Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Dedicated Roy a councillor for half
TRIBUTES have poured in following the death of Roy Nicholas, who was a member of Minchinhampton Parish Council for half a century.
Cllr Nicholas, 82, had been looking forward to a celebration of the milestone achievement before his recent illness. He died at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on January 1 and is survived by a son, a daughter and three grandchildren.
Cllr Nicholas, who also served on both Stroud district and Gloucestershire county councils and on countless charities, was chairman at Minchinhampton for 18 consecutive years after joining it in the late 1960s. Up until his death, he was vicechairman, and chairman of its finance committee.
Cllr Nick Hurst, the current chairman of the parish council, said: “You have to recognise that he was absolutely dedicated to public service and his contribution to the community cannot be dismissed. It is unlikely to be repeated in a hurry. He was particularly proud of his involvement in the establishment of the Cotswold Care Hospice, now Longfield, in Minchinhampton, which happened during his time as chairman of Stroud District Council.”
After his death, flags were flown at half-mast at Ebley Mill, the headquarters of Stroud District Council, where Cllr Nicholas was chairman from 1983 to 1987.
“Our thoughts are with his family at this sad time,” said an SDC spokesman.
Stroud Labour MP David Drew said: “I was so sad to hear of the passing of Roy Nicholas. Roy has been a friend for 40 years. He was a brilliant SDC chair and member of Minchinhampton Parish Council for over 50 years. Our different political persuasions never got in the way of our friendship.”
Chairman of the district council’s housing committee, Chas Townley, said: “I have fond memories of working with Roy Nicholas on Stroud District Council. He will be missed and I do hope some form of lasting memorial to him will be found in Minchinhampton or the wider district.”
Brendon Conboy, co-founder of The Door Youth Project in Stroud, said he was very sad to hear the news of the death of Mr Nicholas.
Lib Dem councillor, Steve Dechan, said Mr Nicholas was “always witty and able to offer a kindly word.”
And Green councillor John Marjoram said: “There will never be the likes of Roy again. He called a spade a spade and he ruled the council with a rod of iron, but he was fair.
“He was dedicated to our local authority and over the years we became friends – he will be greatly missed as a character.”
Cllr Nicholas was firstly elected to the old Stroud Rural District Council before seeing the birth of Stroud District Council through the Local Gov-