ByJennifer Lipman, Jennifer Lipman
The mother of a 25-year-old East Finchley man who was killed in a paragliding accident in the Spanish Pyrenees last week has described him as an inspiration.
Guy Joseph was a keen adventurer who fell in love with diving as a teenager while on holiday in San Diego.
He chose to study marine biology, gaining a first from Newcastle University, because he wanted to find a way to earn a living through adventures.
After graduating he worked as a professional scuba-diving instructor in East Timor and the remote island of Flores, where he taught himself Indonesian and became a popular figure with the locals.
"He was just so happy there," said his mother Vicky, recalling her visits to the island with her husband Tony. "It was fantastic to see him at work. I felt so proud of him and everybody there said he was so lovely. He built friendships wherever he went."
Mrs Joseph said tributes had been pouring in from her son's friends. "He was so special to us and to everybody else. He really lived his life to the full, every minute of every day."
He had been barmitzvah at the New North London Synagogue, whose minister, Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg, said his thoughts were with the family.