ST Francis Church on Headley Down celebrated the 25th jubilee of its new building with a special service. But, when the organiser of the event Martin Firman asked one of those involved in the fundraising events of 25 years ago to speak at the service, he was shocked to be told by Mrs Elsie Johnson that she would prefer to speak about the opening of the original church back in 1921. Mrs Johnson, who is now a sprightly 94 year old, recalled with amazing detail how she joined the church choir as a teenager in the 1920s and went on to worship at the church for a further 78 years. After Mrs Johnson had captivated the congregation with her stories, Mrs Vi Dowse went on to explain how back in the late 1970s the church was so full every Sunday they had to raise funds by selling bricks to secure the funding for the extension which was finally completed in 1982. Many past ministers to the church attended the ceremony including Cannon Rev Derek Head, who was rector in charge of St Francis back in 1982, and now looks after churches in the Christchurch area. Slides were shown during the service including many old photographs of the church. The church remains very active and is currently running an Alpha course designed to encourage new people.
