George and Kathleen Clarke receive a certificate of appreciation from Assistant Secretary of State Ken Raske (right).

The staff at the Washington State Archives said goodbye to a retired couple from Idaho who spent the past 18 months volunteering there and forming strong friendships with those who met them.

George and Kathleen Clarke came to Archives headquarters in Olympia from Idaho Falls in late 2012 for a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After devoting 3,000 hours of volunteer service to imaging about 1.2 million records for FamilySearch and the Washington State Digital Archives, they are returning to Idaho.

But when you’ve spent as much time at the Archives as the Clarkes have, you develop some pretty close relationships. That was evident as the Archives staff hosted a potluck lunch Friday in honor of the couple.

The Clarkes receive a book of Washington images from State Archivist Steve Excell. (Photo courtesy of Benjamin Helle)

State Archivist Steve Excell said the Clarkes will be missed:

“George and Kathleen were amazing volunteers who really tackled their imaging projects cheerfully and without any complaints. It was such a pleasure to get to know them. They are terrific people. We hope they enjoyed being here as much as we enjoyed having them here.”

Assistant Secretary of State Ken Raske presented the Clarkes with a certificate of appreciation signed by Secretary of State Kim Wyman.