The soaring bird in the center is a Sparrowhawk. My family name was orginally "Sparrowhawk", which was shortened over the years to "Sparks".

The story goes that when people began taking surnames from their occupations, there was a man who was the chief falconer for Richard the LionHearted. Richard's favorite falcon was the Sparrowhawk being the swiftest and most true. Thus, his falconer was given the surname "Sparrowhawk". Some speculate that this individual was a Scottish Highlander from the Macleod clan.

"Celer et Verus" is the Sparks family motto, which means "Swift and True".

The colors green and yellow, come from the family crest, with the green representing the scottish highlands, where our family had its origin.

For more about the origin of the Sparks name, click here.