During my time in office as chairman of the ECBA I have had to deal with any different kinds of situations, without question the most difficult thing to deal with is the death of someone you know.

What can you say to their loved ones to try and help them through a very sad time in their life, words seem futile but in time they may yield some comfort.

The very untimley death of Peter Boyton, our Vice Chairman, I would imagine came as a shock to everyone including myself, Peter was a delegate for Essex for many years and recently became the Vice Chairman of the ECBA.

It was plain to see how proud Peter was to take this position and he certainly didn't let us down, he was keen to be involved and went out of his way to help whenever and however he could.

It has been said on more than one occasion that we hold privileged positions as officers of the ECBA, I wouldn't argue with that point but I do think at times we should all feel privileged to have officers that give up their time and go that extra mile on our behalf.

Without doubt Peter was a man that filled this criteria, he was held in high regard by bowlers the length and breadth of the country and I for one feel honoured to have worked with Peter on the ECBA committee and he will be sadly missed.

As I said earlier words can seem futile but I hope if Marie and Peter's family read this they can take some comfort and be proud of his achievements regarding carpet bowls but also for being a true gentleman and someone we will not forget.

Yours sincerely

Tony Cuthbert
ECBA Chairman