Lacey Green Church

click Flower Festival in 1980s photos for all the photos.

click 2015 Exhibition of Wedding Dresses held in the church.

click 2015 Visitors to the Wedding Dresses Exhibition

click RAF Local Residents. Part of 2018 centenary exhibition in the church.

click Reverend Steward for report in the Parish magazine in November 1955.

In 1903 a report in St John's Church magazine of their Cricket Club concert read as follows: -

"A very successful concert was given on behalf of our Cricket Club on Wednesday, November 18th, in the Lacey Green Schoolroom. The programme was as follows: -

Pianoforte solo, Miss. M. Watson. Song, "True till death", Mr. Redding. Song, "Just a little bit of string", Miss. Arnold. Song, "Farmer Giles", Mr. H Bloss. Sketch, "The Geese", Misses Arnold and Davies. Song, "The Bandoliers", Mr Roebuck. Pianoforte duet, The Misses Tighe. Song, "The Kerry Dance", Miss Baldwin. Duet, "LIfe's Dream is o'er", Miss Arnold and Mr Roebuck. Song. "The Cork Lee", Mr Baker. Recitation, "The Road to Heaven", Miss Watson. Pianoforte solo, Miss M Watson. Duet, "Excelsior", Miss Arnold and Mr Roebuck. Song, "The Tin Ge-gee", Miss Arnold. Farce, "Sloey", Risborough Minstrels. Song, "Santa Claus", Mr Henley.

We have to thank very kindly all those who took part in the programme, and especially Mr Roebuck, to whom we owe the success of the concert.

We have also to thank Mrs Tighe for kindly lending plants, etc. for the platform, and Mr J W Saunders for kindly putting up the same, and Mr Arnold for kindly coming and acting as accompanist. The proceeds amounted to £4-7 shillings."

Parish Magazine 1905

1905. Letter in the Parish Magazine. To “Dear Parishioners and Friends” from the Reverend William Robson.

The new stained glass window in memory of Mrs Eveline Forrest, which is so much admired by all, is a beautiful piece of work, and the colouring harmonises perfectly with that of the chancel. The figures depicted are “Faith” and "Charity. Superb in themselves as they are, no figures could be more suitable for our church which is dedicated to St. John the Evangelist, which sums up the Christian religion as "Faith and Love". The window Is illustrated from one of the finest chapters of the New Testament, 1 Corinthians xiii, every clause of which throbs with inspiration. May the teaching of the window be a source of blessing to generation after generation of worshippers to Lacey Green Church.

On Saturday, June 3^rd, by the desire of Mr. Forrest himself, I undertook the touching and yet pleasing duty of dedication the window to the memory of Mrs. Eveline Forrest There, quite quietly, in our church on that Saturday morning assembled Mr. Forrest, Mr. Frank Forrest, Mr. Guy Forrest, the servants at Grymsdyke and very few others, and we held a quiet service, befitting the solemn and pathetic occasion, a service in which praise and thanksgiving and the glory of God were joined with a loving desire and purpose to perpetuate the memory of His servant, Eveline Forrest.

The full inscription on the window is “To the Glory of God, and in loving memory of Eveline, wife of John Forrest, who died January 27^th, 1905. This window is erected by her husband and their children." The work of Messrs. Heaton, Butler and Baynes,14, Garrick Street, London.1925.

Tuesday September 19th 1905 The adult members of the Church Choir spent the afternoon at the Vicarage, and before and after tea enjoyed tennis and other games.

The Bucks Free Press published the following report -The Centenary Celebrations of St John's Church, Lacey Green, commenced in the evening of July 2nd 1925 when there was a Preparation Service at which the Rev. A M Berry preached.

On July 3rd there were three celebrations of the Holy Communion at 6,8 and 10.20 am; the third of these was choral (Merbecke being sung); and the sermon was preached by the Rev. F C Burgess, son of the first vicar. Several neighbourhood clergy took part in the service.

At evensong the Bishop of Buckingham preached in place of the late Bishop of Oxford.

Festival services were continued on Sunday. At Sunday evensong Bishop of E.A. Copleston, formerly of Colombo, was the preacher. The choir, trained by Miss Hawes (the organist) sang Jackson's "Te Deum" at the two evening services as a special act of praise and thanksgiving.

On Saturday afternoon there was a cricket match (played in the field kindly lent by Mr. F Floyd), between the boys of Speen and Lacey Green with Loosley Row. The former were no match for the latter, suffering defeat by an innings, but played a sporting game.

At 3.30 tea was given to 137 children of the parish.

The tea for adults followed, for which 8d tickets had been sold. There were two sittings for 205 persons. The tea, shared in by the Church and Chapel-folk alike was a veritable love-feast.

Miss Tighe and her band of helpers deserve hearty congratulations for the admirable arrangements.

Sports for the children followed, from 5.30 to 8.30; Mr H E Carter being the President and Referee.

Mr W Plumridge brought the Speen String and Brass Band without charge, and they played during all three teas in the Village Hall and during the Sports, the music greatly added to the enjoyment of the afternoon, and the spirit of brotherly co-operation which led them to come, was highly appreciated.

1931 In his report of living in Lacey Green Douglas Brett said "The absence of cars meant that the main traffic was from horses and carts. I remember when someone was very ill near the school, straw was spread across the road to muffle the sound of cart wheels. Although no one had private telephones news spread quickly when someone died. The Church was notified and the bell tolled slowly once for every year of the dead person’s life.

1931 Report

Churchwardens ---- Mr. George Adams and Mr Arthur Alldridge

Secretary of the Parochial Church Council ----Miss Eleanor Tyler.

Treasurer ---- Mr. Herbert Tanner.

Vicar --- Rev.C. Oscar Moreton

The Vestry and Annual Church Meeting was held at the Village Hall, Lacey Green, on Friday, Jan. 23rd. at 8 p.m., and was preceded by a social and light refreshments. We are glad to be able to report that there was a larger attendance than in the last few years.

At the Meeting of the Vestry the Vicar stated that it was with much pleasure that he received Mr. George Adams' consent to stand as Vicar's Warden for another year. The meeting then proceeded to the election of the People's Warden and it was with very keen regret that we learnt that Mr. F H Middleton would no longer be able to allow his name to stand for nomination. He and his family will shortly be removing to the parish of Hughenden. Mr. and Mrs. Middleton will be greatly missed in the life and work of this parish and of its church. our good wishes go with them to their new home and we hope sometimes they will return to worship in the Church which they have served so faithfully for many years.

The meeting then elected Mr. A Alldridge as People's Warden and we give him a hearty welcome to his new office.

The following gentlemen were elected as sidesmen :---Messrs. F. Adams, G. Baker, J. Baker, C. Gregory, S. Janes, Jnr., F. Martin, W.H. Millward, H G Rand,Jnr., W.Redrup, J.H.Riley & R. Tilbury.

At the Annual Meeting the Vicar thanked the retiring members of the Church Council for their loyal co-operation and support during the past year.

A copy of the revised Electoral Roll was presented to the meeting, the total number of names on the roll now being 146 as compared with 118 last year.

The Secretary then read an interesting and very carefully prepared report of the Church and Parish affairs which was adopted by the meeting, as also was the statement of accounts presented by the Treasurer Mr. Herbert Tanner. The total expenditure on Church Expenses is £226-17s-10&1/2d, on work overseas £42-13s-6d on Home Church £40-16s-7d, and on Charities £22-2s-&1/2d. It is a very satisfactory feature that there is a balance in hand of over £43.

The Summary of Accounts has been printed and a copy will be sent to any parishioner on application to the Treasurer.

The following were elected by the meeting as Parochial Church Councillors for 1931 ---Mr F Adams, Mrs Alldridge, Mr J Baker, Mrs A Hickman, Miss Jarvis, Mr Martin, Mr Millward, Mr W Redrup, Mr H Tanner, Miss E Tyler.

Scholarships It is with great pleasure that we are able to announce that two scholars from our Schools have gained Scholarships in the recent examinations held at High Wycombe.

Nancy Brown from Lacey Green School has gained a Scholarship at the Girls High School at High Wycombe.----and

Irene Kingaby from Speen School has obtained a Scholarship at the Wycombe Technical Institute.

We heartily congratulate both scholars, and though we have to part with them we hope they will ever remember with affection their old schools and those who have been responsible for training them in their work.

1944. Report by Doug Tilbury. When I joined the church choir in 1944 aged 10, it consisted mainly of men and boys. The Choir leader was Reverend Steward.

Basses sat in the back pew on the right. Boys in front of them. Ladies sat in the back left pew.

but Revd. Steward preferred a choir of men and boys. During war time, a few ladies were permitted.

At this time Harold Williams, who played the organ, was a Navigator in the Royal Air Force flying Mosquitoes. In the winter evensong was held at 3.00 p.m. due to the “blackout”, which was strictly enforced here, as Bomber Command was only a mile away.

The choir vestry consisted of a heavy curtain, partitioning off an area, where the curtain was later replaced with wood. Boisterous boys were frequently hushed by the vicar, Reverend Steward, prior to services.

Choir pay was sixpence and a bag of sour apples from the vicarage garden at Harvest time school had services in the church on Saints Days. Ash Wednesday and Ascension were always popular as the school had the rest of the day off The vicar frequently rode his bicycle and later his Corgi Scooter around the parish of Lacey Green, Loosley Row and Speen. The Corgi was not very powerful, and had to have “foot power” assistance around “Devil’s Elbow”, when he went to Speen School to take the Communion Service at 8.45 a.m. on the first Sunday of the month.

Reverend Steward was unmarried and had a house keeper “Miss Varney”. Earlier in his career he had been a missionary in Africa. The piano which he donated to the church, (and is still in use) was built to withstand the African clima

A party for choirboys was held on the Vicarage lawn during the summer. If you were lucky the vicar would allow you to push his new Motor-sythe lawn mower across the lawn! The senior choir party was in the vicarage during the winter months. As it was wartime refreshments tended to be bread and jam and a cup of tea.

During the morning services, aircraft could be heard taking off from the airfield behind Lacey Green school, as the prevailing wind normally blew from over the church. There were very high conifers around the vicarage, and it was a steep climb to get over them even though their hight had been reduced. click 1944 Stocken Farm Airfield for the story of the airfield and photos.

At the age of fourteen, after their voices had broken, most boys left the choir for various reasons. Those that stayed within the church became servers or acolytes, until they had to start National Service at the age of 18. Fred Harbour joining the army, joining the Coldstream Guards. I joined the Royal Air Force and became an aircraft mechanic, serving the 56^th squadron. On demob many returning young men were asked to serve on the PCC (Parochial Church Council).

1975 150th Centenary of St John's Curch. The Festival Service is at 10 a.m. on Sunday 6th July, with the Bishop of Grantham, who will dedicate the new doors, and the closing service is at 6 p.m. that day. Announcement by St John's PCC published in 'Hallmark'. click Celebrations for similar events

In celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the dedication of the church we have various functions planned and a programme will be available shortly, while posters will be put up over a fairly wide area. Meantime these are some of the events proposed :-

A special service will open the Festival Week at 10 a.m. on 29th June when G/Capt. Rev. Desmond Sheppard, Assistant Chaplain-in-Chief, R.A.F. Strike Command, will be preaching and will dedicate gifts to the church

On Tuesday afternoon there will be a special service, followed by a tea party for the 81st Club.

A concert is being arranged for Wednesday evening, in the church, with the Chinnor Singers and also handbell ringers.

Thursday 3rd July is the actual Anniversary Day and there will be a short evening service in the church, with the Rev. Hugh Jones of Princes Risborough.

The school is staging an exhibition which will be open from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The Flower Festival in the church will open at 5 p.m. on the Friday, 4th, and in the evening there will be a concert of sacred music in the church, given by Raymond Isaacson and the Hampden Singers.

Mrs June Bedford is arranging an Exhibition of paintings and arts and crafts in the school for Saturday and this may also be open on Sunday.

In the evening of Saturday there will be a Birthday Dance with supper, in the Village Hall.

During early evening Friday and at intervals Saturday, when people will be visiting the church and viewing the flowers, we shall have organ music.

The Festival Service is at 10 a.m. on Sunday 6th July, with the Bishop of Grantham, who will dedicate the new doors, and the closing service is at 6 p.m. that day. Various organisations, including the Baptist and Methodist Churches are taking part in the Flower Festival and their members joining the St. John's congregation at the services and of course everyone will be very welcome.

It is a lovely thought that we can unite in such a celebration both in praisegiving at church and in the other functions organised and we hope that this unique opportunity will be enjoyed by many.

Choir. report added by Madeline Cleaver

The choir will be singing at all the services and will include modern as well as traditional music. Although we are not at present well balanced in that we have no tenor section and only two bass and we are still relatively inexperienced, we hope with hard work to make our efforts worth listening to but we would welcome men, especially tenors, both on a regular basis and even just for the Festival. The choir members and organist were officially invested with badges of the Royal School of Church Music on Whitsunday and with the help of that organisation we hope we shall improve our standards.

Fortified with soup and barbecued sausages the choir members had an afternoon with them appealing for donations towards the cost of the new doors and so far we have just under £300, with promises for more. We are extending the appeal by letter to the whole parish so that everyone who wishes can subscribe and however small the donation maid it will be very welcomed by the treasurer: Mr.M.P. Beaumont, c/o The Vicarage. The prints of the drawing of the doors, which are costing £585, are nearly ready and with the newly decorated porch the entrance will, we hope, give an attractive reception to all our friends joining us in the services and other events.

1980 Gift of £9,300 given by Mrs Waite (click Arthur & Joyce Waite for their life story) to re-roof the church in Arthur's memory.

Hallmark October 1990. Extract from the Editor's Diary - "The new vicar inaugurated a pram service on Tuesday mornings

Hallmark November 1990. Church News by The Rev. Peter Hale

Church ceiling

church interior. note lamps!

Most Tuesday mornings sees a growing number of prams wending their way into the churchyard and church with mothers and toddlers coming to share in a very informal activity of action songs and stories. As the weeks have passed since this was started it is obvious to us that this is filling a need and is much appreciated by the young mothers who come along. Every Thursday evening at 6.15 pm a group of older children meets in church, at the moment about 14 of them, called Explorers. Bible-based, this is meant to be fun and includes games, activity sheets and model-making and is thoroughly enjoyed by those who come along to it.

Each Sunday morning at 10 am Junior Church meets in the church at the same time as Parish Eucharist and children of all ages are welcome to come along and share in teaching at their own level, before joining their parents for a blessing at the altar.

Easter Sunday Cross. The service started at the cross.

More recently a group of teenagers – 11 – met after Evensong on Sunday evening in the Vicarage and they are to continue meeting on the first Sunday of every month in the Vicarage. Other teenagers would be welcome to come along and join them.

Such is the Outreach activity taking shape at St. John's, a Ministry of serving the community and we are encouraged by the response so far. Here is the facility – do use it!

Hallmark February 1994. Letter to the editor from Stuart King, Holly Tree Cottage, Kiln Lane :-

Dear Sir,

The Christmas crib comes out every year

You asked in the last edition, "What became of Naka Rafju Swayamvarapu?" As Organist and Choir Director at St. John's Church I am probably the best qualified to give a reply to this question. When I took over the post in 1988 our sponsorship of Nuka Raju continued for a further 5 years. We received regular letters from him and the children and adults in the Choir followed his progress with interest. At the end of 1992 we were advised by The Save The Children Fund that as he was 18 years old and was seeking full time employment, we should end the relationship. In his place, however, the Church Choir now sponsors a young girl in Kenya called Jane Wambui Muthoka who is one of a family of eight. Our annual contribution helps her family pay towards the cost of her secondary education.

Not much Christmas decoration due to Covid

Incidentally, Lacey Green can be proud of the fact that unlike many villages of its size it has a flourishing Church Choir, a village tradition and institution I have been most honoured to be entrusted with. With a current membership of 20 we work hard week in week out come rain, snow or plagues of locusts assisting Sunday and Holy Day worship. Apart from singing which we love, we have been known to have the occasional party with silly games, the odd barbeque, outing and our carol singing round the pub at Christmas; 1993 raised over £300 for less fortunate children. Our doors are always open to new members. At present we would particularly welcome more youngsters (minimum age 7 with a good reading skill, some basic musical knowledge and an ability to submit to firm but fair discipline) and we require urgently an assistant choir director and organist.

Stuart king

Hallmark March 1995. VE Day Commemoration and Celebration By Peter Hale

There are probably many in our community who remember the day in 1945 – I recall it as a teenager in Lincolnshire. Fifty years is a long time and generations are now growing up which have no knowledge of the events which preceded that day. The horrors of the war in Europe, the bombing of our country, and the tremendous loss of life, both military and civilian. When we come to such an anniversary it is good that we pause to do two things – to celebrate and commemorate

In our community, together with Speen, there will be a Thanksgiving & Commemoration Service in St. John's on Sunday May 7^th at 10.00am. I hope that many in our community will come along that morning and share in that worship. I shall be sending out letters to various organisations but please take this as An Omnibus Invitation to say 'Thank You' to God for our deliverance on that day and the 50 years that have followed

This is our Commemoration so my wife and I would like very much to extend that to a Celebration on the next day which is going to be a Bank Holiday. We would like to have a Parash Picnic in the Vicarage grounds. Every one bring their own picnic, and drinks, and games for the children we will provide. No charge for admission to the ground. Come and celebrate and have fun. We would like to suggest that everyone coming wears or carries something in our national colours to make it all bright and jolly (I daren't say gay!)

Let us make good use of this Commemoration, for most of us will not see the Centenary!

Lacey Green Church

From Lacey Green History