A dad-of-two died in front of his devastated family after collapsing after they had enjoyed a meal at Toby Carvery.
Mark Hicklin's daughter Laura fought to save her father by doing CPR until paramedics arrived with the help of an off-duty nurse but the 55-year-old could not be saved.
Mark's son Matthew told Birmingham Live : "It was so sudden. My dad had gone for a meal at Toby Carvery with my mum Alison and my sister Laura.
"They had just finished their meal when my dad collapsed.
"Laura and other people in the restaurant rushed to him. My sister gave him CPR as they waited for paramedics to arrive.
"She was helped by an off-duty nurse called Rebecca who was amazing.
"Paramedics then took over and did their best to keep him alive. But he died.
"It was a huge shock for my mum and sister and for the whole family."
Matthew said his dad had suffered from ill health, including kidney problems and diabetes, for some time and took early retirement at the end of last year from his job at Royal Mail, where he worked for 30 years.
Matthew said: "He had been waiting months for his pension to arrive which had caused him stress. His pension finally arrived on March 3 and he had splashed out on Villa merchandise, some new glasses and something for my mum.
"Then just three days later he was dead. My dad was a larger-than-life character. He was the life and soul of the party.
"He loved his family and lived for them. We never had a great deal of money but my dad always provided for us.
"He was a huge Villa fan and had a season ticket for many years in the Holte End. I went with him as a young boy. Buying us that season ticket every year was a strain for him but he always managed to get us one.
"He was a fantastic dad and loved by everyone. I would like to thank staff at the Toby Carvery, off-duty nurse Rebecca and all the paramedics for their efforts."
Laura and Matthew have set up a GoFundMe campaign as the family want to raise money to buy a defibrillator to be placed at the restaurant.
They also want to place defibrillators in locations in the Castle Vale area of Birmingham in a bid to help save lives.
Mark's funeral will take place at 1.45pm on Tuesday, April 12 at Sutton Coldfield Crematorium.
