ST. PAUL'S PAROCHIAL HALL
Speech made by Harry Roberts, Lay Reader, on the occasion of the opening of the Church Hall in 1952
RESPICE, ASPICE, PROSPICE
(The motto of the erstwhile Borough of Halesowen)
LOOK TO THE PAST, THE PRESENT AND THE FUTURE
RESPICE
On such an occasion as today I feel that we are justified in looking back to see why we are able to be here to open this Hall. Who inaugurated the idea? Looking back in the few records which are available I find that at the Easter Vestry Meeting of 1909 Vicar Green stated that a Mr W H Jones had promised a piece of land facing New John Street for a Parochial Hall. The offer was accepted but on further consideration was turned down because it was too far from the Parish Church. It was then decided to buy this piece of land of 1918 square yards and on November 8th 1909 it was purchased for £207:14:10. The land was held by several gentlemen but without any trust being formed. Until sometime during the 1939-1945 war this land remained dormant except for occasional grazing lets and gradually the nominal owners, according to the title deeds, died, but fortunately it was arranged that the ownership should be vested in the PCC and the Diocesan Board of Trustees and about a month before Vicar Green died, the one remaining signatory to the original deed, he signed the new conveyance and for the first time, in the strict letter of the law, the land became the property of the PCC.
Shortly after Vicar Bevan arrived he urged the PCC to consider a Hall and the PCC agreed to start a fund for building one. In the St james Hall account there was an accumulated fund of nearly £800 and it was decided to place £400 of this as the nucleus of the new fund and each year the Garden Fête proceeds were devoted to this fund. Planning approval was obtained in 1949.
Past incumbents of this parish have all left their marks and each one has left some permanent record of his ministry.
The church cost £7033:16:3 and was dedicated on February 4th 1869.
Keatch: Church Day Schools at a cost of £1516:0:0
Bannister: Surpliced choir, churchtard extensions and St Ambrose
Phillips: St James (£1131) and Mr Tooth provided the east window (£80)
Morgan: West window, vestry (£202) and extensions to the vicarage
Green: Land for this Hall
Jones: Further churchyard extension, the altar, lighting cross (processional ? DR) and screen
Gale: St James Hall, Lady Chapel, War Memorial
Keays: New clerestory windows
Which brings us to . . .
ASPICE
The present: Whatever else Vicar Bevan is remembered for his permanent record will surely be this magnificent Hall, without his leadership, Celtic vision and drive, I doubt if we should have ventured. His motto has always been "HAVE FAITH". Since the licence was granted he has been untiring in his efforts to speed the work and knowing his capacity for work, I venture to suggest that others have often been glad that he was not the boss of the job. He will be a happy man today and I trust he will bve able to relax a little in the future.
PROSPICE
Look to the future: Will the Hall be a bane or a blessing to the parish? That depends on the laity of the parish. Let us put forward our united efforts that it will be possible to ensure that whatever things are done in the building will be to the Glory of Almighty God and help to bring into the fold of the Christian church people of all classes and that posterity will never be aable to say "why ever did they build it?"
