Richard Jones passed away on the 14th. Jan. 2007 after a brave battle against cancer.
We would like to record this tribute to our much respected and well loved former partner.
Richard was born in 1938 the son of a local agricultural contractor, Jack Jones from Fradley. There will be very few members of the farming community who do not remember the Jones and their threshing machine. No doubt these visits to the farms when he accompanied his father started the interest in the veterinary profession and after attending first St. Stephens Primary School, Fradley, followed by Alrewas C of E School, and finally King Edward VII grammar school Lichfield, he attained a place at the Royal Veterinary College in London, graduating from there in1963. Richard had a strong attachment to his local practice, at that owned by Alasdair Steele- Bodger, where he had spent many happy hours as a youth gaining experience and so he decided to return and work there. Richard obviously had many fond memories of those early days as he oft recalled amusing incidents to succeeding members in the practice. It is hard to imagine that even in the sixties some aspects of the work were little different to those in the early Herriot years.
Richard however was keen to develop other skills and took himself off to a small animal practice in Croydon. We think he was rather surprised to find himself the equine vet as well, being the only member of the practice to possess a pair of wellingtons! However his love of Staffordshire remained and he came back to the practice of Alasdair Steele-Bodger and was responsible for developing the small animal side. Under his guidance it continued to thrive, the Pool House premises became a veterinary hospital, branches were acquired, and most importantly many young veterinary surgeons benefited from his considerable surgical skills, day and night he was always available for advice whether, on duty or not.
Richard had many interests, in his youth a keen football player, and an extremely talented cricketer playing for Alrewas for many years. In later life he became a member of the Whittington golf club playing regularly up to the start of his illness. He had a passion for local history particularly with regard to the veterinary practice and supplied us with details of its progression from 1846, the days of Sir Richard Powell Cooper Bt. MRCVS and Col. Connell MRCVS when the practice was situated in Bore Street with stables behind. Richard’s history of Veterinary Practice in Lichfield is featured on this web site.
Right to the end Richard kept his association with the practice alive, keen to know of any new developments, and even attending the Christmas party less than a month before he finally succumbed to the cancer which had affected him for the last two years of his life.
We will all be forever indebted to Richard for his guidance and teaching. He was a consummate clinician and talented surgeon. A worthy successor to a long line of Lichfield veterinarians.
