The recent and sudden passing of our Secretary Douglas Riach after a short illness has touched us all greatly. He gave his time generously to many causes and activities within the Aboyne community and beyond including the Aboyne Festival, Aboyne & Upper Deeside Rotary Club, Forget Me Not Alzheimer’s Society and the Aboyne & Deeside Heritage Society.
For his fellow Trustees of the Aboyne Men’s Shed he will be remembered most for his bonhomie, wry good humour and meticulous attention to detail in all matters as well as getting his hands dirty when required. Douglas enjoyed the lighter but no less pleasurable task of assisting at the number of open meetings held in the Bowling Club to promote the venture in the early stages with the aid of a bacon butty and copious cups of coffee.
Along with his fellow Trustees Doug was involved with the fund raising and public awareness of the project on Aboyne Games Days and at Farmers Markets working the crowd with his infectious good humour.
The ethos of the Shed movement chimed well with one of Doug’s other main interests in the aspect of mental wellbeing and reducing social isolation of single or widowed adults in the Aboyne area. Indeed, his links with other bodies and personal contacts has helped to attract user groups and funders to the Shed.
His love of his home county of Fife was well known to those in all the groups Doug was a member of and a pithy reference would somehow find its way into conversations or when grading the delights of fish restaurants.
Your Trustees will endeavour to maintain Doug’s high standards and we owe it to him that the Shed continues to thrive, bringing as it does a much needed and welcome facility to Aboyne and the surrounding area.
