Peter Bentley, who died aged 81 on 6th February, was a stalwart of Surrey bridge for many years. He was President of the county twice and served on the committee for over thirty years with some breaks.
He was awarded the Dimmie Fleming in 2004 for services to Surrey bridge. He was also a Surrey EBU shareholder, and a regular attendee at Surrey events. He was the non-playing captain of the Tollemache team for twenty-five years. He was very pleased to achieve his goal of becoming a Grand Master in 2013.
Peter was an optometrist by profession and had his own business in Camberwell for over thirty years. He was also a keen golfer and had been captain of his golf club at Dulwich. Peter was generous and easy to get on with. He never complained about anything and was always upbeat despite suffering from cancer since 2000. His wife Detta has suffered from dementia for the past few years, and he was determined to keep her at home as long as possible. He also took her around the country to bridge congresses, and also regularly to Wimbledon until about a year ago.
Peter could also be very stubborn – despite his illness, he was determined to keep going and to remain a member of the Surrey committee. He attended his last meeting on 16th January.
The bridge world will miss him greatly.
(Surrey CBA)