In my experience, probation has always produced rather more of its fair share of 'characters' and none more so than Napo legend Jeremy Cameron. No AGM was ever complete without a witty and incisive contribution from this remarkable man and sad news of his passing will generate many anecdotes I'm sure.
It is with great sadness that we have to inform you of the sudden death of Jeremy Cameron on New Years Eve. This wonderful tribute comes from our own Cyril Cleary, long term colleague and friend of Jeremy’s:
Jeremy had been in very poor physical health in recent years, but, as we know, this did not stop him living an immensely active and varied life which was both unique and inspirational to many of us.
In that spirit, he was in Tobago, where he had gone as usual to watch his beloved test match cricket, where he was taken ill unexpectedly, and passed away doing what he loved, in a place he greatly loved.
Jeremy remained super active in Napo up to and including our last recent AGM. He recently proposed a motion setting up the Retired Members' Network, and, at our last AGM, proposed a Motion deploring the catastrophic cuts to Foreign Aid - one of many international issues very close to his heart, and, of course, his speeches to Conference over the years often brought the house down.
Those of us who knew him over his decades of immeasurable service to Napo and the Probation Service will have a ton of special memories of the way in which he touched and changed the lives of countless people over the years. However, some may not be so familiar with other aspects of his life as an author, traveller, friend, partner, sportsman, allotment holder and village community librarian- the list is endless.
Jeremy was one of the most compassionate, selfless, empathetic, principled and loyal people you will meet in a lifetime, and his untimely passing has profoundly affected all who knew him.
We will inform everyone of arrangements in due course. You can be certain we will organise a celebration of Jeremy’s life and legacy in the coming weeks.
We also hope to put together a permanent record of personal recollections, stories and memories of our dear friend, to ensure that they are not forgotten, and hopefully future generations will be inspired by his life and socialist values in the way so many of us have been.
NAPO London Branch would just like to add, our sincere gratitude and thanks to Jeremy for all of the hard work he did for our Branch and beyond. He worked tirelessly as a National Rep for National NAPO and many of our members were supported by him over the years. London Branch were privileged to have first sight of his motions to Conference and the pithy speeches that went with them.
His deep passion for Social Justice combined with his sense of humour and his gift of oratory, meant his speeches were the event of Conference. He was an inspiration and a friend to many and will leave a large gap in our Branch with his passing.
Rest In Peace Jeremy ❤
There ain’t no ‘characters’ now believe me
ReplyDeleteI didn't know him but greatly appreciate the efforts and contributions of people like him to Probation over the years
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this. Jeremy certainly was a character and will be missed.
ReplyDeleteI once saw him lambasting London probation smt albeit in a witty way , good.fun
ReplyDeleteJeremy's ruthlessly critical and of course witty analysis of the merits of motions submitted to Napo conferences taught me more about the crafting of motions than any of the (many) tutorials and guides provided by the Labour party. On the back of that I have successfully pushed through motions at local and national labour conferences. A quick glance at Napo website suggests his guide to writing motions is no longer there. I hope someone has it and it is reinstated, or at the very least recorded somewhere for posterity.
ReplyDeleteJeremy ran creative writing fringe groups at Napo AGMs and I was chuffed to bits to win the writing competition one year. It wasnt the winning, it was making Jeremy laugh which made my day. He shared with another Jeremy (Jeremy Hardy, also gone now) huge wit, profound socialist values, and the wonderful talent of expressing rage at injustice in the most gentle and humerous manner, and all the more powerful for that. I didnt know him well, but he was a powerful presence, and a delight and inspiration.
Pearly Gates
Jeremy Cameron was part of the pressure group that ultimately turned the then "National Association of Probation Officers" into a Trade Union that is now affiliated with the General Federation of Trade Unions and the Trades Union Council - it would have been either the late 1970s or early 1980s - I wish I had a clearer memory of the processes and all those involved, another major figure being the now rarely mentioned Bill Beaumont who came from a rather radical Camden House Probation Team in the Inner London Probation Service - where I did a locum maternity cover placement when I first joined ILPS in 1988, by which time the high stress in Napo had subsided but Jeremy Cameron continued on - I was at his retirement party in Walthamstow - which might have been at the Old Granada Cinema another of his projects - I truly shed a tear when I read the email from Greater London Branch of Napo announcing his death.
ReplyDeleteIt came just a day after a Tweet from Steve Collett mentioning being at the funeral of Joe England a predecessor of mine at the Old Swan Office in Liverpool, where I started in the Training Unit at after Joe had left to become an SPO elsewhere on Merseyside - I believe he ended up as the Crown Court SPO at Liverpool after I moved to my home county in Essex in 1982.