A “LARGER than life” scooter enthusiast and former woodwork teacher has died after being losing his battle with terminal cancer, aged 42.
Friends and colleagues have paid tribute to Paul Walsh, known as Tiny, who taught at Blackpool and Fylde College’s Bispham campus.
Martial arts teacher Diff ‘Scooby’ Whike, 45, of Seafield Road, North Shore, became close friends with Mr Walsh after they took up aikido together almost a decade ago.
He said: “I certainly won’t forget him.
“He had a very keen mind and he was a very clever fellow.”
Mr Walsh was raised in Peter Street, Blackpool, and attended Warbreck High School.
In his youth he was a key member of the Blackpool Mod scene, owning a Lambretta scooter and taking part in a number of rallies.
Fellow Mod scene regular Shaun O’Hagan, 46, of Conway Avenue, Cleveleys, told The Gazette: “If everybody in the world was like Tiny, the world would be a better place to live.
“Even when he found out he was dying he was still having a laugh and a joke.”
Later in life Mr Walsh became a born-again Christian and met his future wife Elisabeth at church.
They moved to Hawes Side before he trained as a woodwork teacher, spending five years working at Blackpool and Fylde College.
Mr Walsh’s former colleague there, woodwork tutor Stephen Pye said: “Paul was a well-liked individual, both in and out of work.
“He was smiley, happy and outgoing, with an extremely positive outlook on life.”
Mr Walsh died on November 22 and is survived by wife Elisabeth, 11-year-old son Jakob and parents Jean and Norman.