|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Actually
changing the appearance of the house inside and out was another
problem, though as the house is one of the oldest married quarters
on the Station, the exterior hardly needed any alteration at
all. Inside, the fitted kitchen and built-in wardrobes were
removed and central heating radiators disconnected. Now we could
redecorate...in brown! Few of the walls needed a change of colour,
but all the white woodwork had to go and teachers, governors
and parents, along with a squadron of officer cadets, all took
their turn at painting the interior. Skilled help came from
several unexpected sources: a builder and a plumber working
on extensions to the school offered their services and a man
who rang us to offer a dining table and chairs ended up giving
us his expertise as an electrician and putting back all the
old light switches and fittings. Children were now bringing
in contributions for the house in the form of ornaments, pictures,
photographs and furniture that they had persuaded their relatives
to loan. Almost every day we received telephone calls offering
to loan or donate items to fill the house. We had set a target
of six weeks to transform the house, but the interest shown
by The Times newspaper and several television channels
who all wanted to feature the project prior to its opening,
compressed that time into four short weeks. More help was offered.
Former pupils, now teenagers, helped in sanding and staining
floor boards. Another squadron of officer cadets came and dug
out the base for an Anderson Shelter in the back garden. The
teachers had all decided that a real air-raid shelter in the
back garden was an essential part of the scheme for the children,
but where would we get a real Anderson shelter? The answer came
unexpectedly, on a class visit to the Aviation Heritage Centre,
at East Kirkby in Lincolnshire. There, parts of an old shelter
turned up in the yard at the back of a hangar, surplus to requirements
and just fitted into the back of the coach we were travelling
in! So 50 children returned to school after a fascinating day
looking at the exhibits and the Lancaster Bomber, all with their
souvenir pencils, rubber and postcards… and a genuine,
'antique' Anderson shelter.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The
House at Christmas |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Children
at the Anderson Shelter |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
HRH
Dutchess of Gloucester presented with a boquet on her visit
to the house |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
HRH
Dutchess of Gloucester presented with a boquet on her visit
to the house |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
