Annual Parish Meeting and The Celebration of our Village Heroes

We opened the evening with an excellent presentation from Sue and Ali of 21st Century Thame on hedgehog conservation and the simple ways we can help encourage these much-loved visitors into our gardens and green spaces.

Our most senior veteran, Dan Davis, then unveiled our recently restored memorial plaques commemorating those from the village who fell in the First and Second World Wars. We had received quotations for the restoration from a number of companies, however https://hertfordshireheadstones.co.uk/contact-us/ very generously offered to complete the work entirely free of charge for the benefit of the parish, for which we are immensely grateful. The lettering has been beautifully restored and preserved for future generations. The plaques had been donated to Longburrow Hall after the closure of the Beacons Bottom Methodist Church.

Resident historians Sally and Patricia also shared their remarkable research into the men named on the plaques. Their information along with five photos they have found remembering our boys will be made available online over the coming days.

We were then delighted to welcome many of the charities and community groups from across Stokenchurch, who each provided updates on their invaluable work within the village.

A particularly special moment came when, for the first time ever, the honorary title of Freewoman of the Parish was bestowed upon a very surprised Kay Rimer. For more than 30 years, Kay has faithfully opened and closed St Peter’s and St Paul’s Church every single day. In addition to her numerous other volunteering throughout the village, Kay quietly made a substantial personal contribution towards the restoration of the village Lychgate, dedicated to the choir members who lost their lives during the Second World War.

With only a small proportion of churches across the UK remaining open during weekdays, this dedication is a remarkable achievement for both our village and our church community. We felt it was only right that such extraordinary and selfless service be recognised with the highest honour the parish can bestow.

The Freedom of the Parish certificate itself was beautifully framed by Rons Framing High Wycombe https://www.facebook.com/ronsframing/?locale=en_GB  who very kindly provided the parish with a 50% discount on their framing service, for which we are also extremely grateful.

The evening concluded with a discussion on the pilot questions for the upcoming village survey, with parishioners kindly offering thoughtful suggestions and ideas for expanding the questionnaire. The draft survey will also be uploaded online in the coming days for parishioners to add further comment.

Our sincere thanks go to everyone who attended and contributed to such a positive evening, especially Dan, Kay, Sally, Patricia, along with the men from our parish whose sacrifice is commemorated on our plaques, and all those who continue to give their time so generously for the benefit of our village.