George Albert Callaby (1 Jan 1937 - 8 May 2019)

In loving memory of George Albert Callaby who sadly passed away at St Peters Hospital on 8th May 2019.
George will be sadly missed by his beloved wife Silvana, devoted father of Richard, Jeremy, Ladina and Alex and all his family.

At the age of 26 years old, Dad was admitted to St George's Atkinson Morley Wing, in Tooting, to undergo major brain surgery to remove a large aggressive tumour that would forever become a life changing event. At the time back in 1963, this kind of surgery was considered too high risk and Dad’s chances of survival were very slim, but equally without removing the tumour Dad’s lifespan would be shortened. The decision was made to proceed with the operation which was successful, but resulted in Dad being in a coma for 3 months and required a further 2 years of hospitalised rehabilitation. During this time Dad had to completely relearn the basics of life that we all take for granted e.g. from how to walk and talk, to eating and reading, to enable him to get back to a more normal life.
Life would never be the same for Dad, he spent the rest of his life on strong medication and lived with epilepsy until his final days. But through these years Dad showed the determination to never give up and ultimately fought back and established a relatively normal life that would be maintained for many years to come.
Then in July 2008 whilst cleaning the gutters Dad had a tragic accident, falling from a ladder head first on to the concrete patio below. He was rushed to hospital and once again was sent to the specialist brain injury unit at St George's Atkinson Morley Wing. He would be there for nearly three months recovering from what was a near fatal accident. During this time we thought we would lose Dad and he was so ill that he missed our brother Alex and Lucy's wedding as a result. Eventually Dad returned home, but as he slowly recovered we all noticed that he had changed as a result of the brain injuries incurred.
Whilst Dad’s mobility and speech were clearly affected, he continued to live another 11 years, but the Dad we all knew was fading. Sadly during his final years his body was under too much stress and strain so he suffered a number of set-backs, including a stroke and more recently lung collapses and breathing difficulties related to the late diagnosis and onset of COPD. This year he was in and out of hospital several times after losing his balance and falling, and finally he passed away in St Peter’s Hospital of a cardiac arrest in the early hours of the 8th May.
During the years of managing his condition, Dad maintained his determination to fight adversity and recover, like a cat with nine lives. We were all amazed at his strength and iron constitution, and ability to bounce back. In recent weeks when discussing this with him he said it was important that you ‘never give up’. I think we all have those qualities in us.

St George's Hospital and the Atkinson Morley Wing have a special significance for the Callaby family and the great work they do is testament to the long life Dad continued to live until this past week.
St George’s Hospital is internationally renowned and a world leader in Neurosciences. Please check this link for more information: https://www.stgeorges.nhs.uk/service/neuro Like many of these organisations they rely upon generous public support and we ask that rather than sending flowers to the funeral that you consider donating to the St George's Hospital Charity, Neuro Appeal in the Just Giving link provided, so that we can help others that need St George’s excellent medical care