Norman White, 61, suffered a heart attack as his son, David Beilicki’s coffin was being carried into service
09:01, 09 Sep 2025Updated 12:21, 09 Sep 2025
David and his youngest son Jaxon(Image: UGC)
A family is in deep mourning after a dad collapsed at his son’s funeral service. It is believed that Norman ‘Nosha’ White, 61, tragically suffered a massive heart attack while his son’s coffin was being carried into church.
Norman was at the service for his late son, David Beilicki, being held in St Bede’s Chapel at Teeside Crematorium. David, 41, had been found dead on a family member’s sofa after a long struggle with drug addiction.
Chantelle Beilicki, David’s sister, said he had been doing really well staying off drugs and an investigation into the cause of his death is ongoing.
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In another heartbreaking marker of the family’s history, David had passed away 10 years to the day of the memorial service for his twin sons, Karson and Deacon, who were still born.
Chantelle said that for him to die on the anniversary of this sons’ memorial and for her dad to die at his funeral is something you would expect to see in a film plot.
The 42-year-old mum-of-four, said: “It has been so traumatic, you wouldn’t ever think of anything like this happening, you couldn’t write it.”
Chantelle and David(Image: UGC)
David died on July 31 and his funeral was held on August 21. Chantelle said: “When we got into the chapel and sat down, I looked around and said ‘where’s my dad?'” It was then someone told her Norman had collapsed and she went out to see what was going on.
The chapel was emptied while the ambulance was called and Norman was taken to hospital, reports Teeside Live. His sister went with him in the ambulance and the rest of the family carried on with the funeral before getting the devastating call that dad-of-seven Norman had died.
Their deaths have left a huge hole in the lives of their families and Chantelle said she is struggling to deal with the shock. She said Norman didn’t have any heart problems prior to this. She said: “I think he must have died from a broken heart. I think seeing all the family together like that must have been too much.”
For more than a week after David’s funeral, Chantelle said she was in a state of pure shock, unable to take in what had happened.
She said despite his drug problems, David, who was also dad to his adult son, Ethan, and Jaxon, nine, was hugely loved by everyone. She said: “He had a heart as big as the ocean. He is so missed.”
Norman with David as a youngster(Image: UGC)
He lived with her and her family in Overdale Road, Park End, and she said: “My kids are devastated. The whole place just isn’t the same without him.”
Chanetelle said Norman was hugely keen on boxing and was still training other people. She said he was an intensely private man, but was very well-known and popular. She said: “He was my dad and I idolised him.”
Chantelle said she wanted to praise the staff at Rose Funerals saying: “They were fantastic throughout the traumatic event. Our family could not have got through that day without them. They were patient, caring and went through every emotion with us, all the time they were working to save my dad although they were traumatised too”
Norman’s funeral service will be held on September 18 at St Hilda’s Chapel at Teesside Crematorium at 1.30pm.