CLUB members and family are to raise a glass to remember the life of James ‘Harry’ Chadwick tomorrow.

And it will be a glass of Benedictine, one of the drinks the former steward famously sold at the Burnley Miners’ Club.

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James, better known as Harry, died last week at the age of 88 and on Friday his family will pay tribute to him at the Miners.

Although Harry probably sold more glasses of Benedictine during his 15 years at the Miners than anyone else in the world, he’d only drink it once a year himself.

In the Chadwick family it’s a remembrance drink – to mark his mother Florrie’s birthday. So at Harry’s funeral his family will retain the tradition and have a glass in his memory.

Born in Burnley and brought up with his siblings Jack, Audrey and Arthur, he always loved bar work and as a teenager used to help out his dad at the Whittlefield Conservative Club in Dale Street.

After National Service in Northern Ireland and West Germany, he returned to bar work doing shifts at the Towneley Arms while maintaining his day job at a brickworks.

Life really changed though when he met his wife Irene at a dance and they married in 1946.

Shortly afterwards Harry became the landlord of his own pub The Queen, in Cliviger, for the next eight years with Irene by his side.

When they decided to retire, they moved back to Burnley but it wasn’t long before Harry was back behind the bar, this time as the steward at the Miners’ Club.

His son Gary said: “My dad’s life was a perfect template for a good life. His happiest time of life was at the Miners. I worked alongside dad there and he was hugely courageous.

“He loved to serve others, his interpersonal skills were second to none.

“He had an open door policy, and a come-as-you-are attitude. Everyone was welcome as long as they spoke to people like they wanted to be spoken to.”

Tony Mitchell, president of the Miners’ Club said: “We used to call him Mr Miner.

“He always had a lot of time for people, everyone loved him to bits.”

Friends of the father-of-four also took to Facebook to pay their respects.

Harry leaves his wife Irene and four children, Gail, Glenis, Gary and Graham, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.