Thomas Anthony Stockton (Tony)

“A light from our household has gone, a voice we loved is still.”

Tony sadly passed away suddenly at home on 29th July, aged 74 years.

A beloved husband, devoted father and loving grandfather and a friend to many, he will be sadly missed but lovingly remembered by all who knew him.

A service to celebrate Tony’s life took place on Tuesday 10th August in the Crematorium Chapel, Crewe at 2.45pm, followed by cremation.

Donations in memory of Tony will be gratefully received on behalf of St. Luke’s Hospice, a charity close to his heart.

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Tony was a beloved husband to Barbara, but in reality much more than that, they
were the two halves to a whole, a fantastic team, fitting together perfectly, blessed
with a wonderful togetherness for fifty five years, fifty two of them as husband and
wife, and Life couldn’t possibly have got any better than when Becky was welcomed
into the world but, each year brought them even more happiness, a much loved son
in law, grandchildren to dote on and extremely proud of.
Tony was just seventy-four years young; he was an incredibly popular, sociable man
with a reassuring confidence, and he possessed so many more inspirational
qualities. He was kind, caring, thoughtful and generous with his time and love. A
perfectionist who was extremely hardworking, yet he was happy go lucky, easy going
and fun loving, the rock on which his close family unit was built. He was loved and
respected by all who had the pleasure of knowing him.
Born in Crewe in February 1947, it was close to 9 months to the day after his Dad
was demobbed from the army after serving with The Black Watch during WW2.
Tony went to school at Beech Street Junior School and then on to Brierley Street
Secondary Boys’ School in Crewe, from August 1958 to June 1962.
As a young boy, he was a choir boy at St Michael’s Church in Coppenhall as well as
a Scout, and after leaving school, he followed in his dad’s footsteps by working as a
Telegram boy at the Post Office, before moving onto Rolls Royce.
When he was 19, Tony met Barbara, (or Babs as he called her), at the Barnabas
Street Youth Club, when she was 16 and they married three years later at St
Michael’s Church in 1969.
They moved into a house in Remer Street, Crewe before settling in Pendle Close in
1973, where they have been ever since. It was a lovely place to grow up with
fantastic neighbours supporting each other. In 1972, Becky was born and soon
became the apple of her dad’s eye. To say he was proud of her is an enormous
understatement; he loved what she did and who she was, always telling us about her
latest job and family adventures. The feeling was mutual – she loved going to watch
her dad rehearse for the Gang Show, and was there every night helping out,
although he never let her go on the Friday, because they went to the pub afterwards.
Holidays were always an important part of family life. They embarked on holidays
abroad, from when Becky was 7. Along with Barbara and Becky, Tony enjoyed
travelling the world, visiting new countries, and making new, and what became
lifelong friends and memories. His favourite holiday was in The Maldives, but it was
to Goa in India that they returned for over 20 years. Commenting on a visit to the Taj
Mahal, he said “Another one off the bucket list. Very emotional, wonderful
experience. Feeling lucky.”
In time, he decided to pursue a career with the NHS and embarked on training to
become an Operating Theatre Department Practitioner, later becoming a senior
practitioner.

This was a role that he loved and where he was the happiest in terms of his career.
His final role before retirement continued to be with the NHS as an operating Theatre
Risk and Governance Manager.
Tony always loved watching and playing sport from an early age. He was a qualified
football referee and supported The Wolves. In 2001, Neil became his much loved
son in law.
At the age of 65, Tony retired from the NHS and enjoyed a very fulfilling and active
retirement. He loved playing golf and was an active member of Reaseheath Golf
Club, becoming the Captain in 2012, before joining Sandbach Golf club later on.
He really missed playing and being outside with his friends during the pandemic.
Tony and Barbara continued to holiday regularly, exploring both in the UK and
abroad, more recently in the caravan.
He was a very competitive person and had to win everything, regardless of who he
was playing against- golf, quizzes, board games. That said, he was a stickler for
rules, and woe betide anyone who didn’t play fairly. He had excellent recall for facts
and information and could remember everything. More recently, he took an interest
in his ancestry and spent a lot of time researching the family tree.
However, his most rewarding job was his last- that of grandparent. Tom was born in
2004, Emily in 2008 and from then on, these two children whom he clearly idolised,
became the main focus of both Barbara and Tony’s life.
Hi lifelong friend Graham also gave a moving tribute in honour of their years of
friendship and camaraderie in the Scouts.

May he rest in peace