St Peter’s Church, Addingham, has bid farewell to Canon Barbara Clarke.

Mrs Clarke joined the ministry after the death of her husband from cancer in 2003.

Her husband had been a priest and although she completed a Masters in Peace Studies at the University of Bradford at that time, she began to feel the same calling.

In less than a decade, Mrs Clarke has trained for the ordained ministry, served her curacy at St Peter’s, developed into an accomplished assistant priest and made such a contribution in the diocese that she was appointed an honorary canon of Bradford Cathedral in 2012. Her work in Addingham has been unpaid and part-time.

She also works as librarian, administrator and lecturer at the Community of the Resurrection at Mirfield, where a house has become available.

Mrs Clarke promised to stay at Addingham until the new rector arrived and, last week, the parish welcomed the Rev Jill Perrett.