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Rees and Mabel Coghlan 750AT
Rees Coghlan – pharmacist, preacher, benefactor
 

A Methodist preacher and retired pharmacist from Aylsham, Rees Coghlan, who founded the Aylsham Care Trust, has died, aged 96.

Rees Temple Coghlan MBE was born in Erpingham in 1926, and when he was about nine his family moved to the nearby village of Matlaske where they took over the village shop. It was at this shop where he later met his future wife, Mabel, to whom he was married for 71 years. They had two sons, Paul and Patrick.
 
In his 20s, Mr Coghlan qualified as a pharmacist at the University of Nottingham and took over a pharmacy in Loddon.
 
Patrick Coghlan recalls life as a small child in those early days: “I remember arriving home in the early evening, and going through our front door into a crowded hallway – it was always the same at Coghlan Chemist Loddon! They were patients coming from the GP’s evening surgery, waiting for their prescriptions to be dispensed. Such was my Dad’s kind and generous disposition that he was always willing to welcome people into our home, during the week, while he dealt with out of hours’ prescriptions.
 
“Dad always seemed to be busy, with shop business, except on a Sunday. He had a very strong Christian faith. Sunday was the day when we went to church, sometimes more than once. It was Dad’s faith that was always his motivation to run the businesses in a way that was glorifying to God. He always wanted to share the love of Jesus with others in selfless and practical ways.
 
“Dad was ahead of his time. He was probably one of the first pharmacists to reduce his prices, making products more affordable for people on restricted income. And he was also an early pioneer in counter prescribing. He had a book full of formulae for all the different medicines and creams he had developed and inherited over the years. Often people preferred to have a consultation with Dad, rather than book an appointment with the local GPs. And I believe the local GPs often told patients to go and get something from the chemist.”
 
Further branches of the Coghlan Pharmacy followed - in the Larkman estate area of Norwich, in Aylsham's Market Place and in Holt.

Mr Coghlan was a preacher on the Methodist circuits in Loddon, Norwich and finally Aylsham into his 70s. As well as running four pharmacies, and his preaching responsibilities, Rees found time to start Aylsham & district Care Trust (ACT) in 1985.
 
Patrick said "It was a very small organisation initially and he spent his time building it up. He had a piece of land on the edge of Aylsham, where I used to run a riding school, and after that closed he had the vision to use it for sort of care project."
 
When he finally retired from pharmacy in his early 70s, Rees turned his attention to developing the fledgling Care Trust, running ACT lunch clubs, driving the ACT minibus, and further developing the work of ACT.
 
His generous donation of his piece of land to the ACT enabled the St Michael’s Care Complex to be born. This land soon became the home to four different projects - A housing with care scheme called Greenlane View, St Michael's Court Care Home, a health centre, and the ACT centre - a community hub and café, which opened in 2012. The St Michael’s Care Complex, the first integrated health and social care complex of its kind in the UK, was opened a year later by the Duke of Edinburgh.
 
Patrick explains “It didn’t happen easily, but in faith Dad pursued the vision until it happened. He always wanted the ACT Centre to be a centre of care: indeed it now provides day care four days a week, offers counselling, provides meals in the centre and taken out to people in their own homes, etc… and minibus and hospital transport is still provided.”
 
Mr Coghlan was chairman of ACT until he was 80, and was actively involved with the charity until he was almost 90. For his community service, he was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by the Queen herself at Buckingham Palace.
 
Patrick concludes, “Dad was a family man, married to my Mum (Mabel) for 71 years. He had two sons: myself, and my brother Paul. Later on he became father-in-law to June and Alison; grandfather to six grandchildren; and great grandfather to two great grandchildren. He was also an uncle. He spent the last fifteen months living in St Michael’s Court with my Mum. The care they received there (and Mum still receives there) was outstanding.
 
“Dad was a truly amazing Christian man”
 
A small funeral is planned for Friday April 29, which will be followed by a thanksgiving celebration at 2pm on April 30 at the ACT Centre.
 
The picture above shows Rees and Mabel at their 65th wedding anniversary, and is courtesy of Patrick Coghlan.
 
This obituary is based on information kindly supplied by Patrick Coghlan, with additional material from the Eastern Daily Press, where there are more pictures.

 

Tony Rothe, 22/04/2022

Published: 22/04/2022
Tony Rothe

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