A DREAM holiday turned to a nightmare for a Halesworth family when a father-of-two died while snorkelling off the coast of Ibiza.Motor mechanic Ivan Aldred, 42, was enjoying the last day of the family's first ever holiday abroad when he died tragically, from causes as yet unknown.

A DREAM holiday turned to a nightmare for a Halesworth family when a father-of-two died while snorkelling off the coast of Ibiza.

Motor mechanic Ivan Aldred, 42, was enjoying the last day of the family's first ever holiday abroad when he died tragically, from causes as yet unknown.

His devastated family, of Wissett Road, Halesworth, are still trying to come to terms with his sudden death.

His grieving widow, Anne, 39, paid tribute to her devoted and loving husband, who was nicknamed 'Grinner' for the smile he always had.

"He was a wonderful father and a really lovely bloke, everyone liked him," she said.

"He was my best friend as well as my husband. He was a very kind, gentle and loving person who loved being with his family."

"This was our first holiday abroad and it was a wonderful holiday for six days, nothing can touch that. We spent every moment together as a family except when he popped into the water to go snorkelling.

"He'd done lots of snorkelling before, but never in such clear water, and he was thrilled by seeing the fish so close up. We kept pinching ourselves, it was such a big thing for us to go somewhere like that."

The couple met when they were both at Bungay High School, and married in November 1984.

"In 1988 we had Jason, now 15," said Mrs Aldred, who works at Moss Pharmacy in Halesworth.

"He was his father's delight. Then Rebecca was born in 1991 – Ivan was very proud of his pigeon pair."

Mr Aldred, the second son of Clifford and Olive Aldred from Walpole, attended Cookley and Walpole primary school before going to Halesworth Middle and Bungay High schools.

He trained as a mechanic at King's garage in Halesworth where he stayed for several years before fulfilling his dream of starting his own business fixing cars in Walpole.

He was a keen motorcyclist, and a member of the Ace motorcycle club. He also owned a Unimog, a military vehicle, which he used to take to rallies with his son Jason, and was fascinated, like his father and elder brother Clive, in aircraft. His wife's 40th birthday present to him was a flying lesson.

His other passion, which he shared with the rest of the close-knit family, was animals, and it was he who helped his daughter Rebecca, 12, choose her first pony.

"Jason, Rebecca and I would like to say a heartfelt thanks to all the family and friends for all their help and support to get us through this nightmare," said Mrs Aldred.

Ivan Aldred's funeral will take place at Walpole parish church at 2pm tomorrow.

The Ace motorcycle club will escort the coffin to the church, where the service will be taken by Anne Aldred's brother, United Reformed Church minister Geoffrey Clarke.

The family has asked for family flowers only. Any donations will be shared between Clic (Cancer Leukaemia in Childhood), in memory of Ivan's younger brother Tony who died in his early twenties from the disease, and the RSPCA, and should be made out to funeral director Tony Brown's Charity Account at Tony Brown's Funeral Parlour, Chantry Rd, Saxmundham.