The second post in this series of blogs takes us down Fishpond Road, a relatively quiet back road in the village and home to the founding father and President of the Waldringfield History Group, Joe Clark and his wife, Kit, at ‘Woodside’, along with their labrador, Boots. Joe and Kit have lived in the village for 55 years with Kit’s family roots reaching further back. Kit moved to Waldringfield at the age of 9 with her parents, Canon Trevor Waller and Mrs Nora Waller, taking residence in Waldringfield Rectory. Consequently, Kit and Joe have been significant contributors to not only the history group but also its 2020 publication ‘Waldringfield: A Suffolk Village beside the River Deben’, documenting village life on the river over the decades. Inspired by Kit’s Millenium Photo Albums documenting local residents at that time, the Waldringfield History Group’s 2020 survey set out to capture a snapshot of village life 20 years on, documented here in the digital world of blogging.
Kit and Joe at Woodside
Married in 1964, Kit and Joe are now proud grandparents and have been very active in village life. Both have been active golfers, and whilst Joe has been engaged in the History Group and Bridge Club, Kit has been running two art clubs at the village hall. An accomplished artist, some of her work hangs in the Kennedy Room. The river hasn’t been Joe’s scene but Kit and her sister have been active on the river most of their lives, messing about in boats and dinghies and more latterly, with an electric outboard. On the global Covid-19 pandemic, Kit comments ‘it is a strange world we have got ourselves into with this coronavirus’ and ‘how fortunate we are to have lived in a village that has been relatively untouched’.
Simon and Cathy at the Old School House
Next door, at the ‘Old School House‘ built in 1864, are newcomers to the village, Simon and Cathy. Moving recently from nearby Woodbridge where they lived for 20 years, and with roots in dinghy sailing, Simon says it may not be too long before he’s back on the river. They met in the 80s across the dance floor of the Tartan House nightclub near Colchester and married in 1989. With two grown up children, they now spend their time Ballroom and Latin dancing, walking and doing a fair bit of DIY. Both still working too, Simon is running a new publishing company and offers his skills as a gardener and handyman, whilst Cathy is a Children’s Advocate.
Attracted by the village’s quietness and lovely walks, Frank and Agnes moved from Ipswich to Waldringfield in 1984 and live at ‘High Trees‘ (though sadly, many of said trees were shortly afterwards blown down in the storm of 1987). Now retired they are involved with the church and chapel in Waldringfield and enjoy gardening. The outdoors has been a haven throughout the pandemic giving them so much to do that they have not felt any impact of the lockdowns at all.
Frank and Agnes of High Trees
Peter and Anne of ‘Barnmead‘ have lived here since 1977. With roots in Suffolk, Peter knew Waldringfield as a youngster. Both have a keen interest in natural history and are members of Waldringfield’s Wildlife Group. Peter collates wildlife records from the village for the Wildlife Newsletter and has a particular interest in butterflies. Meanwhile, Anne’s love of English Setters has kept her busy since 1982, breeding and showing, exercising and training them. She has 3 of her own, Daisy, Aefe and Raffles. On the pandemic, Peter and Anne enjoyed the peace of the early lockdown in March 2020 but as life in a pandemic continued and summer plans were cancelled, the frustration set in.
At the time of writing, January 2022, we are still feeling the effects of the pandemic as the more transmissible yet milder variant, Omicron, rages through communities. Waldringfield may not escape this affront as government mandated restrictions are expected to lift next week. Stay safe everyone with plenty of fresh air and enjoy those winter walks along the Deben.
Peter and Anne outside Barnmead
