Michael Boddington, an agricultural and environmental consultant who later turned his attention to charitable causes, has died aged 84. He set up Power International to work with amputees and people with severe disabilities in Laos.
Early life and education
Born near Ambleside in the Lake District, Mike was the son of Lilian (nee Olivia) and Michael, a hill farmer and RAF Spitfire pilot during the second world war. He was educated at the King’s School, Worcester, before taking an agriculture degree at Newcastle University.
Career in agriculture
In 1967, Mike worked at Wye College in Kent as a lecturer in agricultural economics. In 1972, he founded Rural Planning Services (RPS), an agricultural and environmental advisory consultancy. He ran RPS until 1982, when he sold it and founded Michael Boddington Associates (MBA), which he headed until 1991, when it was acquired by Travers Morgan. His consultancy work took him to many countries, delivering agricultural development advice in the Middle East, South and Central America, and south-east Asia.
Charitable work in Laos
In 1995, Mike established Power International and often visited Laos, where civilians continue to be killed and maimed by unexploded American bombs dropped during the Vietnam war. He created partnership organisations in Laos working on rehabilitation and established the Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE) in 1997, specialising in the manufacture of professionally fitted prosthetics and the rehabilitation of disabled people. COPE today is managed by Laos staff and treats about 1,500 patients annually.
Later years
Having moved to Vientiane, the capital of Laos, in 2001, Mike stepped back from his charitable work in 2016. He then built a guest house and let it out through Airbnb. Guests from all over the world appreciated his knowledge, engagement, storytelling and hospitality, especially the pint-sized gin-and-tonics he served. In 2010, he was appointed MBE.
Family
He was married three times; his first two marriages, to Ruth (nee Barlow) and Jane (nee Parr), ended in divorce. He is survived by his third wife, Xoukiet Panyanouvong, whom he married in 2003, four children, James and Christopher from his first marriage, and Louise and me from his second, and six grandchildren.
