Thornhill Manor retirement village resident Rob Clark celebrated his 90th birthday on 27 September.
He was born in Germiston in 1932 on the Simmer and Jack Mine. His father worked on mines along the reef and served on the Mines Engineering Brigade during the war.
He grew up on the Blyvooruitzicht Gold Mine in Carletonville, spending school terms as a border at Keps and Kes in Johannesburg.
“I realised the value of ‘home’ after being a border all of my school life. I also realised the value of discipline. It was an honour to be appointed head boy of my school and captain of the first cricket and rugby teams,” he says.
Soon after the war, Rob’s parents move to Rhodesia, where his father was a member of parliament from 1956 to 1980, and his mother was a senator. Both his mother and father were awarded the Independence Commemorative Decoration, a Rhodesian civil decoration awarded to persons who rendered valuable service to Rhodesia. His mother was the only woman to receive the award.
After obtaining a diploma in agriculture from Gwebi Agricultural College in Harare, Zimbabwe, Rob started working as a farm manager in Rhodesia. He later joined his father in his agricultural businesses and later moved to Kitwe, in Zambia, to establish a new branch of the business. He moved back to Rhodesia in 1965 and closed the business in 1969.
Rob then moved to Durban to take up a position at Island View Storage as an installation manager. He left in 1974 to join Engineering Management Services, a division of Murray and Roberts. He managed projects in South Africa, Botswana and Swaziland, and was seconded to the Central Energy Fund. After 15 years, he took early retirement and then joined Tambankulu Estates, in Swaziland, as estate engineer. He retired in 1997.
After retirement, Rob enjoyed spending quality time with his wife, Jill. “We played lots of golf, bowls, table tennis, bridge and, more recently, snooker,” says Rob, who still enjoys these activities at Thornhill Manor.
His milestones, he says, were becoming engaged to Jill and marrying her in 1956; his installation as Worshipful Master of a Masonic Lodge in 1964; the birth of his children Peter (1957) and Gayle (1960); winning the Captain’s Cup at Nkana Golf Club, and being the President of Thornhill Manor’s Probus Club.
“Meeting our God Daughter Pam and her mother at St Frances Church in Modderfontein was also a really meaningful moment for Jill and I,” says Rob.
“We also enjoyed sharing the joy of moving to Thornhill Manor in 2003. On our 60th wedding anniversary, Jill was very ill in hospital. She sadly passed on, leaving me a lost soul for the past six years,” he adds.
Besides all the activities he enjoys at Thornhill Manor, Rob also enjoys taking care of a few Bonsai trees.
“I also enjoy watching the birds, waving to people passing by and having lunch with friends at the Manor Café. The road to a friend’s house is not very long at Thornhill Manor and I am glad that I am a resident,” he says.
