'My fit and healthy dad died while having a massage - it was such a shock to us all'
01.12.2023 - 06:45
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
The son of a popular former amateur football coach, granddad, and dad-of-four from Stockport has warned about the dangers of hidden heart conditions after the shock of his father’s sudden death. Kevin Lewis died after a sudden cardiac arrest while having a massage in Hazel Grove in November 2022 at the age of 62.
One of his two sons, Luke Lewis, 32, described his father as a ‘big character’ and that his death was ‘completely out of the blue’. Kevin was a well-known local character in Stockport where for years he coached the Apollo Juniors football team, with many former players attending his funeral.
Kevin was also father to two daughters, including his grown daughter, Claudia, and six-year-old, Sienna, after remarrying.
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Luke said his father suffered from a bad back for years and that it was ‘really giving him some grief’ so he went to Hazel Grove to get a massage. During that appointment, he had a fatal heart attack.
He spoke about the shock of his father’s death, saying: “It wasn’t like cancer that happens slowly, it was a shock, I can’t even get my head over it a year and half down the line.”
He added: “They couldn’t give us a solid answer, it’s one of those where we assume it’s something like a blocked artery, but truth be told they can’t go into that much detail.”
Kevin’s cardiac arrest came as a surprise to everyone, being described as ‘fit, pretty active and always out walking’.
“He lived up in Marple so was always out walking,” continued Luke, originally from Stockport who now lives in Cheadle Hulme. “In the latter stages, he was doing property renovation stuff, he was doing work on his