Neil FOWKE Obituary

Neil, just am deeply saddened and shocked to hear of your passing. You were a supportive colleague and wonderful friend to me. I will miss you terribly, from your lovely emails to your sparkling wit. I'll remember you always.

Neil - I'll remember your laugh, your jokes, your enthusiasm for life, your support, your interest and your people first vibe. I'm gutted you're gone and miss you. Hope you have set up the quiz team up there. Brooke

So sad to hear of Neils passing.
He had just been in conversation with me regarding having another school reunion as we are starting to lose many of our school mates and bugger me if he has left us so soon. Very sad. We used to call him Trout down here in Methven but im not sure how he got the name. I think he loved wildlife and used to tickle trout out of the water. He will be sadly missed. All the best to you Barbara and family

Dear Neil, still in shock my beautiful dear friend! You were one of a kind. Miss our bike riding adventures, and quiz nights. Truly an amazing, remarkable man. Wished I could have shown you my beautiful country and taken you for biking and hiking adventurers in Rarotonga. I will cherish our friendship and hold onto those beautiful memories

Kia Manuia
Anna Glassie

I was shocked to hear about Neil's accident and feel so sad.
I remember and am thankful for the many great times we shared in Methven during our school years.

While he taught me how to play chess, he never managed to lose to me.
But he was always an inspiring example.

It's too soon to go Neil, all my condolences to your family and loved ones.

So saddened to hear of Neil's passing.
Remembering all the great times we had as youngsters in Methven.
Exploring all the rivers and hills and learning all about the rocks.
Also the wild life and how important they are.
Will not be forgotten.
Thanks for those times
Philip Hobbs Perth

Kia ora,

Passing on our sympathies to Neil´s family and friends. We lived across the road in Hillcrest, Hamilton, and well remember Neil as a great bloke and occasional baby sitter for us as kids. Neil also took me down the Huntly mines for a work experience day when I was at school! RIP

So shocked to hear this news. Neil was a top bloke, who always had time for a chat to answer the many work questions I had for him on a fairly regular basis. He was a great mentor, and I enjoyed his common-sense approach to things. Rest in Peace Neil you will be missed

I am very sorry to hear of Neil's passing. I got to know Neil well through geoscience society field trips and lectures over the years.
We often bumped into each other in town and had a good chat about rocks , rugby and other things. Our last such "meeting" was only a few weeks ago . My condolences to Neil's family John Higgins

Very saddened to hear this news. As a direct contemporary of Neil's, I and fellow students/graduates spent considerable time with him in the early days 1970s-80s with the activities of the Waikato Branch of Geoscience (Geological) Society of NZ. A most entertaining speaker and strongly principled (as evidenced by a series of letters to the editor in recent times attacking misinformation being promulgated). I have contacted a number of contemporaries and all send commiserations to the family, as do I.

I was deeply saddened to hear of Neil's death. Over the decades we shared many geological puzzles, especially in Huntly and on the West Coast. I appreciated his wit, intelligence and humour, and I will miss him greatly. My sympathy to Barbara and their family.

I´m so sorry to hear this sad news. Neil was such a wonderful colleague, so knowledgeable and passionate about conservation and the great outdoors, he knew so much about backcountry Aotearoa and often shared his stories. I feel so grateful to have worked with him.

Neil was just an all around great guy. Apart from his generous supply of fruit and walnuts to the office, and his quizz mastery, he helped me to feel welcome and part of a bigger team in DOC despite being from a nationally based team. Neil also did some research for me into Hedgehog trapping, and went the extra mile to even borrow a trap for me from another office. It was a shock to hear of his passing, I am sure you all miss him dearly. My condolences to Neil's family and loved ones.

Neil was a long-time member of the Waikato Branch of the Geoscience Society of New Zealand. He will be sadly missed by the local geoscience community.

Dear Barbara, Michael and family
We were shocked and saddened to hear of Neil's terrible accident. I remember Neil so fondly from the touchline conferences at football every winter Saturday and from shared rugby test matches in front of the TV - great bonding with our boys when they were still teens. Neil was a good and generous man. Love to you all.
Ken and Chris Johnson

So sorry to see you go so soon. You will be missed Neil. Lots of love.

I was shocked and saddened to hear of Neil's passing. Neil showed me the ropes at East Mine in the mid 90s when I was a geo straight out of uni. Neil's jovial and positive approach to everything he did was infectious and in equal measure calming and supportive. He was a great mentor to me, a true legend in his field and I am proud to have my name next to his on a paper we co-wrote on coal quality at the mine. Rest easy Neil - you'll be missed. My sincere condolences to family.

It is with great shock that we farewell Neil, who has been a long term member of the Waikato Bridge Club. Thank-you Neil for being a ready, willing, and able contributor throughout the years.
Our sincere condolences to Barbara and Family

Dearest Neil, I was waiting for you to bring that citrus over you promised to deliver and the answer to that pesky cryptic clue I couldn't solve. Rest in Peace, Neil. You were a man who had a heart of gold and lived life to the very fullest. I will miss our chats (and I'm pleased you were finally able to figure out how to use Facebook Messenger so you could help me with those clues)

So sorry for your loss, much love to you all.

So saddened to hear of Neil's passing. He was such a good friend to my late husband Bill Yardley and I well remember the humor and good times they shared in the mining industry. My love and thoughts are with you all as you grieve and remember his loving input into your lives
Kind thoughts Lesley Manning

I had the good fortune to know Neil as both a work colleague and as the father of my friend Steve. It was always a delight to see him, even after his retirement 6 months ago he would appear bearing produce from his fruit trees for everyone. He was always cheerful and lovely to talk to, and I know he will be very much missed.

We are shocked and saddened to hear of your loss our thoughts are with you all at this time .