Peter Terence McEntyre

Peter died very peacefully at home on Friday, 5^th July, 2019.  His family was with him, his wife, Diana, and their children, Johanna, Alistair and Oliver.  They loved him dearly, as did Rick, Anita and Fiona, and his grandchildren, Conor, Ella, Katie, Isabelle and William, not forgetting Tilly, his step-granddaughter.  He is also deeply mourned by his brothers, Anthony and Jeremy, and their families.

Peter was the son of Albert Henry and Marjorie Holcroft McEntyre, of Southport, where Peter was born. He lived there until his family moved to Heswall, in the Wirral, when he was twelve years old.  At that time, Peter was sent away to board at Bradfield College in Berkshire; being a year younger than the other new pupils and away from home created demanding circumstances. This is when he first developed the strong Christian belief that sustained him throughout his life.

On leaving school, Peter turned away from his expected entry into his father’s business.  Instead, and following his innate love of the natural world, he decided to make his living from the land.  He established a herd of pigs on a few fields given by his father, using the spare acreage to grow market garden crops.

A chance meeting at a wedding in 1962 was a defining moment in Peter’s life. He married Diana in 1963 and they shared a love which sustained them throughout their life together.

They continued to make their way in the agricultural sector, with Peter achieving his lifelong ambition of owning his own farm in Longridge, which specialised in pig production. That is where they stayed for nearly 20 years and bought up their children to adulthood in the glorious surroundings of the farm. During that time, he was also a Master of Hounds and became a key figure in the Lancashire pig industry.

It was a sad time when Peter and Diana left Longridge, but with typical stoicism, Peter simply reverted to his early love of plants and the soil to re-invent himself as a groundsman.  He served two local schools for many years, keeping both playing fields and ornamental gardens immaculately. 

Throughout his life, he was an outdoorsman, and a true man of the soil.  Entirely self-taught, he acquired an encyclopaedic knowledge of all plants, garden, wild, and commercial.

His way of life allowed him to maintain, effortlessly, a supreme level of physical fitness.  In turn, this enabled him to tend his beloved allotment for several evening hours, even after he had completed a full day’s work on the school grounds.

He continued his physically demanding work in all weathers, ignoring retirement age to continue working until his late seventies.

Peter could complete any practical task, within the home or outside.  Everything he did was with quiet determination, planned to the last detail, and meticulously prepared.  He never left a job until it was completed to his own high standards.

Peter worshipped at St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church in Rishton.  His thirteen-year tenancy as Warden saw him instigate a number of practices, some still being followed. He also led and oversaw a major and lengthy re-ordering of the church building.

Throughout his life, holding a quiet pride in his heritage, Peter embodied the McIntyre Clan motto, Per Ardua – Through Difficulty, meeting life’s many challenges head on and always retaining his sharp sense of humour.

 

Family flowers only.  Donations may be made in memory of Peter to Marie Curie and / or Injured Jockey’s Fund.