Rededication of the Memorial Bells
Article and photos from the Newham Recorder.
News Release
21 November 2011
Rededication of the Memorial Bells
The Mayor of Newham, Sir Robin Wales, was delighted to learn that the bells of Memorial Community Church, Plaistow, which are a memorial to 200 men from the church and local area who died serving in the First World War, are cast with the largest number of names of any set of bells in the world. Hopefully he will encourage visitors to this Olympic borough to see - and hear - this remarkable war memorial in 2012.
The rededication of the bells as a war memorial took place on Saturday 19 November following the restoration of the bells, which were installed in 1925, to their former glory. This event also marked the completion of the £250,000 project to repair the roof and brickwork of the bell tower so rain no longer comes in. There is an exhibition at ground level and a website www.localheroes.org about the bells and the fallen servicemen they honour, largely created by young people from the Swift youth club next door.
Well over 100 people took part in the rededication including the Representative Deputy Lieutenant for the borough of Newham, local councillors, the Royal British Legion, the Western Front Association, men from G Company 7 Rifles (the local Territorial Army), representatives of funders, Kaizen primary School and the descendants of several of the men commemorated on the bells, who only recently learned of the existence of this memorial.
Two grandchildren of Private William Belcher, plus three other generations of the family, were among the guests and laid a wreath in his memory after the service, when the British Legion led wreath-laying and two minutes silence. This took place by the plaque which bears the dedication of the bells and where wreaths were laid in 1925 at the original dedication service.
William Belcher’s great-grandson Paul McAllister said, “we had a truly memorable, and very emotional, day, and felt privileged to have been able to be there”.
Many people went to see the bells – thanks to a new HLF-funded handrail to make the belfry safe, and spotlights to illuminate the names on the bells – and others, who couldn’t climb the stairs, took a ‘virtual tour’. Visitors were very impressed with the young people who showed them around, and the four newly-trained young men who rang the bells for the occasion. Nearly everyone stayed for home-made cake or a lunch of Caribbean food cooked by members of the church, and young and old also enjoyed crafts and an organ recital during the afternoon .
Funding came from Heritage Lottery Fund, the Pilgrim Trust, War Memorials Trust, Heritage of London Trust, Sharpe Trust and Essex branch of the Western Front Association as well as many individuals who donated or took part in sponsored events.
Lyn Brown, MP for West Ham, said “This dedication commemorates local men, who died in the First World War. They walked the same streets we do. They prayed, or not, as we do. Their families loved them, as we love those dear to us... ....We face to-day many of the same challenges Newham people overcame in the past. Every time the new peal rings out, let it be a reminder of what ordinary people can achieve, when they congregate in harmony and co-operation.”
The event was made more pleasant by the church’s new heating installed in the last two months with a grant from the Big Lottery Fund, as the building is used in the week for a range of activities that support vulnerable people in one of London’s poorest boroughs. New toilets and improved disabled access are planned for January and the appeal for phase 3 of high-level repairs to the front of the church in 2013 has just been launched.
Other News Stories
- Wednesday 8th June 2016Family history revealed by the bells, and the Newham Recorder
- Tuesday 5th August 2014What connects a Tattoed lady, a Baptist Church and the First World War?
- Wednesday 19th March 2014The Moscow Project: New exhibition launches in Plaistow
- Monday 9th December 2013Memorial Community Church, Plaistow represented at Westminster Abbey service for the National Church
- Monday 7th October 2013New Art Gallery in Plaistow
- Monday 16th September 2013Work begins to make Plaistow Centre more welcoming
- Monday 24th June 2013Memorial Community Church on BBC Radio London
- Monday 24th June 2013Third phase of major repairs ready to start
- Monday 24th June 2013Memorial Bells help launch HLF Fund
- Thursday 25th April 201324 April 2013 Royal Visit to Memorial Community Church