140 years commemorated at the last service in St John's
Generations of Surat families were remembered at the decommissioning service of St John's church.
Roma
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FROM an early age, the lives of Jillian Waud and Margaret Edwards revolved around St John's Anglican Church in Surat and, on Saturday, both attended one last time for its decommissioning service.
The sad occasion was punctuated with happy memories, as the long-time Surat residents reminisced about years gone by.
"In 1931 I was born and I can remember all of the fuss in 1937 when the archbishop came to the new church,” Mrs Edwards said.
"I remember a lot of the Bush Brothers too.
"They showed me a photograph on Saturday after the service and I can remember knowing nine of them and a whole lot more.
"A lot of them had a great sense of humour and they were wonderful people.”
Jillian Waud is of a younger generation who grew up in Surat, yet her experience echoes that of Mrs Edwards.
"St John's played a huge role in my life: As a young child we went to Sunday school there and had confirmations, christenings and weddings all through my family.
"My family has been a big part of the church, right back to the early 1900s when my great-grandfather, George Osbourne Howe built a lot of the town.
"He died in 1918 and the lectern inside the church is in remembrance of him.
"I think it is a shame to see it go because the church has a lot of history; it was a place of refuge when families lost their loved ones in the war years. A lot of families took comfort in the church.
"I was overwhelmed by the local boys from the church who died in those years and did a small memorial for them in the park. "Even though it is a sad thing the church is no longer, I want to remember the way things used to be.
"It was a happy, social place where we gathered and met, where kids grew up, and people got married.”
Originally published as 140 years commemorated at the last service in St John's
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