Desmond “Des” Lewis

“Sad are the hearts that love you, Silent are the tears that fall.”

Des passed away peacefully in the care of Hollymere House Care Home, Haslington on 27th August 2021 aged 93 years.

The beloved Husband of Muriel.  Much Loved Dad to Karen & Diane.  Also a Cherished Grandad, Great Grandad and Good Friend to many, who will be fondly remembered & so sadly missed.

His funeral took place on Thursday 9th September 2021 at Crewe Crematorium Chapel at 12.15pm

Kind donations in Des’s memory are going to Dementia UK.

For further information and to offer your condolences, please telephone our Funeral Home on 01270 584447

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Des was a kind, caring, reserved man who was thoughtful and one hundred percent
generous with his time and love. He had always provided for his family and with
Muriel had given them the best start in life with solid family values and lots of fun and
laughter thrown in the mix, the perfect balance from a perfect team.
Des was a much-loved father-in-law to Chris and Neil, a cherished grandad to Sarah,
Lauren, Alex and Fay and to his great grandchildren Mason and Ellis. He was also
a dear brother and a good friend to many.
Ernest was born on 2nd November 1927 and lived with the family in Winterly. Sadly,
his dad died when Des was only one year old. May brought the children up on her
own but did the very best she could for them all. Des certainly had no complaints, he
had a good life, and he enjoyed their holidays at Butlins in Filey and in his youth, Des
went to the TT Races on his bike every year with his mates, in fact he remained a
bachelor until he was almost thirty.
After leaving school at fourteen, Des initially worked at Whey Products but went on
to become an apprenticeship at Crewe Works. After qualifying as a fitter, Des settled
in his job until he took early retirement at the age of fifty-nine.
He met Muriel in the Foresters Arms at Winterly he had two treasured possessions,
his Triumph Tiger 100 and his dancing shoes. Muriel was only nineteen and it
seems fairly fearless. When they began courting she was happy to ride pillion on
Des’s bike which was extremely fortunate because the sun wasn’t always shining on
their travels throughout the countryside, sometimes it was lashing down with rain,
especially over the Cat and Fiddle and they were soaked through to the skin
Their dancing days were thankfully far more graceful! Des loved Big Band Music,
whereas Muriel liked to listen to Ted Heath; it was lovely to enter the chapel to the
sounds of Joe Loss playing one of his big band hits, ‘In The Mood’, ideal for a fast,
light and powerfully flowing Jive.
Both Des and Muriel were exceptional dancers and they had some wonderful dance
halls to choose from around Crewe. Three years after they first met, Des and Muriel
declared their lasting vows at St Pauls Church and Muriel even remembers the exact
time, 3pm! And with a close eye on the coffers, they went straight to their
honeymoon hotel, their forever home in Ludlow Avenue.
Karen was welcomed into the world in 1960 followed the long-anticipated arrival of
her sister Diane, seven years later. They both fondly recall the brilliant seaside
holidays they had and remember how their dad was renowned for painstakingly
building sandcastles on the beach and they didn’t just have turrets and fortresses
either, they were works of art, boats and cars decorated with shells and most of the
children on the beach flocked over to try them out.
He was an incredibly patient man with a creative flair, and he very often loved to
draw. Karen also remembers every Sunday morning he used to put her in a seat on
his crossbar and cycle to Winterly to see Uncle Geoff and Auntie Joan, they would
do the circuit of Winterly pool and get back home in time for Sunday lunch.

In the afternoon, they enjoyed a trip out in the car and a drink at the pub, well, the
girls had pop and crisps in the car, Maureen kept them company with a glass of lager
and Des had his customary pint at the bar!
He did enjoy his pint with the lads but he never swore although he did used to act
daft in the kitchen and either whistle a tune or sing the most amusing ditties whilst
tapping the kettle to the beat.
Des always used to set the table for breakfast the night before, he grew succulent
runner beans and made the best potato smacks, sliced and fried to just the right
consistency!
He was a welcoming host too, particularly at Christmas when they had people round
or when they had celebration parties, he made sure everyone had a drink and were
having fun.
And he was without doubt, the most amazing grandad with unfailing patience and
endless fun. He was full of mischief like when he regularly snook them in the kitchen
with a glint in his eye to give them a spoonful of Horlicks straight from the jar!
They all looked forward to hearing his musical Christmas tie and Sarah has many
memories of her own, like calling grandad to ask for a lift and he would drop what he
was doing, drive to her school in Sandbach and take her and her pals anywhere they
wanted to go in his little red Nova with the toy monkey on the back parcel shelf along
for the ride!
And being the only boy, Alex regularly got treated to Pokemon and Hotwheel cars.
Grandad used to build a ramp to add a bit of extra excitement and the two of them
would race the cars whilst sitting on the floor – it’s a wonder granddad ever got up
again!!
One of Faye’s lasting memories of having long hair was grandad always telling her to
tie her hair back out of her eyes! And Lauren remembers every Christmas he would
send each of them five one-pound coins in a tiny square card.
So many fond memories to recall, like how he used to cycle all over, especially to
work and to town and he liked to go to Chelford with his brother Geoff.
On holiday, he walked for miles on the beach and when asked if he wanted a cup of
tea his normal reply was “I’ll risk it for a biscuit!”
And what about, “Are you Ok Des?, Yes Down one side!”
He loved tinkering with cars in his garage, whilst stood in the purpose-built pit and he
got a huge amount of pleasure from his garden, particularly the topiary, it was his
happy place, and very special.

May he rest in peace.