Born 29 December 1947 went home 21 september 2023.

Dad was born Raymond John kendall 29 dec 1947

at 22 broadwater down tonbridge wells his family totaled 16 siblings of brothers and sisters a prime example of no television back then, his father was an raf pilot then went on to be a truck driver his mother whom i could see he loved more than his father was a devoted mum & house wife,

When dad was a boy he lived with his elder brothers maurice john ron sorry if ive missed anyone else but im almost 51 and the memory plays up ! as he grew up he would live and work many farms as a boy & young man , hop picking fruit picking which he spoke of fondly said they were some of his best days of his younger life, he enjoyed making friends with many people who came down from london working the land from Tonbridge wells, pembury southborough quarry wood aylesford amd many other places, which he spoke of many times during his life with great affection. Dad would tell rita (me wayne) and clare many storys of when him and some of his brothers were younger some which i cant repeat, some which made us laughed till we cried, one such story was not long after they moved into there first house some neighbors chickens got pegged to the washing line because they didnt lay any eggs to borrow that morning as dad said you should of seen it wings flapping feathers everywhere another about borrowing the local bobbys shoes & trousers from his panda car when he escort dad home with some brothers and friends when they were up to misschife , only for the same bobby to turn up the following day to speak to his father about the clothes and shoes going missing with dad standing behind his dad wearing the shoes and trousers and the local bobby not realizing because he then went on asking if dad knew anything about chickens hanging on a neighbors washing line a few days before.

Dads up bringing was tough but he never really showd it. Born into poverty being put into different care homes and losing younger family members made my dad what he turned into as his life journey went on it made him a kind caring generous man , husband ,dad and grandad.

Dad did some wonderful things in his life

Christmas toy fairs , boot fairs , market stalls.

Standing by my sister rita when she was diagnosed with her mental health conditions when she was only 12, dad never used that as a means for self pity or sympathy, he just as he said doing what any other dad would do for there kids.

Changing his surname to jones then joking with people that tom jones was his brother , some belived him till he laughed.

Organising coach trips for the old folks when we lived on shepway estate in the early 90s great days out happy memorys of dragging a few old ladys out from the pubs whom had one to many and were singing to the rest of the place to the locals enjoyment.

Even when he and mum moved to Bearsted he helped so many elderly people right up to when he could no longer cope due to failing health issues.

Not long after i became a father , dad was so happy he had a grand son then others followed. mum once said when my son was teethig, your father was very good when you lot were babys he helped out a lot he even took turns comforting you through the night when you were teething & still go off to work the next moring didnt moan at all.

When dad was younger he looked like Alvin stardust , mum recalled the time they couldnt get out of the house when they lived at ringlestone as there were so many girls all shouting we want alvin over and over and blocking the whole front of the house, dad said it got that bad once they had to call the police !

When i was growing up dad taugjt me so much how to paint how to do gardens how to build things , when i left school i ended up working with him on and off for years and his work ethick was second to none , he was a perfectionist , a civil engineer then landscaper then painter& decotator then back to civil engineering but his first job was tovil paper mill .

Theres so many childhood storys of dad but we only have 30 mins . Dad was a great dad, i recall mum saying he did his fair share when we were all babys , taking over when we were at the teething stage mum said dad would be up all night then off to work in the morning and didnt moan at all, when i was 4 i remeber dad was working repairng the road right next to my school st stevens tovil all the kids that was watching was amazed when i said that man on that machine is my dad, then they all wanted balls of tarmac for keep sakes, dad rolled up 30 folf ball size balls of tarmac under the schools outside tap and gave one when it was cooled down to each kid who wanted one , that was dad he had time for anyone and he liked to please . I didnt get one of these balls of tarmac because i had enough which used to fall off his boots every day of the week.

Dad worked hard on many firms over the years

Till he had a major heart attack in his 30s.

I recall the neighbor waiting for me at our front gate , i knew something wasnt right but dad did recover ,mum was with dad at the hospital so us kids went round to 25 coombe road, this wouldnt be our first going round to 25, a few years later when dads younger sister june moved in , mum and dad were going through some life changing challenges with rita our larger than life big sister rita, thank you aunty june for looking after me and clare back then. See this is what this is all about being there for each other, dad was always there for us no matter what, yes he did have a bit of a moan to mum at times but dont we all have a moan.

I worked with dad at differdnt times in our lives together on several firms, together when he had his own little bussiness ,then when i had my bussiness he worked with me then on and off, I recall me, cousin lee and dad were taking a break from doing a newly taken on garden round lee had to pick dad up off the ground as he collapsed , i wasnt there , lee was , dad didnt want me finding out , lee did tell me, see that was dad, didnt want you worring. Still he carried on even after a hip replacememt using his moblity scooter to get him around,even when his eye sight was failing , he tried adjust to the change, but one day he just didnt want to do anything i asked him why and he said im finished, i said dont be daft , he then went on for another 15 plus years , mum always by his side, she lived up to her wedding vows thank you mum. Dad told me you were his love for always when we were building a patio many years ago you can imagine my shock as he never really spoke like this.

Dad knew he was going home. Me and my wife shania payed vists while he was in hospitals some vists were very tough, some were peaceful and warm, the week before he passed he told us he was going home next thursday he kissed our hands & even said something he used to say to me when i was 5 that was give some sweets then kiss your hand then pop a sweet in it memorys i will keep for ever , thursday 21st september , he went home, we love you dad .Look in on us now and again rest easy and in peace we all love you.

If theres one thing i can take from dad it would be caring . He cared , care for them around you they will return it back , its love with out needing to say it.