Photo: (from left) Ron Openshaw, Keith Haddon, Judy Jackson
We were all very sorry to hear of the death of Ron Openshaw. He had been ill on and off for a number of years and looked as though he was getting better but, leaving the Library after his usual shift recently, he had a heart attack and crashed his car. Sensibly, he managed to choose the wall of a care home where two nurses took him in hand while the ambulance arrived. Ten days later, he had a second attack and died in Treliske.
Quiet, gentle and kind are the words that everyone uses about Ron. Private, might be another. Not many people knew that he was actually an accomplished folk singer/songwriter and was working with Sue Fallon on the fifth CD of his songs. Many of these grew out of Cornwall and the history of the working people; many had a sly wit like his song of the laminated beam engine which was never quite straight.
A life-long bachelor, Ron was brought to Goonhilly by BT in the 60s and sensibly never left. He helped found, and was on the steering group of, the Kerrier and Falmouth Credit Union and sat on the Lizard RNLI committee. In the Library, he did much of the early work on Fox's Arrivals which has been taken on by Bill Powell, and on other databases.
We will miss him.
Jonathan Griffin
