Gaufrid/Dad

by


Gaufrid in 1950


Gaufrid in 1993


Gaufrid – October 2018. Most probably the last photo taken of him.

(https://www.fifteensquared.net/2023/01/23/gaufrid-rip/)

Dear Fifteen Squarers

We are completely and utterly flabbergasted at all the heartfelt condolences you have so kindly sent. With no fewer than one hundred and thirty five, plus the tribute in Saturday’s ‘i news’. All this, due to Dad’s dedicated allegiance to ‘Fifteen Squared’, it is quite apparent you were his ‘family’.

Dad’s funeral is going to be a small and short service at the crematorium. With the volume of tributes and some conversations I’ve had with people, it is clear that some of you may like to pay your respects. With this in mind, if a few people (10) would like to pay their respects, whilst also representing other members of Fifteen Squared, then the funeral is on Monday 6th February, 2.45pm at Lytham Crematorium, Regent Avenue, Lytham St Anne’s, Lancs, FY8 4AB.

There is no formal wake organised, but should you wish to raise a glass then, The Blossoms, 1-3 Woodlands Road, Lytham St Anne’s, FY8 4EP is a pub that he used to frequent some years ago. Although I am sure that over the years he has probably frequented most of the pubs in Lytham St. Anne’s!

I was also asked if there was a charity that people could donate to. We have chosen Age UK Lancashire. A service that Dad unfortunately ended up needing assistance from, but also a charity that helps not only the person in need, but also their family. By providing much needed advice on who to contact, and signposting people in the right direction. Helping families live a better life with ongoing support and assistance when needed.

I have set up a JustGiving page for those that wish to make a donation in memory of Geoff Moss aka Gaufrid.

The link is:- https://www.justgiving.com/Gaufrid-Geoffrey-Moss

So on behalf of myself, Siobhan (Geoff’s daughter), my partner Simon, Karen (Geoff’s daughter), her husband Tony, Richard (Geoff’s brother), his partner Janet, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your kind words.

Best wishes

Siobhan x

18 comments on “Gaufrid/Dad”

  1. How nice to be able to put a face to the name we all know so well. Thank you for posting the photographs. My last communication with Geoff ended with his comment I’ve already started my evening whiskies as he was test solving that weeks Independent crosswords. I can well imagine the bottle of the famous Gaufrid tickling him mightily.

  2. Thank you Siobhan for sharing your Dad with us. I’m reminded of a comment he posted on mhl (Mark’s) blog November 2009. “Some people take crosswords far too seriously. They are meant to be a form of entertainment and therefore fun.”
    We’ll be with you and your family and friends, in heart and mind, to celebrate your Dad’s life on 6 February.

  3. Dear Siobhan
    Thank you for sharing the photographs – I love the bottle of The Famous Gaufrid, that is so creative!

    I will be with you all in spirit on 6th February.

  4. Thank you Siobhan. As a fellow whisky drinker (yet to have my own named brand!), I warm to the idea of glass, crossword and – as paddymelon points out – a taste for fun. My thoughts and best wishes to all of you for the 6th.

  5. Hello Siobhan
    Very saddened to hear this news and my deepest condolences to you and the rest of the family. He ran a very classy and informative site for we solvers and gave the chance to us from far away to share in the solving and discussion of our daily fare of English puzzles. There was only a couple of times when we communicated personally and I appreciated his time to introduce me to a couple of the folk from this site. Can only assume that he was as lovely or better in person and he will be sadly missed.
    Kindest regards … Bruce

  6. As Blah says @1, it’s so good to be able to put a face to the name, after writing and chatting to Geoff for so many years. Thank you so much, Siobhan – and for including the Famous Gaufrid, which I sent him one Christmas, years ago.

    Ironically, Geoff knew what a lot of us looked like. He never managed to get to an S and B, but, after our first meeting in Derby in 2011, he got me to talk him through Jane’s photos and identify everyone – and he remembered them all in photos of subsequent occasions.

    It would be nice if we could raise a glass to him, wherever we are, next Monday afternoon – although in my case it won’t be whisky!

  7. Thanks so much Siobhan. It is so good to be able to put a face to the name.

    We will raise a glass to you all on Monday but it will not be a whisky either.

  9. Lovely to finally see old friend. Wish he’d been able to join us at one of our gatherings but alas not to be. Vale Geoff.

  10. Siobhan, thank you so much for sharing. I’ll raise a glass here in New York City on Monday in his honor, and in thanks.

  11. Lovely pictures. He looks kind.
    It’ll be a glass of the red stuff here in Bordeaux. Great to think he will be toasted round the globe. RIP.

  12. Thank you, Siobhan, for putting a face to your father’s name – a counterpoint, perhaps, to Eileen’s putting names to the faces all those years ago!

  13. These wonderful connections – and finally I get to see the face behind Gaufrid’s kind and helpful email exchanges with me over the years and across the distance! Siobhan, we are honoured that you came to our site to tell us a little more about your Dad. I hope the family is in some way consoled by the esteem in which your Dad was held. Geoff/Gaufrid will be well remembered by the 15² contributors as a generous, clever and unfailingly courteous man who helped to maintain this closeknit world-wide community of cryptic crossword solvers, and who supported both the setters and the bloggers of the puzzles by maintaining high standards and good order. Even though I won’t be able to match the time exactly, I will definitely toast Gaufrid on Monday evening and think of him fondly.

  14. I can do no better than echo Julie’s words above (@13) and thank you myself for what you wrote at the top of this page and for the pictures you posted with that message to us all. I appreciate everything your Dad has done for this community.

    I too shall raise a glass on time (approximately!) on Monday.

  15. I agree it’s so lovely to put a face to the name, or names.

    By the time I wake up on Monday here in Snohomish, in Washington State north of Seattle, I imagine all of you in Lancashire may be well into your cups, but I’ll add a little whiskey to my morning coffee and drink a toast to Gaufrid.

  16. So sorry for your loss (and ours). I could not have made progress in crosswords without his invaluable help.
    Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

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