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Andy Hamilton R.I.P. - Morris musician and general good guy!
Many thanks to all those who came to Andy's Funeral today.
Somewhere around 200 people packed into the crematorium - if anyone ever had any
doubts about how popular Andy was and how much he will be missed, that alone
should convince them.
And many thanks to all those who were able to come to the
Wake at the Cannon. All our thanks must go to Adam, his wife and his staff
for making us all welcome and proving such a good spread. There was good
company, food, drink, singing and dancing - just as Andy would have wished us to
celebrate his life.
There will be a Memorial Ceilidh on Saturday November 2nd
at the Lovat Hall, Newport Pagnell. Full details will be published here
and through various other channels once we have finalized the details, but book
the date in your diary now!
Once again, many thanks.
Woad Works Morris
June 18th, 2002
| Latest news: |
Updated: 2002-06-08 |
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Andy's Funeral will be at Crown Hill Crematorium, Milton
Keynes, on Tuesday 18th June at 11:30 a.m.
Whilst all are welcome, the family have asked that there be
no bells, musical instruments, singing, or people in Morris Kit. Flowers
will be from the family only, donations are invited to The
National Association for Colitis and Crohn's Disease
After the Funeral, Andy's family will be going to their own
private function. Everyone else is invited to the Cannon, Newport Pagnell.
Musical instruments will be welcome there!
Woad Works will be organizing a memorial Day of Dance and Ceilidh later in the
year.
Messages of condolence can be sent to music@woadworks.org.uk.
Chris Nikel
Foreman & Bandmaster
Woad Works Morris
June 12th, 2002
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I was going to update this page this afternoon to tell how
I'd tracked Andy down to hospital yesterday and how poorly he was. We went
to see him again this afternoon, but sadly we were too late. He died early
this morning.
We will all miss him.
I'll post details of his funeral here as soon as I know
them. We'll be organising a memorial Day of Dance and Ceilidh later in the
year.
Messages of condolence can be sent to music@woadworks.org.uk
and I'll pass them on to his daughter Frances, his ex-wife Ann, his brother
Charles and his Mother.
Chris Nikel
Foreman & Bandmaster
Woad Works Morris
June 8th, 2002
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| 2002-5-26 19:00 BST
Andy's still quite poorly, but has got as far as he can in hospital
(and he's bored to tears!) so he will be going home tomorrow. The
hardest part of his recovery begins then! He's absolutely set on
being well enough to go to Sarum Morris' 20th Birthday weekend in July! |
| 2002-5-17 18:00 BST
Saw Andy this afternoon. he's making good progress and is no
longer considered to be critical. I arrived just as another friend
of his was leaving having delivered Andy's melodeons to him! He'll
be in hospital for at least another week, but he is getting stronger every
day. |
| 2002-5-16 21:00 BST
Went to see Andy this evening - I arrived just after one of the other
Woad Workers had left! Took our young ace box player with me so that
he could see for himself that Andy's getting better. Tremendous
improvement in him, even just from yesterday. He's now talking in
terms of all the people he knows will be around him to help him when
he leaves hospital, rather than if!
He's absolutely adamant that he will never touch alcohol again (apart
from one glass at his daughter's wedding) but knows he needs help to make
that happen. So whatever you do, next time you see him, don't offer
to get him a beer!
Won't be able to get in to see him now until Saturday or Sunday, but
will update page as soon as I can. |
| 2002-5-15 21:00 BST
I've just got back from the hospital. Andy is much better than he
was, but that still means he's very poorly! He is mobile though,
enough to get out to the smoker's shelter!
Despite the earlier thoughts that his liver is ok, they've now found it
not to be so and it seems that it was the liver not coping which led to
the kidneys not coping and so to the massive fluid retention that he
had. The fluid has nearly all gone, he's on a restricted fluid
intake and looks much better. He has to give up alcohol totally!
His family have all reappeared into his life as well and that together
with all the messages that I've been able to take along to him, is really
helping him. He was very moved by those of you who don't know him
but have still sent messages!
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| 2002-5-15 12:30 BST
Woadworkers visited Andy on Monday
evening. he's still very poorly and we are waiting to find up with
him. His family have all been to see him, including Anne who he
split with a few years ago. I'll be going to see him this evening
and will update this with the latest information tonight.
Thanks for all the e-mails that have been coming in. Amazingly they
have come from all over the world, both from friends and people who've
never met him. I'll be taking them into him this evening |
For many years
Andy has been the main box player for Woad Works Morris. He's also
played for many, many other sides, some regularly, some on an ad hoc basis,
and he's also been around the festival scene for many years.
His health has
been deteriorating for some time for a variety of reasons, and he's
never the easiest guy to track down - for most of the last winter we
couldn't even find him to get him to Monday night practice! He
reappeared just at the start of the season but was clearly not at all well.
He played for us at the start of May at the Rochester Sweeps Festival for some
of each day, and we had so many people asking after him - more people
seek out Woad Works to find out how Andy is than for any other reason!
When he didn't
answer the door for his lift to one of our dance out s we were all concerned
so we set out to track him down afterwards. We found him at Milton
Keynes Hospital. He'd been very ill at Rochester - we knew that.
When he'd got back he'd taken himself off to the Doctor who immediately sent
him off to hospital.
How is he now?
Well apart from being in the best possible place at the moment he is very ill.
The exact problem has not yet been diagnosed, but heart and liver have been
given the all clear. (He was as surprised as anyone when they told him they
were sure it wasn't a drink related problem!). we hope to find out more
later this week.
Those of you who
know him and what he's put into Morris Dancing over the years will want to
send him your best wishes. I'm sure it will cheer him up and speed his
recovery. Those of you who've not met him might well want to send best
wishes to a fellow musician anyway. If you want to send e-mails to music@woadworks.org.uk
we'll print them out and take them into him. If you want to send a card
he's in Ward 16 at Milton Keynes General Hospital.
We'll
update this page as soon as we've got more information. At the moment we
are expecting him to be in hospital for quite some time
Please keep Andy
in your thoughts. He's put in a lot and has been an inspiration to many,
not least our young melodeon player who's really cut up about it.
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