Three hours before Daniel Chircop got married, he received a text message from his brother, David, revealing the secret of a happy marriage: love grows in times of turmoil.

“My brother was an exemplary family man. On my wedding day, he sent me a message I will treasure about how important it is to love your wife and that when problems surface you need even more love,” said Daniel, his voice trembling with emotion.

David, a Net Television cameraman, passed away yesterday morning, aged 41 after a seven-year battle with cancer.

As news about his death spread, many comments were posted on Facebook and other social media. Journalists, friends, relatives and colleagues expressed their condolences to his family as did the Institute of Maltese Journalists that praised his professional attitude.

Daniel, one of four siblings, worked with David for some time. “He was a very good elder brother. He thought me a lot of important things. He was a person who had no problem showing what he believed in and was honest and straightforward,” Daniel said, adding that his brother adored his wife, Beverly, and their two children Jacob, 16, and Mattea, 14.

His wife said: “He was an ideal husband and father and a person who left a huge emptiness behind him.”

Roderick Agius, a former colleague at Net TV, where Mr Chircop also served as head of operations, said: “He used his camera lens to transmit the harsh realities people were facing.”

He recalled travelling with Mr Chircop to Albania in the late 1990s where they filmed refugees who fled the Kosovo war. They also went to Sri Lanka about a week after the Boxing Day tsunami in 2004.

“The experience we shared there really made us understand and see the pain life can throw at people... I am convinced that these experiences made him stronger and gave him courage during his illness,” Mr Agius said.

It probably did. In the text message Mr Chircop sent his brother, two years ago, he wrote: “I know, through experience, that life can be tough but never forget that by loving one another and with God’s love you will move on.”

The funeral will be held today at the Mosta parish church at 3.30pm.