GREAT-great-grandfather Will Collis will be most missed for his mischievousness after he passed away peacefully in his sleep last weekend.

The centenarian, who celebrated his 100th birthday last October, died following a short illness where he lived at Park View Nursing Home in Blunsdon on January 11.

“It was just like dad,” said his daughter-in-law, Jan Collis.

“He had been ill for a couple of days and had had a fall the previous week, but it was just quiet and peaceful in the end.

“It was at around 1.20pm. My husband Peter had popped in to see him and he died about 10 or 15 minutes later.

“There was nobody quite like Will. He is one of those truly irreplaceable people.

“He was saucy, but not a nasty saucy. He was a very happy person.

“He met his wife because she was a nurse and he had a motorcycle accident and had to go to hospital. He tied her apron strings to a trolley in order to get her attention, and that’s how they met. That’s what he was like.

“He loved the children too, and they loved him. It just makes you realise how much we’ll all miss him.”

A devoted Christian, Will and his late wife Jessie were founder members of the Freshbrook Evangelical Church, and often held prayer meetings before the church itself was built.

He was also heavily involved with many of the building jobs while the church was built and spent much of his early retirement on the site.

Jan said: “Mum and dad were founder members of the church and he also played a big role in building it, he got everyone in the family involved.

“He didn’t serve in the war because he had a protected job, working in engineering in the aircraft industry.”

Born in Richmond, Will and his wife Jessie had two children – Margaret, who moved and now lives in Australia, and Peter – plus five grandchildren, six great grandchildren and one great great grandchild.

He became a resident at Park View in 2003 after suffering a bad fall at home.

He broke his hip, making mobility more difficult.

A private burial will be held for Will on Wednesday, followed by a celebration of his life at Freshbrook Evangelical Church at 2.15pm.

While all are welcome to come and celebrate his life with the family, they request family flowers only with donations to Wiltshire Air Ambulance.