“The shock, horror, and disbelief of their deaths remains with many people!” Children of Uppingham husband and wife killed by driver using mobile phone pay tribute to ‘extraordinary’ couple

The children of a husband and wife killed by a driver who was using a mobile phone while behind the wheel have paid tribute to two ‘extraordinary people who lived every day to full capacity’.

Patricia Pringle, 56, was jailed for nine years on Friday (June 21) for causing the death of Uppingham couple Clive and Elaine Jones.

Clive, 89, and 82-year-old Elaine were driving their silver Fiat Qubo on the A47 at Barrowden on May 9, 2022, when Pringle’s blue Volkswagen Golf crossed onto the opposite side of the road and collided with them.

Geologist Clive and archaeology enthusiast Elaine were pronounced dead at the scene.

On May 13 this year Pringle, of Park Vale Road, Spinney Hill, Leicestershire, pleaded guilty to two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and one count of possession of cannabis.

“Our parents were extraordinary people,” a family statement read.

“Every day was lived to full capacity.

“They both had such wide and varied interests and belonged to, and led, a variety of different groups and societies.

“They also warmly welcomed all to their home.

“They were loved by their family and were very well known within the community of Uppingham.

“They had many friends from all walks of life.”

The couple were stalwart members of the Rutland Local History and Record Society, and were cared about deeply by those in the society who saw them as 'both friends and mentors'.

“The shock, horror, and disbelief of their deaths remains with so many people – their family, friends and their community,” the statement added.

“The police have worked for over two years for justice to be served on the totally avoidable killing of our parents.

“As a family, we will never not know how they died, the extent of their injuries, and the trauma of being informed of their deaths and the days, months and years that followed.

“Their remaining years were stolen from them and from us. We never had the chance to say goodbye. We miss them each day and in so many ways.

“That they died together is a blessing as they did everything together in life.”

Clive and Elaine met and married in Malaya in the 1960s.

They returned to the UK briefly for Clive to finish his PhD in geology and to start a family.

“We were posted first to Iran and then, in the early 1970s, moved to Africa, the statement added.

“Here dad became the director of the Geological Survey and mum discovered an enduring passion for archaeology, completing a degree in the subject on our return to the UK in the late 1980s.

“Mum then dedicated herself to the archaeology of Rutland and her extensive findings have since been catalogued for Oakham Museum.

“Dad’s incredible knowledge of the geology of Malaya, Iran, and Botswana were rewarded not only by the Malayan government with an Order of the Defender of the Realm (Ahli Mangku Negara or AMN) but also by the British government with an OBE.

“His work is still in use to this day.”