Difference between revisions of "1996 Gerald Bedford retires from Stocken Farm"
From Lacey Green History
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When the day came for him to finally retire, he didn’t want a fuss, so a celebratory lunch had to be arranged secretly. His family, the farm family, the farm staff, old and new and all the old farm students were invited. His brother Stan was in on the secret. On the day, Stan was going to drive Gerald to their sister Margaret’s for lunch. We phoned him to say an old friend had dropped in unexpectedly and had said it would be nice to see Gerald. Could he pop over to the farm, when on his way to Margaret’s? Stan persuaded him to do so. On arriving the first person Gerald saw was Margaret. “What are you doing here?” Certainly a perfectly reasonable question! | When the day came for him to finally retire, he didn’t want a fuss, so a celebratory lunch had to be arranged secretly. His family, the farm family, the farm staff, old and new and all the old farm students were invited. His brother Stan was in on the secret. On the day, Stan was going to drive Gerald to their sister Margaret’s for lunch. We phoned him to say an old friend had dropped in unexpectedly and had said it would be nice to see Gerald. Could he pop over to the farm, when on his way to Margaret’s? Stan persuaded him to do so. On arriving the first person Gerald saw was Margaret. “What are you doing here?” Certainly a perfectly reasonable question! | ||
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Revision as of 13:31, 16 October 2020
1996 Gerald Bedford Retires aged 65.
Although the retirement age for men was 65, Gerald spent the best part of his last working year having operations for two new hips. As foreman at Stocken Farm, Gerald had been given private health insurance, as had the working partners of the business. It was important, when they had such busy seasons, to be able to arrange when time was taken off for such operations. The only other time Gerald had been in hospital was when a sliver of dirty wood had gone under a finger nail. It turned very nasty!
He had been assured that he could keep his house on the farm. While he was away, his house was doubled in width and made into two flats, so that he no longer had stairs to contend with. The upstairs flat was rather a strange layout, but it was achieved. Gerald’s flat downstairs worked out very well indeed.
When the day came for him to finally retire, he didn’t want a fuss, so a celebratory lunch had to be arranged secretly. His family, the farm family, the farm staff, old and new and all the old farm students were invited. His brother Stan was in on the secret. On the day, Stan was going to drive Gerald to their sister Margaret’s for lunch. We phoned him to say an old friend had dropped in unexpectedly and had said it would be nice to see Gerald. Could he pop over to the farm, when on his way to Margaret’s? Stan persuaded him to do so. On arriving the first person Gerald saw was Margaret. “What are you doing here?” Certainly a perfectly reasonable question!
We had set up five large dining tables in different rooms downstairs, getting Gerald to move to each throughout the lunch.
The reason I mention this is because those former students and staff came many hundreds of miles to be there. Only one, farming in Eire, couldn’t get away. He hated the phone, but nevertheless rang Gerald to have a chat and wish him well. The effort they all made to be present speaks volumes. More than I can ever say.
Gerald kept a watchful eye out for the farm, from his flat, right until he died in 2016.
| 1996 Gerald Bedford retires from Stocken Farm | |
|---|---|
| Year | 1996 |
| Village | Lacey Green |
| Author | Joan West |
| Copywrite | |
| Theme | Farming |
| Social Period | Category:1990's |