Newark: Balderton Parish Council's longest ever serving member dies aged 92
A parish council’s longest ever serving member has died.
Ken Fletcher, 92, was a member of Balderton Parish Council from 1973 to 2018 — 45 years of continuous service, and was involved in just about every aspect of village life.
Diabetes sufferer Mr Fletcher was awarded an engraved glass trophy on his retirement and had been resident of a care home in recent times.
He was council chairman from 1976 to 1979 and again in 1999, seeing in the millennium.
He underwent a triple heart bypass in 1990 and had a leg amputated in 1990, as a result of his diabetes, but continued to represent his electorate and his causes.
Council clerk Cheryl Davison-Lyth said the list of Mr Fletcher’s declarations of interest ran to three pages because his membership of local organisations was so extensive.
She described him as a lovely warm-hearted man who held his community in his heart.
Among the associations of which he was part were Newark and District Round Table, Newark Engineering Society, Newark Royal British Legion, with whom he had belonged since leaving RAF in 1947, and where he had been a past secretary, vice-chairman, chairman, welfare worker and poppy collector, and Balderton Royal British Legion, where he had been chairman and president.
Mr Fletcher was heavily involved with the social side of Worthington-Simpson (now Flowserve) where he worked for many years.
He also represented Balderton on Newark and Sherwood District Council almost continuously from 1973 and served as chairman.
He was a committee member of Newark Appeals Committee, British Empire Cancer Campaign and on the Newark Committee of Portland Training College for the Disabled.
Mr Fletcher was also with the Worthington-Simpson Athletic Association & Social Club for 32 years, where he formed the swimming section, the dominoes, darts and cribbage sections, set up the clubhouse bar, reformed the table tennis, formed the sailing club, the camping and caravan section, as well as the skittles section.
He represented the Simo’s Tennis Club in the District Lawn Tennis League, where he was a former league secretary, treasurer, auditor and chairman.
He organised factory visits, open days, sports events, gala days, works’ trips abroad and in England by rail, air, sea and road as well as for children and senior citizens.
He was also involved in hockey and tennis and with the Balderton Youth Wing and was a life member of RAFA, Newark Branch, from 1964, vice-president of Newark Cricket Club for more than 26 years and life member of Worthington-Simpson Athletic Association & Social Club, patron and past chairman of Newark Amateur Operatic Society, president of Newark Probus Club, president of Balderton Conservative Association for 35 years, life member of Newark Conservative Club, served on the committee of the league of friends for Balderton Hospitals, member of Round Table Masonic Lodge of Nottinghamshire, and member of Corinthian Masonic Lodge of Nottinghamshire.
His lifetime’s commitments also extended to education. Mr Fletcher was a past governor of The Grove Comprehensive School, Newark South Park School, Bowbridge Road Junior and Oliver Quibell schools, Bowbridge Road Infants/Hawtonville Junior and John Hunt Junior.
