I can’t imagine life without your hugs, says hero PC’s wife
‘You always had a smile on your face’
THE grieving widow of PC Andrew Harper last night said she ‘did not know how she would go on without’ him.
In a touching tribute in the form of an open letter to her husband, Lissie Harper said she ‘can’t begin to imagine’ life without her late husband’s ‘silly jokes, size 14 feet, large appetite, big hugs, Sunday roasts, and never faltering positive attitude’.
She added: ‘Anyone who was lucky enough to meet you, whether they knew you as Andrew, Andy, Uncle Mann, Harps or PC Harper – to everyone you are a hero.
‘You had the best sense of humour and never took life too seriously. You treasured every moment and always had a smile on your face.’
Mrs Harper also said she ‘wants to be angry’ that the 28-year-old’s job as a serving police officer ‘took him away from us’, but concedes he loved the job and ‘genuinely cared for everyone’.
Her open letter came as police charged Jed Foster, 20, from Reading, with murder and theft of a quad bike. He will appear at Reading Magistrates’ Court this morning.
Yesterday heartbroken colleagues of PC Harper paid tribute to him at the spot where he was mown down while responding to a burglary in Sulhamstead in Berkshire last Thursday.
Another officer, PC Gareth Phillips, seriously injured during a separate attack in Birmingham earlier this month, also sent his prayers to PC Harper’s family.
Mr and Mrs Harper got married just last month. They were due to go on honeymoon this week.
In her open letter, Mrs Harper wrote: ‘The lights have dimmed on all of our lives now that you are no longer here, but it’s no surprise that even when you’re gone, you’re still keeping us all going, knowing that you would tell us to carry on and stay strong... Although we were married for only 28 days before you were cruelly taken away, my husband you were perfect. I will never ever stop loving you.’
She ended: ‘Your loving wife, Lissie x.’