My younger brother Michael Barron Lamb died on 6th February 2017 in Bristol (United Kingdom) shortly after being diagnosed with malignant skin cancer. Michael was a day boy at Boys’ High for all of his five years of high school. After leaving school Michael went on to serve in the British Army. I have included the obituary which was written and read out at his funeral service by his best friend.
Yours sincerely,
Richard Lamb
Good afternoon,
Today we say goodbye to Michael Barron Lamb, the husband of Barbara the son of Moira and Peter, a brother, a soldier an airborne legend and a friend. My name is Justin and it has been one of my greatest honours to call Mike my friend.
Mike was born on the 17th December 1984, the sixth of seven children and sibling to Gregory, Richard, Victoria, Christopher, Peter and Joanne. I only had the pleasure of meeting Moira, Mikey’s mum, about a month ago but it was at this first meeting that she told me, rather mischievously, that she needed one more, she needed that one more to get Mikey. Baby faced, red cheeked and playfully naughty. Qualities that he seemed to retain into adult life. I did not have the pleasure of knowing him growing up but his childhood sounds idyllic and he would often tell me stories of his life growing up on the farm. I can only guess that it was the wide open African spaces and the sense of freedom nurtured by a loving family that installed in him a sense of wanderlust. Inevitably Mikey got the travel bug and travelled to the United Kingdom to join the Army.
To his family I can only offer this comfort, although separated by the physical distance between you, you were never far from his thoughts and he carried you in his heart. Throughout the years I have come to know each of you, Mike shared his hopes and concerns his memories and aspirations for each of you. Your pain and joy were his. He loved you all and no one could have asked for a better son or brother. I cannot fathom the depth of your loss and I offer you my sincerest condolences but know that a part of Mike’s legacy is that you are not alone, and should you need it, his military family are here for you.
Perhaps it was his dad and brothers back ground in medicine that led to him pursuing a career in medicine or perhaps it was his own innate sense of empathy. Whatever the reason he found himself in the Royal Army Medical Corp. He was entrusted with the lives of soldiers who were at their most vulnerable and needed the most. It was a duty that he upheld with due diligence and performed better than any man or woman I have met. On the battlefield he set about his task with a cool efficiency and calm that belied the chaos that surrounded him. He instilled in others that same sense of calm purpose and I can say without question that there are some here present today because of him. Not one to shy away from a challenge Mike saw fit to serve with only the best and his resume includes such units as 16 Medical Regiment, The Parachute Regiment and the Special Forces (22nd Special Air Service Regiment).
I of course like many here today knew him as Lamby and our paths first crossed nine years ago at 16 Medical Regiment where he was already establishing a name for himself as a highly competent and capable soldier having just returned from what would be one of three operational tours of Afghanistan. Prior to this deployment Lamby showed his mettle on an airborne exercise by jumping from a plane with kit that nearly doubled his own weight and every time I hear or tell this story the weight seems to increase. Lamby was the lightest and most junior soldier on that plane. He did not complain, he accepted his responsibility with the professionalism that we have come to know and rely on and when that light turned green he threw himself into the abyss without hesitation. It was widely accepted that Mikey made the hardest jump that day.
I tell this story as it demonstrates the courage that he possessed, a courage that I draw inspiration from, a courage that he lived his life by, a physical courage that was tried and tested in the fiercest of battles in Afghanistan to the inner courage that he portrayed in his last days living with a cancer that took him, took the best of us far too early.
Lamby seemed to naturally possess the qualities that we all aspire to. Albeit hidden by his humble nature and often disguised by his eccentricities. Loyal to a fault he valued his friendships, family and loved ones, at times to his own detriment. Fast forward six years and we found ourselves posted to Hereford. I was having an issue with pest control and a rogue pigeon. Lamby offered me his air rifle and boys being boys we needed to test it first, all the road signs on camp provided us with the perfect targets. Unfortunately, the police did not approve of our shenanigans and promptly arrested us. Loyal to a fault, when questioned Mikey vehemently denied my involvement, insisting that he acted on his own and I was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. To my knowledge he never told anyone of my involvement, it wasn’t an issue for him. He did what he felt was right and he lived by it, another Lamby lesson.
He had an amazing ability to keep people connected and I think this was one of his most endearing qualities. The migratory nature of our work would often mean that people would lose touch with each other we’d slip through the cracks. As people left and got on with their lives it was Mikey that kept us all together. Through him I heard how James was getting on offshore, or how Paddy had moved back to Northern Ireland, Stoltzy was an international jetsetter or how Cav was still a penguin in Australia and we’d laugh at another one of Smudges jokes. He made you feel as though you belonged and that you had a place.
It goes without saying that he was a phenomenal friend but in my opinion it was the meeting of his wife Barbara that brought out the best of him and showed us a different side to him. I remember when he met Barbara on a trip to Thailand. The moment that he came back and started talking about this girl he met on his trip I knew that this would be something special. I don’t think he knew it yet but it was evident to all around him that this was no ordinary girl. In all the time that I knew him I had never known him to talk about someone the way that he spoke about you Barbara. He would often tell me that he didn’t have time for relationships and opted for a lifestyle whereby he had a grip bag at the door, packed, living his life on a 30 min notice to move. With you, suddenly there were plans, he wanted to go places with you he wanted to meet family and introduce you to his. He started building a life and I think that caught him a little off-guard. He would often come to me for advice, on what should he say, how should he act what should he do? I told him he’d already lost if he was coming to me for advice. He would share stories about you, showing that you were always there in his thoughts. You challenged him, made him think and loved him. In turn he loved you in ways that he didn’t think was possible. It could not have been easy for you both. Your work and lifestyles coupled with the fact that you lived in separate countries would challenge any couple and yet you guys found the strength to make it work. Sam, who as you know spent a lot of time with Lamby on his last tour said it best, it was hard for you both but Lamby loved who he wanted to love and lived how he wanted to live. It was hard but he chose to love you and to be with you it was his choice and that makes what you had very special.
Barbara you were robbed of a life with a man that loved you unconditionally and would have given you his all. Thank you for giving me the chance to see you two get married and thank you for giving me the chance to say goodbye. I know that he could not have been with anyone else but you. You two understood each other and loved each other and I am so sorry that you did not get more time together.
A couple of months ago I had a conversation with Hainsey, who said rather poignantly at the time that people were still trying to do what Lamby did, still trying to achieve what he achieved. He inspired us all and I look at the faces I see here today and I know that we all have a Lamby story. A story from loving parents, A war story, a Saturday afternoon at the coffee cart story, a private quiet story between a man and his wife. These stories bind us and connect us and in the coming days, weeks and years will support us. From the day that he came into the world to the day that he left. He gave so much more than he took, he excelled at life.
Goodbye my friend, Godspeed. we’ll never forget you.