Richard Ling, born 15 Nov 1935, died 9 Nov 2019.
Richard knew he wanted to be a farmer from his earliest memories, although his family were not farmers themselves. He worked on farms through his youth and, after leaving school, took a diploma in agriculture at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester. Not having a family farm to return to, he was tempted by opportunities in Kenya to where he moved in the late 1950’s and stayed there farming for 13 years. The farming was a mix of livestock, including dairy and pig herds, and arable. Whilst out there, he met and married his wife, Anita, and they were devoted to each other until the end of their lives.
They started a family, but the unsettled nature at the time of independence in Kenya led Richard to bring his young family back to the UK. He bought a farm near Kingsbridge in South Devon with a dairy herd in 1970. This he ran highly successfully for 9 years, improving the yield of the herd by over 30% in that time. He decided to sell the herd in 1979 due to the work involved. He bought a flock of sheep, not Wiltshire Horns at this stage, and continued with cattle, rearing dairy followers and beef.
He moved farm in 1988 nearer to Kingsbridge on the River Avon, having bought his first Wiltshire Horns a couple of years before. His interest in wool-less sheep was brought about by having a bad back which involved an operation to correct a compressed disk. The effort of shearing, dipping and foot clipping woolly breeds like Dorset Horns and Suffolks led him to seek a breed that was good on its feet and did not need shearing.
As a result, Richard became an advocate of the breed as well as breeding it for what he considered to be the important characteristics like it’s easy-care nature, for the next 25 or so years, supporting the society in various capacities.
Richard had joined the Wiltshire Horn Sheep Society in 1984 with the formation of his Hope flock and regularly showed his sheep as well as being on the judging panel. He retired from the Council in 2009 after serving for 21 years, the last five of those as Chairman, and was then made a life member. On that occasion he wrote “I indeed feel very honoured to be welcomed amongst the elite of non-paying members of the WHSS”. He was very touched to be honoured. He went on to be Vice President and President of the Society.
He also made good friends with a number of the members of the WHSS, visiting and hosting a number of people of the society. The activities of breeding, showing and socialising were for him a great joy.
He also found and ran Hatch Marquee Hire from the farm for 10 years until 2000. The marquee business is still running from his barn in South Devon, a testament to the reputation he built for it in the years he ran it.
He finally sold his remaining Wiltshire Horns in 2012-13 as age caught up with him. Anita, his wife, died in 2009 due to complications with Multiple Sclerosis, and he lived largely alone for the last 10 years with visits from his 2 children and their families when they could travel to see him. He felt himself to be a most fortunate individual to have had such a varied life and to have had a loving family and so many good friends in the UK and overseas.
He is survived by an older sister, his children, Chris and Amanda, and 4 grandchildren ranging in age from 16 to 24. He was much loved by his family and friends and leaves a big hole in their lives.
The funeral will be held on Friday 6th Dec at 12pm and will be held at Churchstow Parish Church, near Kingsbridge, Devon, and afterwards at the Church House Inn over the road from the church for drink and food to celebrate the life of Richard Ling. .
