Remembering Joe

My work colleague Joe died 5 years ago. Salford's conservation officer, he was one of the most popular people, with bags of talent and enthusiasm (and could be quite a clown). 
The Roe Green Committee had organised a little memorial which now sits under some trees at one corner of the Green. It is based on a milestone - Joe was a big fan of those. 
The Martin family turned up, including relatives from Canada. Joe once told me about when he travelled on one of the cargo boats from Manchester Docks (as it was before it became Salford Quays) to Montreal, to see family. That's a journey you cannot do now.
There was music too. Joe used to sing and his play with his brother Pete, both on Martin guitars - enthusiasts, they went on a tour around the Martin guitar factory in Nazareth, Pennsylvania. These are the two Martin guitars - and they do make a wonderfully resonant sound. 
The Roe Green Committee did the family proud. Tea and cakes in the Sunday school building, sadness of course, but also lots of laughs and fun.
This will be the third memorial to Joe in Salford organised by groups of local people - there is also one behind Fire Station 
Square, and at St Boniface school. That says an awful lot.