With his wife Lottie, sons James and Andrew and sister Sue at his side, Mike passed away at Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead, Sussex, on Wednesday, 30th December 2015.  He was 65. 

He was a big man in every way.  A larger than life character and personality with an infectious enthusiasm, Mike possessed a huge appetite and passion for life and will be greatly missed by his colleagues and friends throughout the moving industry. 

With a wealth of insurance experience and knowledge, Mike had many clients across the UK, some of whom he had worked with for more than 40 years.  One of Mike’s great qualities was his personable nature and ability to always find common interests with clients who were considered not just business colleagues, but friends as well. 

One of those companies is Bournes of Rye in East Sussex.  “Mike was such a character,” said the company’s chairman, Eric Bourne.  “That really came through in the anecdotes at his funeral.  He was so good to be with and to deal with.  He was also very good for the industry by helping companies reduce insurance premiums and he put so much back by sponsoring industry events. Our company owed him a lot and the industry will be sad to see him go.”  

Jonathan Hood, Group Managing Director of Cadogan Tate Group also worked very closely with Mike and said there was more to him than met the eye. “I knew Mike for many years both personally and professionally and despite the fact that he justifiably described as a larger than life character, there was another side to him. Beneath the bluff, thrusting and sometimes impatient exterior there lay, sometimes hidden but always there, an intensely sensitive, kind and generous man who really did care about his friends and business acquaintances and for whom nothing was too much trouble if it meant that you were a little happier or more comfortable. I will miss him – a lot.” 

Mike had many and varied passions in his life.  He loved classic cars, both model and real and had an extensive collection of these along with removals trucks of all shapes and sizes, collected throughout the years, many of which now adorn the walls of the Reason Global offices.   What many people did not realise was that Mike even raced cars as a younger man albeit with limited success! 

Another of Mike’s great passions was Gillingham Football Club, attending games whenever he could and he was also an avid follower of English cricket, travelling the world to watch England play, through their ups and their downs. 

Travel was in fact a huge part of Mike’s life and not just around the UK and abroad to see clients.   He also travelled extensively with both family and friends and saw many parts of the world, invariably travelling in style, as was Mike’s way. 

However, above all of this, his family and in particular his four grandchildren who he adored gave him the greatest pleasure of all.    A wonderful husband, father and grandfather, nothing was ever too much trouble for Mike. 

Known to so many in his chosen profession, there was a very large turnout of friends and colleagues from the moving and insurance industries to say farewell at his funeral on 21 January, 2016.  Mike battled cancer for the last year of his life and the support provided by Macmillan Cancer Support was invaluable to both him and all of his family, so rather than flowers, the family requested donations to Macmillan Cancer Support.  

Photos:  Top: Mike Reason; bottom left: Mike with Bournes staff, including Chairman Eric Bourne.

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