I have spoken to Maddie tonight on the phone and asked if it was ok to do a collection to help her, she was overwhelmed.
We talked about his illness and that he had known that he had cancer since early 2016. He did not want people to know as he did not want pity and did not want people to treat him differently. He had treatment to extend his life, but in the end, he lost his fight.
He gave Maddie a piece of paper with six names on it, these were the people that he wanted her to inform of his death and to be invited to his funeral. One of the names was "The Wild Campers".
Arthur is going to be buried in a meadow, he will have a wicker coffin and wild flowers will be planted on the grave. Maddie has invited all our members to attend if they wish.
She said she would like to plant a tree at Rutland in memory of Arthur, and their 37 years together.
I will have the details of the funeral later this week and will post them in this thread.