Born in 1937 on the banks of the Thames, John Rogers grew up in Erith, became an apprentice on the river, and spent a lifetime defined by the water — as a rower spanning over seven decades, as a young man on national service who weathered storms and shipwreck abroad, and as a husband, builder, and businessman who navigated changing tides with quiet tenacity. From building dreams in the post-war years to venturing into new industries, from journeys to the other side of the world to the heartache of saying farewell to his wife Margaret, John's story is one of ordinary luck lived extraordinarily well. Better to be Born Lucky than Rich closes with voices from the family he leaves behind — a fitting tribute to a man who measured his wealth not in money, but in the richness of a life fully lived.