Tributes paid to Rugby campaigner who helped improve the lives of disabled people

Tributes have been paid to a Rugby man who helped improve the lives of local people with disabilities.

Disability campaigner David Foster recently passed away after a continuing decline in his health. Despite his last years at home, under the care of wife Judith, his legacy remains evident in the community he brought closer, through his conviction to help disabled people.

David experienced a difficult childhood, with disruption to his education through illness and dyslexia - a condition not understood at the time.

Despite this, as a skilled and natural problem solver, the father-of-four forged a successful career as a management consultant.

He met Judith as she bartended at his local during her break from university.

Describing how they met, Judith said: “He called me a liar when I said where I lived because he lived in that road. He was thus commissioned to drive me home at the end of my shift to meet my mother and to take me to the library to change my mother’s books for her.”

David retired from his consultancy role in 1991 due to increasingly unmanageable pain brought on by a mental health disorder known as somatoform, along with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in relation to his fraught childhood.

Despite his health struggles, from 2004, David became chair of Rugby Disability Forum where he encouraged members to speak up over accessibility issues and equal rights. He used his consultancy skills to build connections with local authorities, to help improve access and ultimately allow forum members to feel a greater sense of community.

His wife Judith said: “David once again felt he had a purpose in society, that there was a use for his skills and was engrossed in resolving problems with like-minded people. He had confidence, compassion, determination that disabled people should and could participate in society generally if only local leaders were aware and willing to change a few things.”

Among the forum’s work to raise awareness, was a wheelchair race in 2005. Members set up an obstacle course along Sheep Street and High Street. Racers including councillors, the MP, the Chief Police Inspector among others, navigated ramps, bollards, cables and fire hoses in wheelchairs, to better understand the difficulties faced by wheelchair-users.

The town was also featured on the BBC’s topical affairs programme ‘The One Show’ which dubbed Rugby the scooter capital of the UK since mobility scooter access had soared following the work of David and the forum.

David was also behind the launch of Rugby Shopmobility which provided minimal cost hire of mobility scooters within the town. Unfortunately, David became too ill to manage the organisation, and business competition forced its closure in 2017.

Judith added: “David was very sincere, honourable and modest and only claimed ‘Rugby Shopmobility’ as his personal achievement, his own ‘baby’.

“He used his skills but saw himself as just a member of the forum doing his 'bit'.”

David’s funeral will be held on Friday June 30 at 2pm, at Rainsbrook Crematorium. Colourful clothing is encouraged. Donations, rather than flowers, are welcomed and will be divided between charities which supported David - RoSA (Rape or Sexual Abuse counselling in Rugby and Warwickshire) and PTSD Resolution.