Funeral Notice and Celebration of The Life Of Peter Clarke — 10.45am, Monday 20th March

PETER CLARKE

My Father at Holme Bird Observatory at their 'Moth Day' Event in July 2008.
©Penny Clarke

The following will be published in the 'Your Local Paper' (weekly community paper, free to pick up in most supermarkets/garages locally) today Friday 3rd March and in the Eastern Daily Press tomorrow on Saturday 4th March.


C L A R K E – Peter

Founder of Holme Bird Observatory/NOA. Died peacefully, aged 90 years at Summerville Care Home, Heacham, 23rd February, 2017. Dearly loved husband of Margaret. Dearest Father of Penny, Lucy and Vivien. Funeral service at Mintlyn Crematorium, King’s Lynn on Monday 20th March at 10.45am. Informal/birding clothes! Family flowers only please, but donations if desired for The Norfolk Ornithologists’ Association (to be shared jointly with NWT) may be made at the service or sent to:- John Lincoln F/D’s, 40 Greevegate, Hunstanton, Norfolk PE36 6AG.


All friends, birding associates and NOA/NWT members who knew Peter, will be extremely welcome to join us at the service, which will be followed by a celebration of Peter's life, to be held at The Firs NWT Visitor Centre at Holme, where refreshments will be available. Please note that the NWT VC is closed to the public during the week (open at weekends only during 'Winter' months) so this will be open for the wake only. The Norfolk Ornithologists' Reserve and observatory will also be open to all comers. There will be a display of photographs of Peter and history of Holme Bird Observatory over the years.

My father would not have been happy with us having a wake in a pub or such like, so I came up with a very different and much more appropriate venue! My parents rented the NWT Firs Visitor Centre when father started in the early days of building Holme Bird Observatory. There is a picture of mother holding me as a new born baby in one of the bedrooms at the Firs House – so this is where it all began!

I am hugely grateful to HBO Warden Sophie Barker who has helped me so much with ideas and advice re the above and much more! I would like to thank NWT Warden Gary Hibberd and the NWT "HQ' enormously for allowing us to use the visitor centre to make this happen. I can't tell you how much this means to my family and I – thank you Gary! How cool will that be! The day of the funeral, 20th March is officially the first day of Spring! Hopefully we will be watching some migrants arriving on that day, whilst munching on sandwiches and cake! (hoping for coffee cake, was Father's favourite and mine!). Plenty of room for parking with the two car parks and Gary is hoping the well known 'bumpy' road down to the reserves will be re-surfaced in time! Hoping to see some of you there.

Peter photographing a bee in his garden at Holme

13th June 2011 ©Vivien Clarke

Father and I in deep conversation at Titchwell RSPB

17th October 2006 ©Frank Edmonds