The Leader of the City of Wolverhampton Council has paid tribute to the way local residents and businesses united to celebrate the life and legacy of Sir Jack Hayward OBE.
On an emotionally charged and significant day, the City of Wolverhampton waved a final goodbye to Sir Jack at his funeral on Tuesday. As many as 7,000 people came into the City Centre to line the route of the funeral cortege from Molineux Stadium to St. Peter’s Church, as well as watching the service in front of a large TV screen in Queen’s Square.
Gold and black was the order of the day, in homage to Sir Jack’s feted ownership of Wolverhampton Wanderers, with plenty of banners and flags in view across the City Centre. Councillor Roger Lawrence said: “Sir Jack’s funeral was a fitting tribute to a great man and champion of the City. In particular it was absolutely stunning to see so many people come to Queen Square and stand in the cold for over two hours to pay their respects.
“I felt incredibly proud to have been part of yesterday’s events and I know that people I spoke to after the service felt exactly the same way – proud of Sir Jack and proud of this great City. “It was a tremendous effort from residents and businesses alike to make it such a special day for Sir Jack’s family and friends, with flags adorning shop windows and plenty of renditions of ‘thumbs up if you love Sir Jack’ and ‘he’s one of our own’.
“As a proud Wulfrunian I am sure he would have been delighted to see the City come together in such a way.” Mayor Councillor Mike Heap added: “Wolverhampton and its citizens gave Sir Jack the most wonderful send-off anyone could wish for and Rachael Heyhoe Flint’s eulogy was particularly outstanding. “There was an obvious outpouring of grief for one of the City’s greatest benefactors. It could not have been a more fitting tribute from all of those that attended, inside and outside of the Church.”
