Las Vegas Metro Police investigators work at the scene of a fatal crash Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021, in Las Vegas. Police in Las Vegas say Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III was involved in the fiery vehicle crash early Tuesday that left a woman dead and Ruggs and his female passenger injured. (AP Photo/Eric Jamison)
Dr. Peter Bekenn spent 39 years serving the Sedgley community before retiring in 1997.
He joined the Wolverhampton Wanderers as medical officer during their dark days in the Fourth Division and served as a medical advisor to the team for many years. He was a longtime supporter of the football team.
He oversaw a group of four general practitioners as senior partner of The Ridgeway Surgery at the time of his retirement.
The funeral service for Dr. Bekenn, who passed away on January 31, will take place at New Forest Crematorium on March 4 at 1pm. Only flowers for family members are desired. He is survived by two daughters, five grandchildren, and his second wife Corinne.
He took over as a partner in the former Bloomfield House practice in Dudley Road, Sedgley, where his colleague was the late Dr. John Donaldson, after his late father, Cyril Bekenn, who was born in South Africa.
Dr. Bekenn, a longtime resident of Trysull, lost his son Adam, then 16 years old, in a narrowboat accident on a vacation in 1978. Judy, his first spouse, lost her battle with illness in 1991 at the age of 59.
He had been a GP in the Dudley borough for the longest period of time when he retired.
For seventy-two years, his family has contributed to the wellbeing of the Sedgley neighborhood.
Dr. Bekenn was born in Sedgley in 1925, following his father’s arrival to the then-village. Madeleine, his mother, was Sedgley’s first female councillor.
At the age of six, the family relocated to Bloomfield House, which is currently an assisted living facility. Following his father’s partnership with Dr. Donald Cunningham, a surgery was constructed in the backyard. Dr. Alex Bekenn, his uncle, joined the clinic in 1938.
Following his 20 months of national service, Peter Bekenn entered the medical field and completed his training for six years at London’s St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. After his father passed away, he worked in hospitals before coming back to Sedgley to join the partnership.
He established the region’s first prenatal and immunization clinics.
In 1994, the firm relocated to The Ridgeway, its new location.
Additionally, Dr. Bekenn served as president of the Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmens’ Families Association’s Sedgley section.
Candida Weston, his daughter, stated that her father had spent 24 years residing in the Lymington region.
“He recalled Sedgley with fondness. He was extremely happy to have given the Sedgley community so many years of his best service, having been born and raised in the Black Country.
“Right up until a few weeks before his death he was watching Wolves games on TV and was keeping up with their results until he died.”
The Ridgeway Surgery released a statement in honor of their former senior partner, Dr. Peter John Bekenn, stating that the staff was informed of his loss with love and regret.
As he would like himself to be characterized, Dr. Bekenn was a very kind and sympathetic general practitioner who had dedicated his life to servicing his patients. He embodied all the characteristics of a family doctor.
“He took great pleasure in watching lives develop, having known and cared for many generations of local families.” In addition to attending many births, his role as the family doctor allowed him to assist families in their hour of greatest need when they were grieving a loss.
Many of his patients, coworkers, and staff still inquire about him, and they will be deeply saddened to learn of his untimely death not long after turning ninety-four.”
In addition, Dr. Bekenn served as the chairman of the Dudley Local Medical Committee, the medical officer for the Sedgley chapter of the British Red Cross Society, and the police surgeon for Sedgley for a while.
“Throughout his many years at The Ridgeway Surgery, he saw profound changes in general practice, but he never wavered in his firm belief in the immeasurable value of a face-to-face consultation between a patient and a doctor. Something he wisely and skillfully practiced.
“Those who had the privilege of knowing him personally or who were colleagues or patients will be deeply sorry that such an exceptional upstanding servant of the community has passed on,” the memorial for surgery stated.
