Tower and Town, October 2017 (view the full edition)Family NewsFather Howard Gilbert (son of Eileen and Eric Gilbert) is an Anglican priest living in Cirencester and Area Dean of the South Cotswolds with his wife Susie and two daughters, Daisy, 6 and Lucy, 4. Howard spent half of his 3 month Sabbatical researching how the church can attract, keep and then work with young people when on Sundays they are drawn to outside group activities. His congregation of 120-150 has a large number of young people. Howard trained for six months and then competed in the Ironman Challenge during the second half of his Sabbatical in order to raise a significant sum for his chosen charity and also to overcome his fear of deep water, suffering from Bathophobia. He has just completed an Ironman Challenge in Kalmar, Sweden in 14 hours, 17 minutes and 7 seconds. It consisted of a 2.4-mile swim in the sea followed by a 120-mile bike ride then a marathon run of 26.2 miles. This was a major challenge for him, both physically and mentally. He raised in excess of £4,000 for Mercy Ships. He chose this charity as the medical staff gives their services free so any money raised will be used efficiently. Eileen Fortune was 90 when she died. An only child, after her parents Emily and Reg's death she continued to lived in the bungalow at Clatford which they built just after the war. She went to the Grammar School at the bottom of the Parade [see Pamela Horril’s article, p8; Ed] and became life-long friends with Eileen Ward, neé Calvert. She was a bridesmaid at Eileen and Leslie's wedding in 1951. She went to Salisbury Teacher Training College and was appointed to Lockeridge School in 1947, staying in the same post for 40 years. She taught the 5- to 7-year-olds but helped older children with music and needlework. Her firm but gentle teaching style was very much appreciated by parents and children, and by me when I did two weeks school practice in her class in 1953. She cycled to Lockeridge until the great day when she passed her driving test. She gave her L plates to two Clatford boys, probably hoping to encourage them to drive. She attended St George's regularly until her health failed. Town Councillor and former Mayor Bryan Castle celebrated his 80th birthday with his sons, Dan and Joe, and their wives and his granddaughter, Sophia, on the Coventry canal near Birmingham. Canal barges are second home to Bryan. He and Ian Perryman have manned one of the Bruce Trust boats for a week each year for about 20 years taking people with learning difficulties on holiday. Late birthday greetings to Bryan. Lucy Jones, neé Amor, died in August. She lived in Burbage and moved to Longleat after her marriage to her former husband, Eric, who was a gamekeeper on the estate. They moved to their newly built council house in St. Margarets Mead in 1953 and Lucy stayed there all her life. She worked as a carer at Highfield Residential Care Home but sadly needed 24 hour care herself for her last five years. She was a good cook and loved gardening. Our sympathy to her daughter, Sue, her sons Rodney and Michael, her six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. Marian Hannaford Dobson and Stewart Dobson had a very busy family weekend. On Friday the 1st. September Marian's youngest daughter Kimberly Hannaford married in a beautiful ceremony at Kew Gardens, London. She married Cameron Gallagher and they live in Richmond Surrey. On Sunday the 3rd.September they went to Wendell Park near Chiswick, London for the christening of Stewart's middle son's little boy. Nick and Arrabella's baby was christened Rafferty Stewart Dobson (brother to Theadora ).Audrey Peck |