A MINISTER who led several Isle of Wight churches, Rev Richard George Steel, has died at the age of 86.

He was taken ill while preaching at a Sunday morning Zoom service for Freshwater Methodist Church on January 24.

He was taken to St Mary's Hospital but his condition was not recoverable and he died later that afternoon.

Richard was born in March 1934 in Stratford, to George and Gertrude. His sister Kathleen was born in 1941.

His father was in the Merchant Navy working as a refrigeration engineer. They lived in Ilford throughout the Second World War and he recollected the Blitz with doodlebugs and V2 rockets flying overhead.

In 1945 he passed his eleven plus to get to Wanstead High School.

His Christian beginnings started at Sunday school, and he also joined the Boys Brigade and Covenanters at the local church.

His work ethic started early with a seven day a week paper round, and he helped his uncle Tim with his horse drawn cart milk round at weekends and during school holidays.

He also made small aluminium electric fires with his dad to sell.

On leaving school he joined a shipping company as a clerk then the Ministry of Supply in Fenchurch Street.

In 1952 he was called up for National Service and joined the RAF in a clerical position. After training he was posted to Aden, now part of Yemen, for 21 months and passaged on the HMT Dunera.

In Aden he joined a missionary team and started to pick up the Arabic language, which he eventually became fluent in.

He was demobbed in 1954 and re-joined the Ministry of Supply. However he soon wanted to return to Aden as a missionary and was accepted at Worldwide Evangelical College – Missionary Training College in Glasgow.

Before going back to Aden, Richard was introduced to his future wife, Hazel Lee, by mutual friends. Hazel waited three years for Richard while he was in Aden. He wasn't able to speak to her, but asked her to marry him by letter.

Richard came back to the UK in 1961 and joined a friend’s furniture shop as a driver while he considered what to do with his life. He married Hazel in the November.

In 1962, Richard joined Spurgeons college to start training as a Baptist minister.

Their oldest son Adrian was born in 1963, second son David in 1965, and daughter Helen followed in 1968.

Richard became minister of Chingford Baptist Church in 1965.

In 1972 the family moved to Southampton where Richard was the pastor for three churches, then on New Year’s Eve 1974 they moved to the Isle of Wight, where Richard became the minister of Castlehold Baptist Church in Newport.

Under his guidance and encouragement, the church went from strength to strength, culminating in the 1990s with three services each Sunday due to the size of the congregation.

Wellow Baptist Church also came under his wing.

Richard retired from Castlehold in 1997 but continued his ministry by supporting Wellow, Ryde and Cowes Baptist churches, and conducting funeral services.

Even the week before he died, he was still conducting funerals.

For relaxation, sailing was a big part of Richard's life and he navigated many countries over the 50 years of his hobby.

He also played the piano accordion, which became one of his trademarks, and was a lifelong West Ham United fan.

During retirement, Richard and Hazel revisited their love of dogs and took on a succession of rescued Weimaraners.

He loved nothing more than getting the whole family together and spending time with his six grandchildren.