Claude Charles Harlington MBE (1922 - 2007) Claude Harlington was born in Goole on 11 Feb 1922. In 1939 he was living with his younger sister Esme and his parents at 11 Western Road, Goole. He married Mary A Green in the third quarter of 1944 in Sheffield, Yorkshire. Mary died in 1972 and was buried in St James’ Churchyard, Sutton Lane Ends, Cheshire. Claude married Margaret Goddard in 1981 in Goole in Yorkshire. Claude Charles Harlington, Lately Town Clerk, Bollington Town Council, Macclesfield, was awarded the MBE in the New Years Honours 2000 - "For services to Local Government. (Macclesfield, Cheshire)" Two descriptions of Claude, published after he died on 1 Jan 2007, reveal a lot about a very remarkable man. From Macclesfield Express 10 Jan 2007 : Happy community creator is laid to rest, at the age of 84 One of Bollington's favourite sons, who will be remembered as a "creator of the community", died of cancer at his Cedarway home on New Year's Day at the age of 84. Claude Harlington, who was awarded an MBE for outstanding service to local government, was cremated in Macclesfield yesterday (Tuesday, January 9) following a funeral service at Langley Methodist Church the previous Friday. About 180 people crammed into the church, at which Mr Harlington was a preacher, to pay tribute to the great-grandfather. The inaugural Bollington Town Council clerk, a position he held for more than 25 years, leaves his widow, Margaret, four children, two step-children, eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Margaret said: "He was a private man, but with a keen sense of humour. He was a staunch Methodist and his faith meant a great deal to him." Rev Stephen Dunn conducted the service, with contributions from retired minister Rev Stanley Johnson and various members of Mr Harlington's family. A particularly poignant moment was a reading from one of his two published books, entitled "Shimmeringly Claude", by his daughter. Paying tribute to Mr Harlington, who was more than 6ft tall, Rev Dunn said: "He was not only a physical giant, but a giant in his faith as well. He did an awful lot with his life, but the church was central to that." After serving with the RAF in the Second World War, Mr Harlington became clerk at Alderley Edge Urban District Council in 1967, where he initiated housing for the elderly and created a "loans pool" to pay for the reconstruction of their sewer system. He then became the first clerk of the newly created Bollington Town Council in 1974, following the loss of urban district status. During more than a quarter of a century supporting various town mayors, Mr Harlington encouraged many new initiatives which still continue today. These include the beating of the bounds - a walk around the boundaries of the town - the carol service, and the VE Day anniversary celebrations. Coun Mark Stedman, himself a former Bollington mayor, said: "Working often behind the scenes he encouraged new initiatives which gave the community a sense of belonging to one another. "Claude worked tirelessly to enable every town mayor to achieve their objectives, and to assist the many voluntary bodies in Bollington realise their ambitions. "In his spare time he wrote an illustrated history of the first 20 years of the council, with a separate chapter for each mayor. He then started the council newsletter, distributed quarterly to all householders, which has continued ever since. "After Claude retired in 1999, he continued to undertake many voluntary responsibilities, including his service as the honorary treasurer of the Bollington Drop-In Centre. "Claude will be missed greatly by everyone who knew him, and should be remembered by all the people of Bollington as one of the creators of our happy community." From "Happy Valley Bollington" : Claude retired following more than 25 years service as Bollington’s Town Clerk and was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by the Queen “For a lifetime of outstanding service to local government”. Following his military service in the RAF (1942-47) Claude became Rating Officer and then Deputy Clerk and Finance Officer in Goole RDC (1947-67). He then became the Clerk at Alderley Edge Urban District Council (1967-74), where he initiated housing for the elderly and created a ‘loans pool’ that enabled the council to pay for the reconstruction of their sewer system.