Geoff Try: Tributes to businessman and long-serving Rotarian

Geoff Try once described himself as a ‘dunce who never passed an exam in my life’.

He went on to become a phenomenal success in the world of business, and turned out to be one of the most successful ‘dunces’ anyone can remember.

He died suddenly at his home in Castle View, Windsor, on September 11, aged 93.

He even joked with the ambulance crew seconds before he passed away, said his widow, Fiona.

He joined the Slough Rotary Club 63 years ago and during that time raised at least £100,000 for good causes.

He was a natural charity worker and was a generous man. With his impish smile and boyish charm he could charm the birds off a tree.

Because he was a great salesman nobody turned him down when he was selling raffle tickets.

Everybody donated items to his annual gift hamper at the annual Rotary Charity Walk.

He was a bit of a ‘show off’ according to his daughters, and loved ‘to be noticed’ when wearing fancy ties, extraordinary braces, and loud socks.

Geoff was always immaculately dressed and could be described as a ‘model of sartorial elegance’. He said he never wore jeans in his life.

He was born in Windsor in 1932 and attended the County Boys’ School in Windsor before moving on to the boarding school Malvern College in Worcestershire.

He was great at all sports, won many prizes, but admits he was an ‘academic disaster’. He said: “I failed every exam I ever took and I did not sit many.”

But his lack of academic success did not stop the Malvern college bosses inviting him to become a governor years later.

He had such a bad opinion of his lack of classroom achievement that he would not participate in any quizzes. But he always donated expensive prizes for the raffles.

He loved a joke, was gregarious, and quickly lit up every crowded room he entered.

He started his working life as a travel agent after taking over a business run by his father, Reg, a leading light of the Windsor Rotary Club.

He met Fiona when they were teenagers. He always said it was ‘love at first sight’ but she refused his marriage proposals on numerous occasions.

Fiona said: “I eventually agreed to marry him just to shut him up.

“He showed me how to ski and warned me that he would leave me at the top of a skip slope if I refused to marry him.”

During one skiing session they both landed on top of a house.

Throughout his years in business Fiona was his ‘rock’ and unofficial chief executive. She said: “People called me ‘that bloody woman’.”

They married in June 1961, at St Andrews Church, Clewer, Windsor.

He was a national serviceman in the 1950s and drove a tank while serving in the Army.

He said: “I did not excel at tank driving and managed to be in one tank that sank. I also collided with the side of a house.”

He excelled at sport in the Army and was good at athletics, cricket and rugby.

He was discharged from the Army on medical grounds.

He entered the world of employment when his father gave him part of his business called ‘Motor Coach Travel’ and his drive and ambition helped steer him to a fortune.

Apart from establishing travel offices all over Britain and parts of the world, Geoff also opened  car parks at Heathrow and Northolt.

At his peak he employed 300 people and at one time he owned a casino in St Vincent in the Caribbean.

Exciting times included escaping a coup in Brazil by leaping onto a plane that was rapidly departing.

He also wandered by mistake into a jungle in Brazil where he was entertained by a tribe with a history of cannibalism.

Geoff was instrumental in bringing the famous totem pole from Canada to the lake at Virginia Water.

He was on Vancouver Island when locals told him they wanted to give Queen Elizabeth II a present. He explained that he lived in Windsor and could arrange transport.

The giant totem pole was strapped to the side of a ship and taken to England.

Geoff was an avid stamp collector and boasted a massive collection

His archives cover important Windsor events, and volumes of Rotary history filled a bedroom.

He helped compile a book on the first 50 years of the Slough Rotary Club.

Robin Weathersbee, secretary of Slough Rotary Club, said: "He ran his successful World Travel Business with his wife, Fiona, for over 30 years.

“From Windsor Round Table he joined Slough Rotary Club for 63 years and helped save communities both locally and internationally with enthusiasm, hard work and great success.”

Club President Richard Mingard said: "With the passing of Geoff Try the world has lost a good man and the Slough Rotary Club has lost a member who knew the true meaning of our motto ‘Service Before Self’. “

Geoff leaves widow Fiona and four children - Tammy, Amanda, Andrew and Tiffany, and 11 grandchildren.

His funeral service will be held at St Andrews, Clewer, Windsor, on October 1, at 1pm.

Cremation will take place at Slough Crematorium.