Tribute to Chris Lightbody, a kind and fun-loving young man

Chris, of Kirkfieldbank, was on his way to get a tattoo in Wishaw when his Kawasaki motorbike collided with a bus on the A73 in Braidwood last Thursday.

Sadly, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Parents Margaret and George, along with Chris’s 17-year-old sister Zoe, paid a heartfelt tribute to a much loved son, brother and friend.

George said: “Chris was on his way to get a tattoo with the words – Learn from Yesterday, Live for Today, Hope for Tomorrow – on it.

“Lots of his friends have decided to get the same tattoo in tribute to him, which is a really nice touch.

“Everyone has been really supportive since the accident.

“As a family we can’t put into words just how much it means that so many people have expressed their sympathies to us.”

Mum Margaret added: “Chris was always up for a laugh and enjoyed being with his friends.

“If any of his friends needed anything he would be the first one there to help.

“He was the first person to try something and we have been told he always had his ‘dancing shoes’ on.”

Tributes have poured in for Chris, both at the spot where he lost his life and on social media sites.

Flowers, football tops and a ‘monkey suit’, which fun-loving Chris wore on numerous occasions, have been left in his honour.

Friends have also confirmed that a motorbike and car ride in his honour will be setting off from the Aldi car park in Carluke on September 15 at 6pm.

Dad George continued: “If Chris could do something to make people laugh he would do it. I’ve seen him going down the shops in that monkey suit.

“He had such a wide circle of friends from both school and college; they all started to get to know each other and Chris was the link.

“He had been riding his bike since he was 17. It was all he wanted to do.

“The motorbike community is a very tightknit group and we’ve had so many people, many of whom we don’t know, calling to offer their condolences.”

Margaret added: “I got the monkey suit online and he loved wearing it.

“Chris will be sorely missed by all of us.”

Chris was a former Lanark Primary and Lanark Grammar pupil.

He had a passion for motorbikes and got his first bike when he was seven.

That passion continued through his teenage years; then he started a course in motorcycle mechanics at Motherwell College.

Away from the bikes, Chris was also an accomplished martial artist having gained his black belt in taekwon-do at the age of only 12.

Music was another passion and he regularly travelled to nightclubs in Motherwell and Glasgow with friends.

He also enjoyed playing his X-Box and would spend hours playing games such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft on his computer.

Employed by Border Biscuits in Lanark, he was still searching for and aiming to get work as a motorbike mechanic.

Chris will never be forgotten.

His funeral will take place at Holytown Crematorium this Friday, September 6, at 2.15pm.