Plymouth Hoe Association honours long standing chairman
A TREE has been planted on the Hoe commemorating a man who spent his latter years fighting for the waterfront site's conservation.
Members of the Hoe Conservation and Residents' Association gathered to plant the tree and unveil the plaque placed in memory of their former longstanding chairman, John Edkins, who died in May last year at the age of 86.
Mr Edkins moved to Plymouth in the 1980s with his wife Olivia to retire and had lived on the Hoe until his passing in the summer.
During that time he had become an active part of the seafront community and worked hard to keep it preserved.
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Speaking about their chairman, a spokesman for the association said: "We were absolutely thrilled to be allowed to install a memorial tree and plaque to John on the Hoe.
"He would have been very proud of such an honour and to know it looked out onto the sea, just like he had done ever since he came to live here. We miss him terribly – he was a well-respected gentleman and he will be some act to try and follow as chairman.
"If anyone ever earned that spot it was John. He was a good friend to everyone."
Mr Edkins was originally from the Midlands and had served in the RAF before a long career with Lloyds TSB. He moved to Osborne Court on the Hoe for his retirement, which started a twenty-year love affair with the area.
"Coming from the middle of the country, he just loved the Hoe and the seafront," said the spokesman. "He supported everything that was going on around here.
"Even recently when a planning application was made to build some flats he worked hard to get that lowered a storey so it wasn't spoiling the view.
"And when we had complaints from residents about the fairground noise, he made sure that he had a good relationship with the fairground manager and sorted it out. He had a contact for everything."
John Edkins' memorial tree is planted in front of the Royal Citadel.
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