THE leader of Sevenoaks council, Peter Fleming, has paid tribute to a long serving member of the council who passed away last Monday (May 8).
Paddy Cooke, who died after a long battle with cancer, was described as a ‘genuinely decent human being’ by Mr Fleming, who added: “Paddy had been fighting a very aggressive cancer for some time, but never made a big issue about it.
“From diagnosis through treatment he remained upbeat and stoic.
“Over the last year he set himself a number of targets: attending as many council meetings as possible, continuing to represent his community to the best of his ability and refusing to make a fuss about his cancer or his treatment, truly the measure of the man.”
Mr Cooke, who was first elected on May 3, 2007 to represent the Penshurst, Fordcombe and Chiddingstone ward as a Conservative, died at home surrounded by his family.
His funeral will be held at 1.30pm on Thursday, May 25 at St Mary the Virgin, Chiddingstone.
