Over four decades, many Norfolk pubs and shops became familiar with the 'lifeboat man' who, every so often, would pop in to empty their RNLI charity boxes on the counter.
That man was Vic Brown, whose commitment to the local community saw him support dozens of good causes during his 79 years, touching hundreds of lives in the process.
Born on November 16, 1942, Victor Arthur Brown spent most of his childhood in the village of Horsford, near Norwich.
In the early-1960s he began attending King's College London to study modern languages, and it was there that he became friends with none other than Desmond Tutu.
Having returned to Norfolk he got a job with Barclays bank and soon met Freda, a friend of his sister. They were married in 1967 and subsequently moved a few miles down the road to Spixworth.
In 1969 they welcomed into the world their first child, Amanda. There followed another move - this time to Swaffham - before their second child, Christopher, was born in 1971.
Mr Brown stayed throughout his entire working career at Barclays, but it was outside the workplace that he came into his own, serving the communities he loved with unwavering dedication.
After spending time as treasurer at Spixworth Village Hall, he joined Swaffham Round Table and took on almost every role over the course of 13 years.
In the meantime, Mr Brown became a committee member with the Swaffham St Raphael Club and was a driver for handicapped people.
He had, by this stage, also joined the Swaffham and Watton Far East Prisoners of War Association. In the ensuing years, he served as vice president, vice chairman and, finally, chairman of the trustees.
Vic and Freda were divorced in 1981 and, a year later, Mr Brown moved to Mattishall and soon took an active involvement in Dereham community life.
After joining the Dereham RNLI branch, he assumed the role of static boxes secretary which took him through the doors of hundreds of businesses across the area, while also organising countless collections.
Dereham branch secretary Liz Hornegold, who knew Mr Brown for several decades, said: "He will be greatly missed. His death has come as such a shock.
"Only the evening before he died, he and I were texting each other about a forthcoming collection we are having.
"He spent an awful lot of time in his car, going around emptying our static boxes. He took a huge interest in the RNLI."
In the mid-1980s, Mr Brown swapped Swaffham Round Table for Dereham Lions. He served as club president on four occasions, the last being in 2017-18.
Christopher Brown said his father's outstanding service was a reflection of his love for Norfolk.
"He believed in serving his fellow man and loved the county," he said. "He spent all his life here and would not have wanted to live anywhere else.
"There were lots of people around the area who knew him. What has been nice is that, since he died, so many people have said how much they liked and admired him."
Retiring at the age of 50 allowed Mr Brown to indulge in his passion for hunting.
While he never hunted himself, he was fascinated by its history and became a member of the West Norfolk Foxhounds Supporters Club.
In 2000, he began the process of writing his own book, an endeavour that eventually resulted in the publication of 'The Foxhunters of Norfolk: 1534 to the Present Day in 2005.
Christopher added: "He spent five years travelling the country for this book - going to libraries, trawling through the EDP archives.
"To him, that was the right way to do it. If you were going to do something, you did it properly.
"Then he typed it all up on a typewriter because he didn't want to use a computer."
After years of painstaking research, Mr Brown's efforts were rewarded in the form of Royal recognition.
A copy of the book found its way to Sandringham and was said to have caught the eye of the then Prince Charles.
"A little while later there came a request from [King Charles' family residence] Highgrove House," said Christopher.
"He was informed that Prince Charles had seen it and would like a copy for his own house.
"I think in his own humble way he was really proud."
Mr Brown died on October 11 this year at the age of 79. As well as two children, he leaves behind six grandchildren.
His funeral will take place at 11am at All Saints Church in Mattishall on Monday, November 14. His coffin will be adorned with the RNLI flag to recognise all he did for the charity.
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