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B y R e b e c c a E d w a r d s P le d g e y o u r s u p p o r t fo r o u r n e w c a m p a ig n a t w w w .c h e s te r c h r o n ic le .c o .u k F o r r e c ip e s a n d p r a c ti c a l ti p s to h e lp y o u r e d u c e fo o d w a s te v is it w w w .r e c y c le fo r c h e s h ir e .o r g .u k w 2 2 2 3 R E M E M B E R A L W A Y S : P a r e n ts H a y d n a n d D o r o th y C o o k , M e r ie l P r it c h a r d a n d T r is ta n ’s 1 4 - y e a r - o ld s is te r T a m s in .
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22
TheC
hron
icleD
ecember
21,20072
3Th
eCh
ronicle
Decem
ber21,2007
TH
EIS
SU
EE
veryw
eekw
eturn
thespotlighton
oneofthe
importantissues...........in
thecom
munity
Our
lossm
ustnot
bein
vain
Twofam
iliesunited
ingrief
bythecar
crashthatkilled
their
teenage
sonshave
becomethefirst
topledge
support
forTheChron
icleTooYoungToDiecam
paign.
Thefam
iliesof16-year-olds
Tristan
Cook
andDominicArnold
wantto
highligh
ttherisk
sofreck
lessdrivin
gtopreven
tothers
losingachildtoa
carcrash
.TheChristleton
High
School
sixth-
formers
diedaspassen
gersinacar
drivenby18-year-old
Michael
Wood,
ofHoole,w
hich
crashedontheA41
near
Dragon
hallonDecem
ber10last
year.Wood,also
aChristleton
sixth-
former,w
aslast
week
convictedof
carelessdrivin
gatthetim
eofthe
crash,an
ddan
gerousdrivin
gearlier
thatnight,w
henheperform
edhandbrake
turns,w
heel
spinsanda
longovertake
closetoaben
donthe
A41.ItwasTristan’s
father,H
aydynCook,
whofirst
askedC
hron
iclereaders
topledge
tohelp
cutroad
deaths.
HiswifeDoroth
y,Tristan
’smother
Meriel
Pritch
ardandDominic’s
motherandstepfath
erErica
and
Damien
Murph
y,arealso
supportin
gthecam
paigntoraise
awaren
essabou
treck
lessdrivin
g.Meriel,a
lecturer
attheSocial
and
Communication
sStudies
department
atChester
University,said:“T
here
issom
ethingextraordin
arilyfundam
entalabou
tthepain
whenyou
loseyou
rownchild.S
omething
physical
aswellasemotion
aljustrips
youapart.”
Meriel
wasthefirst
parenttofind
outabou
tthecrash
,whenapolice
officercalled
atherLittleton
home.
Shesaid:“I
gotwoken
upbythe
doorbellringingincessan
tlyat3am
.IwasonmyowninthehouseandasI
camedow
nstairs
Ithoughttomyself
‘whyisheringingsohard?’,th
enI
sawthesilh
ouette
ofsom
eone
standingthere
whowasclearly
not
Tristan
.“Iopen
edthedoor,th
epolice
officerasked
ifIwasTristan
’smotherandI
said:‘Justtell
meheisallrigh
t’.He
toldmetositdow
nandIknewatthat
point.From
thenonitfelt
asthoughI
waslivin
ginafilm
andasthoughthe
scripthadalm
ostbeen
preordained
andIwasjustobservin
gwhatwas
goingon.”
Meriel
calledherex-h
usban
dHaydn
athishomeinRowton,where
helives
with
hiswifeDoroth
y.Herem
embered:“T
hepolice
thoughtTristan
was19becau
sehe
hadfake
IDonhim.Foramoment
yourheart
leapsatthethoughtit
mightnotbehim–you
wouldn’twish
thisonanyon
eelse,bu
tthere
isa
glimmerofhope
andyou
graspatit.
“Ihadtogotoiden
tifythebody.Y
oujustdon
’tbelieve
youare
evergoin
gtohave
todosom
ethinglike
that.
“Hejustlooked
intact
–weheard
laterthathehadhorrific
intern
alinjuries
buthejusthadalittle
bitof
bloodonhisear
andthatwastheonly
outward
signofwhathadhappen
ed.”Thefam
ilyisnow
facingasecon
dChristm
aswithoutTristan
.Hadyn
said:“Weare
goingtohave
asgood
aChristm
asaswecan
.Last
yearweputTristan
’sChristm
aspresen
tsonhisgrave.W
ewillgoto
theservice
atChristleton
church
and
wewillvisit
Tristan
’sgrave
there.
“Whenpeople
aredrivin
gIdon
’tthinktheyrealise
therisk
andthe
potential
consequ
ences
ofwhatthey
aredoin
g–tosnuffouttwolives
isjustsoawful.”
Theweek
ofthecrash
,Dominic’s
motherandstepfath
erwere
inAustralia
foraweddin
g.Theylast
spoketoDominicon
Saturday,D
ecember
9,whenhetold
them
TheMeadow
swere
flooded.Hourslater
theyreceived
acall
tosay
their
sonwasdead.
Damien
said“Youcan
’treally
grasptheenorm
ityofit.T
he24-h
our
journeyback
wasjusthorren
dous,
butwewere
numb.”
Erica
added“Theworst
thingwas
walkingback
intothehouseand
seeinghow
hehadleft
it–thingslike
ahalf-fin
ishedglass
ofCoke
onthe
tableandhiswettow
elstill
onhis
bedroomfloor.It
wasstill
wet.It
was
justhorren
dous.”
OftheTooYoungToDiecam
paign,
Damien
said:“Wewantsom
ething
goodtocom
eoutofthisbecau
sewe
don’twantotherfam
iliesto
experiencewhatwehave
experienced.It
issuchawaste
oftwo
good,solid,youngmenwhowere
always
goingtogive
more
tothe
world
thantheytook
outofit.”
Erica
added:“Thedrivin
gage
should
beraised
to18becau
setheyare
tooimmatureat17.T
here
oughttobea
probationperiod
beforetheyare
fully
licensed
andtheyshoulddothePass
Plusadvan
ceddrivin
gcou
rse.They
shouldn'tbeallow
edmore
thanone
passenger
ortodrive
after10pm
.”
Grieving
families
arefirstto
supportour
newcam
paignto
reducethe
number
ofyoungpeople
killedon
Cheshireroads
REMEMBERALWAYS:
Parents
Haydn
andD
orothyC
ook,MerielP
ritchardand
Tristan’s
14-year-oldsister
Tamsin.
IC191207tribute
ByRebeccaEdwards
Mak
ea
pled
geto
help
savea
lifein
2008T
he
Ch
ronicle
believ
esto
om
an
yy
ou
ng
driv
ersa
nd
pa
sseng
ersd
ieo
nC
hesh
irero
ad
sev
eryy
ear.
We
wan
tto
mak
e2008
the
yearw
hen
fatalityan
din
jury
ratesfor
un
der
25year
olds
fallin
Ch
eshire.
Inth
eT
ooY
oun
gT
oD
iecam
-p
aignw
ep
ledge
top
ublish
aseries
ofarticles
throu
ghou
t2008
high
-ligh
ting
the
need
toresp
ectth
eroad
s.W
ew
illcam
paign
forch
anges
inth
elaw
and
imp
roveded
ucation
foryou
ng
peop
leb
eforean
dafter
they
startto
drive.
We
believe
chan
gesin
attitud
em
ust
startat
comm
un
itylevel
so
we
areask
ing
you,ou
rread
ers,tosign
our
onlin
ep
ledge
atw
ww
.chesterch
ronicle.co.u
kan
dh
elpm
ake
ad
ifference.
■D
rivers–
Rep
ortan
yreck
lessd
rivin
gyou
seeon
the
roads.L
eadb
yex
amp
le–
drive
safely,take
careon
the
roads,ch
eckyou
rveh
icleregu
larly.■
Paren
ts–
talkto
your
child
abou
tth
erisk
san
dresp
onsib
ilit-ies
ofb
eing
ad
riveran
da
pas-
senger,m
ake
sure
they
realiseh
owm
any
youn
gd
riversan
dp
as-sen
gersd
ieon
the
roads
eachyear.
■T
eenagers
–T
ellyou
rfrien
ds
ifyou
don
’tlik
eth
ew
ayth
eyd
rive.D
on’t
ride
inth
eircar
ifyou
aren’t
comfortable.
Mak
eit
clearyou
don
’tag
reew
ithth
eb
oyracer
cultu
re.M
ake
itclear
that
drivers
–m
aleor
female
–w
ho
take
risks
aren
otattractive.■
Ifyou
have
been
affectedb
ya
tragedy
onth
eroad
s,callR
ebecca
Edw
ards
on01244
606415
FamilycontinuesDom’sconserva
tionfighttosaveorang-utans
ANIMALlover
andstrict
vegetarianDominicArnold’s
memory
liveson
throu
ghhisfam
ily’swork
torescu
eorph
anedoran
g-utansinBorn
eo.Hismotherandstep-fath
erErica
andDami-
enMurphy
decidedtogive
funeraldon
ations
totheoran
g-utan
conservation
projectsat
Chester
Zoo,becausetheyknewtheirson
wouldhave
approved.Thecoupleandtheirdau
ghterRebecca,19,
visitedtheanimalsinthewildinBorneolast
Augustandhope
toraise
furtherfundsfor
thefoundation
featured
ontheBBC’s
Or-
angutanD
iaryseries.
Erica
said:“Dom
hadevery
David
Atten
-borou
ghDVD,heloved
animals,h
ewasal-
ways
havin
gagoatusforeatin
gmeat.
Damien
added:“There
hastobesom
ething
goodtocom
eoutofth
is.Deforestation
isdestroyin
gtheoran
g-utan’s
habitat
andleav-
ingthebabies
orphaned.Ifw
ecan
savesom
eofth
em,itwillbe
somethinggood.”
Thecouplesay
theywillrem
ember
Domin-
icasanentertain
erwhotaughthimselfto
juggle,u
nicycle
andplayed
thedrums.
Erica
said:“Onholiday
hewouldspen
dhis
timejugglin
gforallth
eotherlittle
children
–theywouldfollow
himalon
gthebeach
likethepied
piper.“Wewouldbesittin
goutinthegarden
and
hewouldcom
eoutandjuststart
entertain
ing
us.“Heloved
skiingwithhisfath
er,kitesurfin
gandscubadivin
g.HisChristm
aspresen
tlast
yearwastodive
withWilmathesandshark
attheBluePlanetAquariu
m,bu
tofcou
rsehenever
gottodoit.”
Thecouplesay
theyare
gratefulto
every-body
whohelped
them
throughthelast
year,andforthetribu
testoDominicandTristan
mounted
acrossChester.
Erica
wears
orangecloth
ingevery
dayin
memory
ofDominicandtomark
thework
theyare
doingfortheoran
g-utans.
Orangeflow
ershave
alsobeen
planted
atthecrash
siteandthefam
ilywore
orange
ribbonsevery
daytothecourttrial.
MEMORYLIVESON:
Erica
Murphy
presentedM
ikeJordan
ofChester
Zoo
with
donationsfor
theirorang-utan
projectsin
Dom
inic’sm
emory.
Tristanwasalive
wire
TRISTANCook
willalw
aysbere-
membered
as“ajoker
with
agen
erous
heart,”
sayhisfam
ily.Hisfath
erHaydn
sayshisson
wasprou
dto
have
justreach
edsixfeet
tall.Hesaid:“I
willn
everforget
hisbig
feetand
hairy
legsstickin
goutfrom
under
hisdress-
inggow
n,becau
seheoften
gotuplate.
“Hehadstarted
inthelowersixth
andwas
justbegin
ningtorealise
hewasgoin
gtohave
todoabitofw
ork.“Hehadanambition
tostart
anightclu
bcalled
ICE,an
dheandhisfrien
dsstarted
aYou
ngEnterprise
groupcalled
ICEEnter-
tainmentsandheldtheirfirst
businessmeet-
inginourhouseannexe.
“Itook
overcansofcoke
forthem
andIleft
theempty
cansover
there
formonths,be-
causetheyrem
inded
meofT
ristan.”
Tristan
wasbest
managed
11whenHaydn
andhisstep-m
otherDorothy
married
in2001.
Dorothy
said:“Hehadareally
goodvoice
butused
tomessabou
t.Hewasajoker,it
was
himwhostarted
callingmeDorfw
henhe
wasalittle
boy,anditstuckandthenturned
intotheDorfm
eister.”Tristan’s
friendsacted
ascoffin
bearersat
hisfuneralan
dhismotherMerielP
ritchard
saystheywere
animportan
tpart
ofhislife.
“Thepreviou
ssummerhewenttoNewquay
withabig
groupoffrien
ds,andwasduetobe
bookingaholiday
toIbiza
theMonday
afterhedied.“Hehadabig
smileonhisface
whenhe
toldmehisfrien
dshadagreed
towaituntil
hewas17sohecouldgowiththem
toIbiza
–hewasreally
touchedbythat.”
Merieladded:“H
ewasalive
wire,h
eloved
sportandmusic.H
elived
forthemomentand
that,iron
ically,isprobably
linked
totheway
hedied,becau
sehewouldhave
viewitas
beingafunnightoutwithhisfrien
ds.“Hewouldn’t
foramomenthave
understood
thepoten
tialconsequ
ences
ofthat.”
Merielsaid
theLeeds
United
supporter
was
proudofh
isroots
inNorth
Yorkshirebefore
movin
gtoChester
whenhewasnine.
Hewasinterested
infash
ionanddesign
ercloth
esandwasduetowork
hissecon
dshift
atNextthemorningafter
hedied.
Merieladded:“T
heonlygood
thingthathas
comeoutofth
isexperien
cehasbeen
the
extraordinary
support
andlove
thatour
friendsandcolleagu
esare
offered.Wewantto
sayhowgratefu
lweare
toallofth
em.”
■Nextweek
–Tristan’s
sisterstalk
aboutthe
lossofth
eirbroth
er.
AJOKER:
Tristan
Cook.
AChroniclecampaign
Pledge
yoursupportfor
ournew
campaign
atw
ww.chester
chronicle.co.uk
CLICKON
NOW
havebeen
eaten
Forrecipesand
practicaltipsto
helpyou
reducefood
waste
visit
ww
w.recycleforcheshire.org.uk
w
We
buyand
thenw
astearound
£8billion
onfood
thatcould
Countyand
districtcouncilsw
orkingtogether
inpartnership
