A grieving daughter from Stockport has paid tribute to her father who died ‘very unexpectedly’ at the age of just 52.
Chloe Parsons said her dad, Gary Leahy, ‘made sure I knew he loved me everyday’.
She added that his death came ‘as a huge shock’, as he had battled ‘the horrible disease of alcoholism’ and struggled with his mental health.
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Now, Chloe, from Woodley, is organising a fundraiser to help cover the costs of her dad’s funeral.
“I’ll start by saying I love you so much and I miss you dearly,” Chloe said in tribute to her father.
“Despite his problems in recent years, my dad’s friends have said he was well liked by a lot of people.
“He has always been popular with everyone who knew him, all over the place, not just locally. He will be truly missed.”
The 28-year-old added that she had very fond memories of childhood days out with Gary.
She said: “I remember as a child we would go out every Sunday, my cousin Charlie would join us, too.
“He loved her like his own daughter.
“Blue Planet, Wales, Blackpool are just some of the places we visited — and not forgetting dad’s favourite Alton Towers, he kept asking me recently ‘when can we go again?’
“He made sure I knew he loved me everyday, even if we didn’t speak he would text me and let me know.
“I wish we got to spend more time together but the memories we made, I will remember forever.”
Appealing for donations, Chloe wrote on the online fundraiser: “This was very unexpected.
“As you can imagine this has come as a huge shock, and any help towards the funding of the funeral would be greatly appreciated.
“If anyone I know and love or anyone who knew my dad would be so kind to donate it would mean the world to me and my family.”
You can make a donation online here.
