News Letter 12 Final - The Binns Family

Rev. Alwyn Binnscont’d…By the end of 1947 two of hisbrothers, Leslie and Angus, werealready settled in England; andCecil, together with his wifeMollie, Keith and myself, were inCanada. I’m not really surprisedhe made the decision to leave; butI have the strong feeling he musthave regretted his choice duringthe 15 or so years which followed.Initially he headed for Australia.Why? I haven’t a clue. He musthave been shell shocked ‘downunder’. Then, in the early 1950s,came a move to England – asteacher and chaplain to a truly,truly minor boarding school at adot on the map called Lucton,north-west of Leominster in Herefordshire.By this time my mother,Keith and I were living in thenearby West Midlands, just a fewhundred yards from Uncle Leslieand his young gang at Sedgley.Alwyn remained at LuctonSchool throughout the first half ofthe 1950s. The late 1950s/early1960s saw him recovering someprofessional dignity and using hisacademic talents at a better-knownpublic school, Bancroft’s, atWoodford Green in Essex. Oncemore, he was both a teacher andchaplain.Following one of the bad Londonsmogs in the early 1960s Alwynsuffered a very nasty dose ofbronchitis. This, and another‘secret’ and different dose fromone of Eros’ seductive arrow tips,more about that later, must havebeen the reasons he applied for theposition of Rector of St. Philippede Torteval Parish Church atTorteval in sunny, benevolentGuernsey. (The church has a unusualround tower topped by aspire – a glorious creation whichfeatured on a Guernsey stampsome 20 years or so ago!)His 20 years in Guernsey sawhim restored to his old self: happy,full of energy and purpose andwith increasing wells of spirit,faith and self-respect, He had alsoacquired a new trait: he had, atlast, mellowed! My family and Isaw quite a lot of him during thelate 1960s and in the 1970s. I alsokept in touch by both letter andphone. Alwyn was managing successfullyto ‘exist without his belovedSherwood’.I’m leaving the biggest‘surprise’ – for most of you, that’sfor sure – to the last. On the 12thMarch 1966 he married HélèneBatiste, a Guernsey-born lady, athis parish church, a hop-step-andjump-awayfrom his rectory home.He had first met Hélène in theearly 1950s, as my mother, Keithand I had also done, on a RaymondCook European tour. Alwynacted as tour leader on many of theon-a-shoestring train and coachholidays organised by the Folkestonecompany during the 1950s.His last letter to me, dated 28thJune 1982, was written in that instantlyrecognizable handwritingof his: always sure, steady andsmall (remember your half-termreports?). The contents were optimistic.He wrote: ‘How good toknow that you are preparing a newbook on “your” France! It promisesto be a good book and I shallbe counting the days till next December,when the new book isdue.’Sadly Alwyn, the best of Christiansto the very end, never sawmy finished work; he died on 21stSeptember 1982. (Both he andHélène are buried below one of thewindows of Torteval church – onthe nave’s south side facing therectory which had been such awell-deserved home of peace andcontentment during their lastyears.) However, with a sad heart,I was able to dedicate HiddenFrance to Alwyn with these heartfeltwords:ToRevd Alwyn BinnsMuch more than just an uncle –who, by personal example,Inspired so many throughout hislong and remarkable life,I dedicate this book to his memoryRichard Alwyn Binns3DJH%,116&211(&7,216