Family recalls man who loved wife deeply

The third person found dead in a rural Feilding house has been laid to rest in Palmerston North with kind words from family and friends.

Desmond Winnie, 65, was remembered as a private man who loved his wife deeply, but who had become slightly reclusive in his later years.

About 60 people attended the short and informal service for Mr Winnie at the Terracehaven Chapel yesterday.

Mr Winnie, his wife, Deborah Honeyfield, 51, and father-in-law, Ian Ray Honeyfield, 86, were found dead from shotgun wounds in their Lees Rd house on August 23 in what appears to be murder suicide.

Mrs Honeyfield's brother, Paul Honeyfield, showed up to farewell his brother-in-law.

"I do know that my sister very much loved Des and they were very happy for all but a very short time," Mr Honeyfield told those in attendance.

"We don't know what happened. I just want us to remember the best of those years and the last years of Des' life and hopefully it will all be put to rest."

Mr Honeyfield said he enjoyed spending time with Mrs Honeyfield and Mr Winnie at their rural properties.

"I think Des was possibly the son my dad wished I was because I was born on a farm but I wasn't a farmer," he said.

"They created their own little farm and I used to love going there."

Reverend Jenny Watson, who officiated the service, said it wasa tough time for both families.

"When faced with a sudden and violent death we are faced with so many emotions," she said.

"We are faced with so many questions and there are no answers.

"Des had been through tough times, he'd been through heart-break and he'd been through happiness."

Mr Winnie took to farming like a "duck to water", enjoyed foods like blue-vein cheese and chillies and loved his children Dean, Kym and John, Rev Watson said.

Despite their 14-year age gap, younger brother Chris Winnie said Mr Winnie was his role model because of his hardworking nature, clever mind and quick wit.

"He taught me how to work. He had many jobs where he started at the bottom, learnt the job inside out and he became very good at it," he said. "He was our big brother and for that reason we loved him."

Mr Winnie loved animals and children, and was put on a "pedestal" by his family.

"I can remember my mum saying `Des is coming for a visit'. Everything had to be perfect, everything had to be spotless," Chris Winnie said.

"He was a snappy dresser whose presence filled a room. He had an aura that drew people to him."

Friend Brown Hickman said she and her husband Lance had been close with Mr Winnie for many years, but had recently drifted apart from him for reasons unknown.

"He was always a friend and a gentleman. I'm going to miss him [and] miss his cheeky face," he said.

A private cremation was held after the service.

A combined funeral was held for Mr Winnie's wife and father-in-law in Palmerston North on Tuesday.

- © Fairfax NZ News