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Leonard loved his home town
TRIBUTES have been paid to Leonard Hart, a man who worked tirelessly to help shape his local community.
TRIBUTES have been paid to Leonard Hart, a man who worked tirelessly to help shape his local community.Mr Hart, of Church Street, Whittlesey, died at his home earlier this month after losing a fight with cancer.
Mr Hart, who was 88, was a well known member of the community in Whittlesey, and lived in the town all his life.
He became chairman of Whittlesey Urban District Council in 1969, and was also one of the founder members of the Whittlesea Society.
Along with his commitment to the community, Mr Hart was also a family man, and had two children, Jennifer and David, and three grandchildren, Emma, Douglas and Mikel.
Today, his wife, Muriel Hart (80), paid tribute to her husband, who she described as a devoted family man.
The pair married in Whittlesey in 1950, and spent their entire lives living in the town.
She said: "He was a very outspoken man, who was very outgoing. He always said what he thought, and called a spade a spade.
"The local community meant a lot to him, and he was involved in a lot of groups in the area.
"He was a Rotarian, and he was very interested in the town in general.
"We recently discovered that the grocer's shop in Market Street he worked at has been connected to the Hart family for generations.
"He was also very passionate about his family, and spent a lot of time looking after us.
"I remember when he was chairman of the council, he was invited to Buckingham Palace for the Queen's garden party. He took myself and Jennifer, and it was a wonderful occasion."
Away from his family and work, Mr Hart was a keen bird watcher, and after retiring, in 1984, spent much of his spare time bird watching.
Mr Hart also had a successful stint as a rally driver, winning the Motor Agents Association rally three times on the trot between 1959 and 1961.
Curator of Whittlesey Museum Maureen Watson said he would be sorely missed. She said: "He was a founder member of Whittlesey museum, and was a valued member of the team.
"He gave a lot of time and his knowledge teaching people about the town."
Mr Hart's funeral will take place on Friday (26 June), at Peterborough Crematorium, at 2.30pm.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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