Michael "Mick" Patrick Rothwell (16 Mar 1946 - 5 Apr 2021)

In loving memory of Michael "Mick" Patrick Rothwell who sadly passed away on 5th April 2021

Mick was born in Whatcote Cottages, Platt and was the eldest boy of nine siblings. Although the family moved to Wrotham when he was a young boy he returned to Platt to spend the summers with his cousins, the Renyard’s, and had wonderful memories of playing together in Platt Woods as children.

He didn’t enjoy school and left as soon as he could, joining Kitneys coal round. Hopping from one job to another when it was easy to do so in those days, he spent some time at Noelites and finally settled at Calor Engineering in Platt for the remainder of his working life for some 30 years. Mick strongly believed in paying his way and never living beyond his means. He was old-fashioned, always liking to pay upfront rather than owe anyone anything.

He never learned to drive but this didn’t dampen his sense of adventure and he frequently travelled beyond the village as a teenager and young man to widen his horizons. He visited many London football clubs until settling on Fulham as his favourite team because he discovered he could watch the boats on the river Thames from the stand if the game was boring. This is one of the legacies he has left behind .... most of the family have now followed in his footsteps to support Fulham.

His desire to roam further than the village frequently took him on bus journeys with friends into Gravesend and it was there that he met an Irish girl called Mary and they married young. Mick travelled to Ireland with Mary and it started a lifelong love affair with Ireland and the Irish. He enjoyed many holidays there throughout his life. Six years later, Mick and Mary started a family and he became a proud father of two; Kelly and Sean. He instilled in them a strong sense of ambition, a strong work ethic and a love of nature. Other passions he developed in his life were darts, (playing for the Blue Anchor at Platt), music, and animal rescue, supporting three charities: Folly Wildlife, Battersea and The Gorilla Organisation. He was much loved by Leybourne RSCPA for giving two very elderly and abused dogs loving and comfortable homes in their twilight years: his beloved two staffies Harry and Hattie. One of Mick’s happiest days was winning a rosette at an RSPCA fete for ‘most lookalike dog and owner‘ with Harry, who became a local celebrity and his constant companion. The manager of the RSPCA congratulated Mick on how he had turned Harry’s life around and looked so loved and well looked-after - a proud day for Mick and the photo taken that day shows both Mick and Harry with beaming smiles.

He was an ardent labour supporter and held the role of shop steward at Calor earning him the nickname ‘Red Rothwell’. Despite his battles with management for workers rights there was a lasting mutual respect between Mick and his manager with Christmas card exchanges beyond his retirement for the rest of their lives.

His size and stature earned him a reputation as a gentle giant and he was depended upon as the ‘anchor man’ in every Calor social and village fete tug of war but with advancing age sadly came declining health, notably heart problems.

He broke his neck and back in a freak accident 9 years ago and after spending months in hospital to recover, he fought hard to get back on his feet, yet this left his mobility dramatically reduced. He was a proud grandfather of one; Patrick Michael who was named after him. Sadly his accident preceded the return of his grandson from Thailand and Mick frequently voiced his upset and feelings of frustration to his daughter that he was not able to enjoy life as much as he would have done when he was a more mobile and younger man. He was no longer able to go for a long walk as it left him exhausted and in considerable pain. He needed to take a lot of painkillers which made him frequently fall asleep. Mick’s life was becoming smaller and smaller as a result. However he still looked forward to attending Patrick’s Karate competitions and never missed a school sports day - even joining in the last dad’s race which he ‘walked’..., it took him forever but he enjoyed making Patrick laugh that day and teaching him a good life lesson to never give up.

Leaving his home was becoming progressively more difficult but he remained headstrong and determined to fight on as much as he could. The occasional trip to local shops was his limit and the remainder of the day he would sit in his chair with his memories to keep him company, watching telly or listening to his music. His chair faced his garden and he watched his bird table, observing all the visiting birds, making sure they were always well-fed, as well as his visiting hedgehog, and a stray cat that had also moved into his garden. Neighbours remember the gentle giant that pottered around his garden feeding all of his visiting creatures and enjoying a natter with anyone that stopped to chat as they passed him by.

A beautiful life came to an end: he died as he lived... everyone’s friend x