An Angus OAP who had planned a fundraising skydive has lost his battle with cancer before being able to fulfil his courageous dream.
Denis Mellor had been due to make the drop into the Perthshire skies on Sunday, but was sadly too ill to realise the ambition he had harboured since his National Service days in the RAF.
Staff at the Montrose Day Care Centre which was to benefit from the 83-year-old’s bravery have been devastated by the popular pensioner’s passing and facility manager Irene Mitchell has now pledged to face her fears and tackle the parachute jump in honour of Denis.
Earlier this month, The Courier revealed how Denis had finally been given the go-ahead to skydive having previously been banned from it by specialists because he was being treated with the drug Warfarin.
Sadly, Denis’s condition worsened with the recent discovery of a melanoma on his eye, but when doctors took him off the drug the Wirral-born octogenarian seized the chance to have the medical clearance certificate signed for the parachute challenge.
He had paid for the Errol Airfield jump from his own pocket, determined to raise as much money as possible for the Montrose centre which he said had supported him through difficult times.
Mrs Mitchell said Denis had been determined to go ahead with the event on Sunday, but was too ill to travel and sadly passed away on Monday.
“Denis’s death has been a real shock to us and it was such a shame that he could not go ahead with the skydive,” she said.
“He had not been well all weekend, but felt he was letting everybody down, which was so typical of the man that Denis was.
“He was a wonderful person and was gutted not to be able to go ahead with it, but it has to be done in his honour and I have decided that I am going to take it on.
“I don’t feel brave at all. I’m absolutely terrified and I’m not going to pretend otherwise, but it is all about Denis’s memory.”
The plucky pensioner’s fundraiser had already generated good support through the day care centre’s JustGiving website page.
“Anyone who had sponsored Denis but is now not wishing to donate the money should contact us at the centre, but we hope people will still support the cause that is now in his memory,” Mrs Mitchell said.
“When I complete the skydive the money will go to something for the centre that will bear the name of Denis as a memorial to him and a reminder of how special he was.”