Born 5 Aug 1949 in New Plymouth, NZ

Ancestors

Died 23 Sep 2013 at age 64 in New Plymouth, New Zealand

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Biography

Graeme was born at New Plymouth Hospital on August 5th, 1949. He was the 2nd and youngest son of Edna (nee Holloway) and Leslie Clarke. He had an older brother, who was born in 1944.

He attended Welbourne Primary School, Highlands Intermediate and New Plymouth Boys' High School.

He left school at about age 15-16 years and began an electrical apprenticeship. He was to work in this field for the rest of his life.

Dad was tall - about 6 feet, lean and hazel brown eyes. He had dark hair - which faded to silver, not grey (he liked to say he was a silver fox like Sean Connery)! He always wore a moustache (he shaved it off once and it scared the heck out of us kids so grew it back) and he had a beard, which was kept neat and trimmed. In his later years, he just had the moustache. He had naturally olive skin as well which darkened every summer.

Graeme was a member of the New Plymouth Caledonian Pipe Band which he joined in his teens through to the 1980s. He played the snare drum beautifully. The sound of bagpipes reminds me of him today.

He married Mum on August 2nd 1980 at their new home in New Plymouth. A low-key wedding for a low-key couple. They raised a family of four daughters.

One enduring memory I have as a kid was when, on Sunday's we would go to Nana Edna's in the afternoon and spend a couple of hours with her. Instead of going home afterwards, we would drive down to Port Taranaki, getting an icecream on the way, and go and walk around the ships docked there. The port and neighbouring Ngamotu beach was one of Dad's favourite spots and he would often spend his lunchtimes with his pie and sandwiches, just sitting, watching the boats and ships. He had many happy memories from his boyhood of Ngamotu Beach, especially when he used to sail back in his younger days. It was his happy place.

Dad became ill in late 2010 but soldiered on, in his own way. He didn't let things stop him from working and could be quite stubborn, not resting when he should ... he wasn't one to sit still for long unless he had a good book to read! Dad was a man who was the salt of the earth, who called a spade a spade. He could be a tough character but underneath, had a heart of gold. He was the King of 'Dad jokes', some of which I still share today with the kids and gets them giggling every time. His favourite singer was Johnny Cash. He was a lover of rugby and cricket and was most happiest when he was surrounded by the family, especially on our Saturday afternoons, when we all gathered at Mum and Dad's for a beer and quiz time (he'd save the Saturday paper so that we could challenge each other on the quiz - things could get quite competitive). He also loved the crosswords, which he and I often did together.

Dad died peacefully at home in his sleep, after a long illness on 23 September 2013 at the age of 64 years. A dearly loved husband, father, father-in-law, and grandfather to 5 grandchildren.

Sources =

" The events of Graeme's life were witnessed by Amber Clarke. Where there are further sources, Amber plans to add sources here later.

Footnotes

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Amber Clarke for starting this profile. Click the Changes tab for the details of contributions by Amber and others.