The heartbroken wife of a community champion who has died suddenly at the age of 55 has hailed him as “the most loving, caring, generous man ever.”

Chris Reid, from Erskine, was widely respected in the local area after he co-founded food provision group EBI Unites at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic to help those in need.

His wife Jacqui told how, recently, his cognitive abilities began to rapidly decline and, in December, he was diagnosed with autoimmune encephalitis.

Chris died suddenly while the couple were visiting Oxford to be with daughter Jennifer for the birth of their first grandchild, Rory.

Jacqui told The Gazette: “He had completely lost his memory and had no concept of who he was. It came back gradually over the weeks but he was just lost.

“Even though his mental capacity had been much reduced, he managed to write a poem for Rory about the hopes and dreams he had for the future.”

Chris moved to Erskine at the age of seven and was a pupil at Rashielea Primary and Park Mains High.

After being unable to complete RAF cadet training due to a back injury, he went on to work as a loss prevention manager at Halfords and then as an auditor with beverage firm Diageo.

The Gazette: Chris Reid with his wife JacquiChris Reid with his wife Jacqui (Image: Sourced)

At the start of the pandemic, Chris was keen to help vulnerable people in Erskine who couldn’t leave home during lockdown.

Jacqui said: “He was really worried about how older people who didn’t have access to the internet were going to get their shopping.

“Chris cared so much about his community that we started EBI Unites in our home because his concern for what people were going to do was so great.

“The group began in our sitting room and now it’s feeding 250 people a week, as it has continued to expand as the need continues to grow.”

EBI Unites’ two Erskine bases at the Church of the Nazarene and Barnhill Farm were built from scratch by Chris.

Jacqui added: “I’ve been absolutely overwhelmed with the expressions of sympathy. We’ve received hundreds of cards from people sharing their memories of Chris.

“Some have shared stories about times when he talked them out of doing the very thing that he did.”

A funeral service for Chris was held at The Church of the Immaculate Conception, in Glasgow, this morning, before moving on to Maryhill Crematorium.

If you need someone to talk to, call Samaritans on 116 123.