A devoted father collapsed and died as he watched his son’s coffin being carried into a funeral chapel.
Norman White, aged 61, suddenly collapsed during a memorial service for David Beilicki, 41, who had passed away on the 10th anniversary of his own stillborn twin sons’ funeral.
Norman’s daughter said that the extraordinary tragedy has left the family in a state of ‘pure shock’.
Norman, affectionately known as Nosha by his friends, fell ill as David’s casket was being brought into St Bede’s Chapel at Teesside Crematorium in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, on August 21.
David had long struggled with drug addiction and was discovered lifeless on a relative’s couch on July 31, precisely 10 years after the memorial service for his twins, Karson and Deacon.
David’s sister, Chantelle Beilicki, mentioned that her brother had been making progress in overcoming his addiction, and the investigation into his death’s cause is still in progress.
She likened the tragic timing of her brother’s death on his sons’ memorial anniversary and her father’s passing at his funeral to the kind of storyline you would find in a movie.
The 42-year-old mother-of-four, said: ‘It’s been so traumatic, you wouldn’t ever think of anything like this happening, you couldn’t write it.
Norman White, 61, collapsed and tragically died as he watched his son’s coffin being carried into a funeral chapel
Chantelle expressed her feelings about her father Norman: ‘My children are heartbroken. The entire atmosphere has changed without him. He was my father, and I looked up to him.’
‘When we got into the chapel and sat down, I looked around and said ‘where’s my father?”
It was then that someone told Chantelle that Norman had collapsed and she went outside to see what was going on.
The chapel was emptied whilst an ambulance was called and Norman was taken to hospital.
His sister went with him in the ambulance and the rest of the family carried on with the funeral before getting the devastating call that father-of-seven Norman had died.
Their deaths have left a huge hole in the lives of their families and Chantelle said she is struggling to deal with the shock.
She said that Norman didn’t have any heart problems prior to his tragic death.
‘I think he must have died from a broken heart. I think seeing all the family together like that must have been too much,’ Chantelle said.
For more than a week after David’s funeral, Chantelle said she was in a state of pure shock, unable to take in what had happened.
Pictured: Father Norman White, with his son David when he was a baby
David was found dead on July 31 on a family member’s sofa – 10 years to the day since the memorial service for his twin sons, Karson and Deacon
David’s funeral procession – during which his father, Norman White, 61, collapsed and was rushed to hospital
David Beilicki (pictured), 41, was found dead on July 31 – 10 years to the day since the memorial service for his twin sons, Karson and Deacon
Norman White (pictured), 61, collapsed at his son’s funeral in a double tragedy that has left the family heartbroken
David’s sister, Chantelle, said the family is in a state of ‘pure shock’ and described the tragedy as something out of a film plot
‘He had a heart as big as the ocean. He is so missed’: Chantelle said of her late brother, David
She said that despite his drug problems, David, who was also father to his adult son, Ethan, and Jaxon, 9, was hugely loved by everyone.
‘He had a heart as big as the ocean. He is so missed.’
Chantelle, who lived with David and her own family in Park End, Middlesbrough, said Norman was keen on boxing and had been training other people.
She described him as an intensely private man who was still very well-known and popular.
‘My kids are devastated. The whole place just isn’t the same without him.
‘He was my father and I idolised him,’ she said.
Chantelle said she wanted to praise the staff at Rose Funerals, saying: ‘They were fantastic throughout the traumatic event.
‘Our family could not have got through that day without them. They were patient, caring and went through every emotion with us, all the time they were working to save my father although they were traumatised too.’
