The family of a head chef who died suddenly in the cold room of one of Cornwall’s most popular beachside bars have paid tribute to him.
Matt Halford, 38, was found collapsed in the Watering Hole in Perranporth Beach on Saturday.
Doctors and RNLI lifeguards attempted to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. The death is not being treated as suspicious and the family stressed that no one was at fault.
Matt had worked at Watering Hole, which is the UK’s only beach bar, since he was a teenager with brothers Jason, 41, and Lee, 42, and their father Mick. Between them they had added more than 100 years of service.
Matt Halford was found collapsed in the Watering Hole cold store in Perranporth Beach
Matt with his partner Becky. He had worked at Watering Hole since he was a teenager.
Between Matt, his two brothers and his father, they have accumulated over 100 years of service.
His mother, Joanne Ballinger, 61, said: “This place is a family, everyone hugs each other.” It’s very comforting right now because this is not what we expected.
‘Matthew was caring, he was a loving father, son and brother. He would put anyone first and help anyone he could. He was a hard worker, but he also liked to play rough.
He played basketball in Cornwall. He was lively, full of life and you always knew when he was around because you listened.
‘We are still trying to process your loss. It doesn’t feel real and we haven’t heard anything about why so we’re waiting for that.
‘He was on duty with his chef friend Max and had just made a delivery, Matt had gone to the chiller. So Max thought he was gone for a while and went looking for him and found him on his back in the fridge. Bob the owner tried to do CPR and everyone rallied to bring defibrillators but it was too late.
“He was a healthy and fit man. The last time he went to the doctor was in 2016. He didn’t smoke and had stopped drinking, he never took drugs, he was really fit and healthy.
The bar was initially closed for the weekend, but Joanne said the family insisted she open for Mother’s Day because Matt had been working hard preparing the meals.
Matt was a “fit and healthy” man, his mother, Joanne Ballinger, said in a tribute to her son.
Tributes have been held at the popular Cornish beach bar for head chef Matt after his death.
She said: ‘It was very emotional for everyone, it was incredible and beautiful. The things the trough has done. My children have been coming here since they were babies.
“It’s reassuring that if it was going to happen somewhere, it happened somewhere that he loved and was happy about.”
Matt leaves behind a couple, Becky, 29, and three children, Jaden, 18, Harlyn, 16, and Mekhi, 14.
Jason said: ‘We all grew up here. Dad worked here before I was born and we grew up with Mom working on the beach.
Matt, a father of three, is on vacation with 29-year-old Becky. He also leaves behind three children.
A tribute to Matt posted on The Watering Hole’s Instagram page in Perranporth
His children and his partner are all in Perranporth. Jaden and Harlyn help out in the kitchen. It’s a big part of a family here.
His brother Lee, who has taken over as head chef, added: “I want to do the best I can to make sure the effort you put into this place doesn’t go down the drain.” We are all there for each other, not just our family, but the Watering Hole family as well. It reaches so many people.
‘We’ve had people in Australia, Spain and the United States who knew him. He has touched people from all over the world. They have all said how sorry they are. He just touched a lot of people.
Matt with his partner Becky. Friends and family have paid tribute to the head chef who was a ‘loving father, son and brother’
Matt with his family last year, left to right: Matt, mom Joanne, and brothers Jason and Lee
A tribute posted by The Watering Hole read: ‘With iconic legendary locations that are larger than life like the watering hole, these locations are made by iconic legendary characters and unfortunately we lost our MVP on Saturday.
“We always thought that the most feared day would go away, but how wrong we were. We lost the best father, friend, brother and worker this place will ever see and this is hard to say but we will never find anyone like that again.
‘Matt had worked at the trough all his life, with his brothers Lee and Jason and three sons who have been there all their lives. Along with his father Mick aka Mad dog who was a character to say the least.
“He wasn’t just a big part of the trough, he was the trough, the life and soul of everything that happened and he would do anything for anyone.”
A GoFundMe page set up by Matt’s son to help finish a house renovation project his father started has already raised almost £1,400
Medics and RNLI first responders attempted to resuscitate Matt but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Matt’s death is not being treated as suspicious and the family stressed that no one was at fault.
Matt Halford, 38, was found collapsed in the Watering Hole (pictured) on Perranporth Beach
“Our thoughts and prayers are with all of Matt’s family and friends as we know a lot of people are going to suffer. The Watering Hole family will stick together because that is what he would want.
‘We love you mate and we can’t believe what has happened. Perranporth has lost his godfather and his captain.
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police had previously said: “Emergency services were called at around 9:30am to Perranporth Beach following reports of concern for a man’s well-being.” The man, in his 30s, was confirmed dead at the scene.
His closest relatives have been informed. The death is not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner.
Joanne said: “I was working for a living, but unfortunately when you’re 38 you don’t think about death.” If she had had an ongoing health problem, she very well might have, but the thought of securing her family’s future was probably the last thing on her mind.
A GoFundMe page set up by Matt’s eldest son Jaden to help finish a home renovation project his father started has already raised nearly £1,400.
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