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Respected industry figure Mr David Rowley passed away on Saturday 20th May 2000, following an eight-year fight against cancer.
David, who was 53, was Group Managing Director of the Leicester glazing, roofing and plumbing group of companies, Norman & Underwood, a position he had held since 1997.
David joined the company in 1962 straight from school and was initially employed as a Counter Assistant at the Leicester city-centre site. David was promoted rapidly through the ranks of the company’s glass departments and was appointed a Director in 1971, at the age of 25.
David was one of the main driving forces behind the growth in the group’s glazing activities to its present national and international position, earning the respect and admiration of the whole of the UK glass industry in the process. He was a major influence in securing many of the firm’s prestigious overseas contracts.
A former member of the Leicester Forest Cycling Club, which he joined in 1961, David, completed a sponsored cycle ride for charity in 1994, when he and three friends rode from Barmouth to Yarmouth in just four days.
David was also a founder member of the Leicester-based Oasis Fund Raising Group, which has helped to raise thousands of pounds for charity and local good causes over the past two decades.
David managed to combine his passion for gardening with his love of the occasional pint of Pedigree when, in 1999, he re-named his garden shed “The Fat Controller” Public House – the title being a reference to his former rounded physique!
The youngest ever regional Chairman of the Multiple Sclerosis Association, David will be remembered for his zest for life, dry wit and his tremendous sense of fun. David was at ease with people on all levels and could quite literally ‘walk with kings but keep the common touch.’
One of the most courageous people you could ever wish to meet, David had cancer for eight years but refused to let it dampen his spirit, his love of life and people or his dedication to the Company. He was last at his desk just a week before he died.
David leaves a wife Stephanie and two grown up children Charlotte and David.
Ends. 1st June 2000
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