Staff at Fore Street Pool have paid tribute to an “extraordinary” grandfather-of-three who dedicated his life to helping heart patients in Suffolk.
Len Tate, from Brantham, was at the core of a campaign to build a life-saving heart unit at Ipswich Hospital from 2009 to 2014. The 83-year-old, who was vice-chairman at Heartbeat East Suffolk and chairman of the hospital’s cardiology users’ group, died earlier this month.
Len played a key role introducing Heartbeat members to swimming sessions at Fore Street Pool to keep them fit and help recuperate after heart operations and issues.
Rob Bridgeman, Duty Manager, said staff at the pool were devastated to hear of Len’s passing. “He was instrumental in organising swimming sessions for Heartbeat members, he was a very organised guy and before the sessions even started he secured the pool a new defibrillator and additional training on how to use it. Nothing was too much bother for Len; if he could help he would. He also had a great attitude to life and always seemed so upbeat, it is almost as if he had his own health scare and decided to never waste a second of his life. He was a great guy who will be sadly missed by us all at Fore Street.”
