The Mayor of Tenby and fellow councillors have paid tribute to their former colleague John Griffiths who passed away last month.

Speaking at this week’s meeting of the town council, Clr. Mrs. Sue Lane and her fellow councillors said they were saddened to learn of the death of Mr. Griffiths who joined the town council in 2004, and donned the scarlet robes of office as Mayor in 2007.

Mr. Griffiths returned to Tenby in the 1990s following a long and distinguished career in the police force in Hong Kong which saw him rise to the rank of Chief Superintendent. He even published a book on his time with the force entitled 'Reminiscences and Observations of a Hong Kong Chai Lo’.

“His commitment to, and love of, Tenby was obvious when he joined the town council in 2004 and nevermore so than when appointed mayor in 2007,” said Clr. Mrs. Lane.

“We were disappointed when he left the council in 2008 and delighted when he returned to us following the 2017 elections.

“Sadly, failing health meant that John retired from council life last year but he continued to keep a weather eye on all our proceedings to ensure that in all we did, we always put the needs of the community first.

“John was something of an enigma in some ways. While generally a private person he was never afraid to put his head above the parapet to fight for the people of the town.

“His contribution to the life of the town as a councillor and former Mayor was immense and those of us who were privileged to serve on the Council with him will always remember him as a wise and caring champion of the community both as a councillor and in his private life,” she continued.

“Even though he was no longer a councillor he still worked diligently behind the scenes for the benefit of individuals, organisations and the community in general.

“One case in point was his input into Tenby Town Council’s ‘Battle’s End’ project to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War. The considerable time and effort he spent in research to ensure that all those in our community who paid the supreme sacrifice in time of conflict were included on the new memorial wall was immeasurable.

“We also have John to thank for the new Mayor’s Medallion on the Mayoral Chain which he helped organise with former Greenhill Art Teacher Mr T.O.T Thomas in memory of Mr Thomas’s son David.

“These are just two examples that we can readily mention but John played his cards so close to his chest at times that we don’t think we will ever truly know how much he enriched the lives of the people of the town through his generosity and community spirit.

“He may have actually been born in Sageston but he was a Tenby boy to the core and we will all greatly miss his dry wit, wisdom and friendship,” added Clr. Mrs. Lane.

Clr. Laurence Blackhall echoed those sentiments about Mr. Griffiths, telling his colleagues that he had shown real kindness to his colleagues whilst on the town council, and was always there to give advice.

“He had a lovely sense of humour and it was always engaging to spend time in his company,” he remarked.

“The recent project to add names to the the town’s war memorial, is an incredible piece of work, and meticulous in detail, which summed John up, with all the research gathered with great care and consideration.

“He did so much behind the scenes, with no fuss,” added Clr. Blackhall.