Many of you will have fond memories of Arthur Mitchell and his family formerly from Derrygiff, Co. Fermanagh.
Nearly forty years ago he started arranging leisure holidays for young blind and vision impaired adults from the Republic and Northern Ireland on the shores of Lough Erne.
I found the below death notice on the Internet and am honoured to be able to circulate it here. Arthur and his family were wonderful selfless people and will have a very special place in the hearts of many of those with vision impairment on both sides of the border.
May he rest in peace.
...and the full media report....
NEWS of the death of Arthur Mitchell, aged 92, of Daneway, Chalford, Gloucestershire, and formerly of Derrygiff, Enniskillen, has been received with great
sadness.
He had been a highly regarded figure in Fermanagh for many years.
A founding member of the Fermanagh Talking Newspaper, Arthur passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his family on Monday, January 9, after a short
illness.
Arthur, who held an MBE, was one of five children and is survived by his brothers, George and Samuel, and his sister Pauline.
Arthur was a well known member of the community in Enniskillen. He moved to the town in 1968 with his wife Eleanor and daughters Annabelle and Jela. Before
this he had managed a nursing home in Oxfordshire,with Eleanor.
He was keen to return to Ireland and was able to do this after securing a position at the Fermanagh County Hospital as a physiotherapist where he was highly
regarded by both staff and patients. He remained at the hospital until his retirement in 1990.
Arthur had lost his sight in his mid twenties but this did not stop him from leading a full and active life. During this time, with Eleanor they started
“Derrygiff activities for the Blind”, a registered charity, allowing blind and partially sighted children and young adults to participate in adventure
training, and skiing holidays, and give them opportunities to encourage and build their self confidence. Many of these children kept in touch with Arthur
over the years and have expressed gratitude for all the adventures. For this, his work at the County Hospital and in a cross community group he was awarded
an M.B.E in 1980.
Arthur was also involved with the Enniskillen Chest, Heart and Stroke Club.
During his time in Fermanagh, Arthur became a founding member of the Fermanagh Talking Newspaper. He continued with this for the next 25 years. Even after
leaving the county he continued to receive the weekly tapes to keep him up to date with all the news from home.
It was with great sadness that Arthur and Eleanor left Fermanagh in 2000. They needed to be closer to their family in England, due to Eleanor becoming
ill. They adapted well, and after Jela’s marriage to Mark in 2001, they were overjoyed by the arrival of two grandchildren, Ella and Millie.
They also had family members Jela, Annabelle and Popsy close by, who were a great comfort when Eleanor passed away in 2007.
Arthur celebrated his 90th birthday in 2015, and was delighted and surprised by his sister Pauline arriving for the big event, from Belfast.
The family would like to pass on their heartfelt thanks to friends, old and new, for their kind words after Arthur’s passing and have extended thanks to
the doctors and nursing staff at Frithwood surgery, and the team at ‘Hospice at Home’ who made it possible for Arthur to remain at home for the last few
weeks of his life. The funeral was held last Friday, January 20, near his home in Chalford where he was laid to rest beside Eleanor.