THE life of a long-serving Hedgehogs volunteer and West Street hairdresser Terry Taylor is to be celebrated at a charity gala dinner at Farnham Castle later this year.

Terry passed away aged 77 last May less than a year after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, and his family is organising the black-tie event in aid of the Lymphoma Research Trust on the evening of Saturday, November 19.

A Farnham man through and through, Terry was born in the town to Irish parents in 1937 and ran Jon Terry’s Hair Studio in West Street from the early 1960s until retiring in the late 1990s.

However, he is perhaps best known for his volunteering work with the Hedgehogs with whom he served for many years as welfare officer.

Terry remained an active member of the Hedgehogs right up until his death and there wasn’t a spare seat at St Joan’s Catholic Church for his funeral at the end of May 2014.

His daughter Mary told The Herald: “Dad was a very happy person, always very kind and loving, and a caring family man - he always put his family first. He was a nice man and was loved by a lot of people, not just his family.

“But his great passion was the Hedgehogs - he was involved so much and helped promote all their events and made lots of friends. It’s a lovely organisation and helps so many people in Farnham. They raise so much money and it made dad so happy to be a part of that.”

Terry was a keen gardener in his spare time and in his younger years turned his hand to a number of professions, helping build the soon-to-be-demolished Cobgates care home in Falkner Road in the 1970s.

He was also a very religious man and was a frequent church-goer at St Joan’s - marrying his wife Joan there in 1961 with whom he would later have two children, daughter Mary followed by son Dominic.

Mary added her family has chosen to support the Lymphoma Research Trust as they believe access to more drugs and better awareness of the disease could have saved Terry’s life.

“We went on holiday in August 2014 but as soon as we got there dad fell very ill and had to fly home,” she continued. “He booked an appointment as soon as he got back and was in hospital shorty afterwards where he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

“Dad hadn’t been well for a while but didn’t go to the doctors. He was a typical man - he suffered weight loss, was covered in a rash for around 18 months and then started getting night sweats, which are of course we later discovered are all symptoms of lymphoma and the doctors reckoned he had it for three to five years.

“I always thought of lymphoma as one of the ‘good’ cancers and dad was hopeful of going into remission. But in November 2014 he had an allergic reaction to the drug he was being treated with, Rituximab, and couldn’t take it any more. He tried chemotherapy but it didn’t work.

“That’s why research is so important to us - if there were other drugs out there he could’ve had he could’ve been saved. Doctors agree that if he could have stayed on Rituximab he would have likely gone into remission.”

The Farnham Castle gala dinner will feature a drinks reception followed by a three-course meal from 7pm until midnight on November 19. Entertainment will include a charity casino, disco, photo booth and possibly live music and a magician.

It is open to local people and businesses, and tables of 10 can be booked for £600 with all proceeds to be donated to the Lymphoma Research Trust.

Prizes are also being sought for a charity raffle and Terry’s family hope someone from the Lymphoma Research Trust will be available to speak on the night.

For more information, to book a table, donate money or a raffle prize call Terry’s niece Clare Davies on 07769 905959 or email [email protected].