The Parish Magazine
June '26
BERWICK ST JAMES
Get well soon to all who aren’t well, and especially Stan Palmer.
Sadly Gerry Norris died on Saturday 2nd May. He will be very much missed by his family, many friends, and all in Berwick.
GERRY NORRIS 1928-2026
Gerry loved living in Berwick St. James and I think we all loved him. He was so willing to help anyone if he could, especially if he could drive them! He spent all his working life, from aged 19 to 63, with RMC (Ready Mixed Concrete), working his way up to be Managing Director, loving every minute of it. The family moved around fairly often with his job, but finally settled here in 2000. He loved playing golf and fast cars.
We send our condolences to his family, daughter Jackie and husband Paul, grandchildren Jamie, Alexandra, Sara and Thomas and 4 greatgrandchildren.
Note: The funeral will be at Salisbury Crematorium on Thursday 4th June at 1pm, and after at a hotel in Salisbury.
CHURCH NEWS
In June, we have our two usual services. On 7th June we have a Holy Communion service at 9.30am and on Sunday 21st there is a Matins service at 11.00am, followed by coffee.
All are very welcome.
VILLAGE MEETING AGM - Thursday 28 May.
Berwick St James Village Meeting AGM will take place on Thursday 28 May at 7pm at the Reading Room. Agenda items will be forwarded the week before. Everyone is very welcome.
TEA and CAKE and CHAT
We had a lovely chat in May, with two different ginger cakes, and biscuits too. The June Tea and Chats are on Tuesday June 2nd and 16th, and the July ones on Tuesday July 7th and 21st.
Everyone is very much welcome from 2.30pm to 4pm at the Reading Room.
ART APPRECIATION in BERWICK-ST-JAMES
The Making of Modern Art – the Path to Abstraction. The talk will be held in the Reading Room on Thursday 11th June. The final meeting in this series “Cezanne to Picasso and Matisse” will be held in the Autumn. For further information contact Brian Armstrong, [email protected]
HIGH-ENERGY FOOT-TAPPING CEILIDH BARN DANCE FOR ALL AGES - SATURDAY 8TH AUGUST - TICKETS NOW ON SALE
Tickets are now available online so it’s time to secure your place, a small per-ticket booking fee will apply. Information about how to purchase your tickets and further event details, please visit our Berwick St James website under the header “Events”. This digital ticketing option offers a very user-friendly, efficient and secure ticket-purchasing platform, which allows 24/7 access and instant confirmation. Don’t miss the opportunity to enjoy a whirlwind of fun with live bands “Ribble” a rowdy-stompy folk duo and “Monkey See Monkey Do” a folkish English/Irish 4-piece group with a professional caller to guide your feet. This will be a truly authentic barn dance experience. Christian Lange and Carolyn MacDougall
Tickets are now available for sale on the events page of the Village website.
See you there!
PLANT FLOWER and PRODUCE TABLE supporting CRUK
Hello villagers and neighbouring villages
What an amazing start the table has got off to this year and its all down to you, I can’t thank you enough for your continued support however you do it, all is very much appreciated.
By the time you read this I sincerely hope that I am getting plants out of the house into the greenhouse and hardened off.
I have got outdoor tomato and cucumber plants for those of you who don’t have a greenhouse but to be perfectly honest in my humble opinion they are much better grown outside as intense heat promotes tough skins and more watering reduces flavour, and of course better pollination.
Chilli plants are coming on great, I have got mild, medium and hot for the brave. Lol.
Enjoy your garden…What is this life if, full of care we have no time to stop and stare!
Yours Aye Christine X
LOCAL HISTORY – WAR MEMORIAL
RICHARD ALEXANDER SAUNDERSON
Back in June and July 25 I wrote about Richard Alexander Saunderson, who died in the Second World War and is commemorated on our War Memorial. He was 26 years old when he died on 11th December 1942 in North Africa. He was a trooper in the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, Royal Armoured Corps. He is buried in Benghazi War Cemetery Libya.
I was delighted to hear from his nephew Peter Saunderson from Vancouver in Canada, who had visited our village website, and he gave me fascinating information about his family.
Richard Alexander’s grandfather Somerset Saunderson was brought up in the family home Castle Saunderson in Ireland. Castle Saunderson is near Belturbet and has entrances in both County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland and County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland. The Saunderson family held the castle from the 17th century. The current castle was built in 1840 and was destroyed by fire in 1990, it is presently in ruins. The property had been sold in 1977 and is now an International Scouting Centre.
Somerset Saunderson did not inherit the castle and brought up his family in Folkstone. Somerset’s son Richard married Alice Fletcher in 1905, bringing up their family in London. Their children were Catherine, Mary (whose son was John Kilburn, also on our War Memorial), John Somerset (Peter’s father), Bridget and Richard Alexander. John and Richard Alexander went to Sherborne School and Richard was said to have been a very fine rider.
The family moved to Godwins House (now Goodwins) when Richard the elder retired around 1939. Richard and Alice both died in 1951. John was a navigator in RAF 25 Squadron night fighter Mosquito planes during the war, and was awarded the DFC, in 1948 he took his family to a farm in Suffolk, later Essex and finally Farnham.
Mary Kilburn nee Saunderson also spent some time at Godwins House with her children John and Anthony. More about John Kilburn in another article.
Written and Researched by Nicky Street with many thanks to Peter Saunderson.
WILDLIFE WATCH
Lovely reports of young birds in Berwick – Swans and cygnets, and ducks and ducklings on the River Till, a Thrush family including several fledglings in a Berwick garden. Also House Martins and Swallows, Pied Wagtails, Stonechats. Also Muntjac deer around the north of Berwick village.