Roger Garrett's memorial bench dedication 24th March 2018
Channel: Geemeff
Date: 2018-03-25

Roger Garrett 24/3/1951 - 20/7/2015. Roger was not only our postman, but also our neighbour and friend, and is very much missed. On what would have been Roger's birthday, this hand-crafted bench made of solid oak was dedicated to his memory by his local community in a moving ceremony. The Beacontree community's donations were matched by a grant from the local council, and Councillor Sheree Rackham attended along with our local Member of Parliament Iain Duncan Smith. The ribbon was cut by Roger's partner Bill Caster, and the community toasted Roger in champagne.

The local paper covered the ceremony:
27th March 2018
Neighbours raise a toast in memory of 'beloved' postman who died of a cardiac arrest
Laura O'Callaghan  Reporter covering Waltham Forest. 

Neighbours gathered at a street corner on Saturday morning to raise a toast to their “beloved postman” and unveil a bench in his memory three years after he died of a cardiac arrest

Roger Garrett of Beacontree Avenue, Walthamstow died after presenting with chest pains at Whipps Cross Hospital, Leytonstone on July 20 2015.

An investigation into his death found the 64-year-old was made to wait three hours without a proper assessment and collapsed suddenly as his partner Bill Caster sat in a waiting room nearby.

Mr Caster was on hand to cut the bench’s ribbon as close friends and neighbours raised their champagne glasses to Mr Garrett on what would have been his 67th birthday.

Mr Caster, 67, who first met Mr Garrett aged 11 when the pair were in school, said: “It was quite traumatic when he died and it’s still hard to think about so it’s nice to have something to remember him by.

“It’s important because he did so much for so many people in the area. They wanted to remember him. I felt good and it was not a sad day.

“It’s nice to see how much they thought of him.”

The wooden bench inscribed with the words ‘In loving memory of our friend and postman Roger Garrett (1951-2015)’ is situated on the corner of Beacontree Avenue and Forest Road and is facing the woods.

Gaye Harmer who counted Mr Garrett as a “very good friend” said the view from the bench is the same the postman had from his bedroom window.

The 60-year-old retired civil servant who used to leave her pets in Mr Garrett’s care when she went on holidays said she will always remember him “with great fondness and deep regret that he is gone.”

She admits his death came as a “huge shock” because Mr Garrett seemed to be fit and healthy and says the thing she loved most about him was his smile.

“He was quite an extraordinary man,” she said. “He was always smiling and loved by everyone.

“He didn’t just deliver our post. He would take neighbours to their hospital appointments, cook Christmas dinner for elderly and vulnerable people and bring people newspapers.

“We all remember him in our hearts but it’s nice to have something concrete to remember him by. Others will come and go but Roger will be with us forever.

“People got quite emotional at the unveiling but it was also upbeat because Roger loved a party and we drank a toast in his memory. It was Roger’s last party.”

Ms Harmer credits the postman with “making the neighbours a community” and said he was always looking for ways to introduce people to one another.