THE family of a true man of Cinderford Viv Carpenter say he will be “greatly missed” by all who knew him following his death at the age of 88.

Viv, whose business Carpenters DIY has served the people of Cinderford and the surrounding areas for generations, sadly passed away following a long battle with cancer on Saturday, May 27.

Beloved husband of Jan and father to Tracey, the family say Viv will be “greatly missed by all of his family and many friends.”

As well being the well-known proprietor of his Cinderford hardware store, which he opened in 1974, Viv was also a hugely successful property developer, having built an estate of 28 houses and a row of eight flats and seven shops at Berisford Court at the top of town.

He also owned many of the shops in Cinderford town centre, which he renovated and let out to a variety of local businesses over the years, along with the Woodlands pub on the edge of town.

It all begin in the mid-1950s when Viv, at the age of 21, started his own business on Cinderford high street, specialising in carpentry and joinery.

Soon after he expanded it into a hardware store, before opening another one in Coleford and a wallpaper shop in Cinderford.

In 1974 he merged the two Cinderford stores and opened Carpenters DIY at 5 Market Street, where it has remained for nearly 50 years.

He was only persuaded to lease his flagship store to another tenant in 2020 by Jan and Tracey due to his ill health.

When Viv was diagnosed with cancer eight years ago, he was given only two years to live, but Tracey said it is testament to her dad’s spirit and resilience that he “fought to the end”.

She explained how Viv died “with a smile on his face”, peacefully at home, and that his last word to her was “hallelujah”.

Tracey described her dad as “a real people person”.

“He always went out of his way to help people, delivering all over the place around the Forest, and he had a special relationship with all of his customers”, she said.

“I’m so proud of my dad - he loved business, thrived on it even, and he taught me to always work hard”.

In the last few years, Tracey has taken on the running of her dad’s property portfolio, but she says it’ll be more difficult now without him around to offer his advice.

On the day of his funeral, the cortege will travel slowly through the town centre from the Golden Lion up to Viv’s own Berisford Court, with locals invited to stand out on the high street to pay their respects, at 11.10am on Monday, June 26.

His funeral will follow at Yew Tree Brake in Cinderford at 11.30am.