really,” he said.
Pamela Harding, 76, said: “He was a fantastic neighbour, and we've known him for over 40 years since we've lived here.
“He was just a lovely guy, a real gentlemen. He will be sorely missed by everyone.”
Mr Rowley's death comes just weeks after Fiona Daniels, 29, was killed while jogging back in January, only a few yards away from where the most recent accident took place.
Police are appealing for information about the crash, which took place just before 11pm on Wednesday, April 28.
Anyone who knows anything about the incident should contact DS Abi Lambkin at the crash investigation team on 020 8597 4874.
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