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Book Launch success – Saturday 4th December 2021

The PVHG Book-Launch and Signing took place on Saturday 4th December 2021 at the Hall meeting room. An early purchaser, village resident Colin Goacher, is seen above outside Memorial Hall holding his signed first-day cover of the PVHG book “A Way of Life That has Gone“.

PVHG Chair Robin Boucher, seen below, who had himself painstakingly edited the original source interviews – from villagers of two decades ago, discussing their memories of eight to ten decades ago – was signing launch copies of the book in the Meeting Room.

Front cover – “A Way of Life That has Gone”

Copies of the book are available for purchase at £5 – contact Robin Boucher by email to randbboucher at googlemail dot com, or by telephone on 411638. They will also be available:

  • at the PVHG meeting on 25th January 2022
  • at subsequent 4th Tuesday PVHG meetings
  • at the June Platinum Jubilee display by PVHG during the anticipated Sunday 5th June Strawberry cream tea at the Hall.
The rear cover of “A Way of Life That has Gone”
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Book Launch and Signing – Saturday 4th December 2021 – 10 am to 1 pm at Memorial Hall

Our Packington Village History Group PVHG is to publish a new book about life in the inter-war years in our village. The new book is to be launched on Saturday 4th December 2021, at the Memorial Hall meeting room, from 10 am to 1 pm.

Verbal testimony, some of it a whole century old, was recorded in the last century by PVHG, from reminiscences of still-living members of the village. Their vivid recollections form our new PVHG book, “A Way of Life that is Gone“.

The book will be launched on Saturday, and editor Robn Boucher, chair of PVHG, will be at the launch to sign YOUR first-day cover of the book.

Only 100 copies have been printed – this is YOUR opportunity to own this heart-warming treasure for an investment of just £5.

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Meeting – Tuesday 23rd November 2021 at Memorial Hall meeting room 7:30 pm

Our final meeting for 2021 will be on Tuesday 23rd November at 7.30 p.m. in the Memorial Hall meeting room, when we will be planning our contribution to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June next year.

We have a list of 1950s words, courtesy of one of our members, Adrian Mongredien, and we will hear from him how he thinks this list could be used.

We are hoping to have available copies of “A Way of Life That Has Gone”, our new publication, but this is not confirmed yet. We will also discuss arrangements for selling it once it is fully available.

There is no December meeting; our next meeting will be on Tuesday 25th January 2022, which is also our Annual General Meeting (AGM)

Contact Robin Boucher: e-mail randbboucher@googlemail.com, tel. 01530 411638

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Meeting Tuesday 26th October 2021 at 7:30 pm – The Leeson Family in Sixteenth Century Packington

So who was Raphe Leeson, pictured below? Why do we have his expensive 1587 memorial in our village ? Who was in his family? What did they do?

Village Historian Sue Brown is our PVHG Secretary and Treasurer, and on Tuesday 26th October 2021 at 7:30pm in the Memorial Hall Venue 35 will be giving a presentation on “The Leeson Family in Sixteenth Century Packington“.

The 1587 Leeson Memorial in Packington is our oldest memorial

Non-members will be particularly welcome – our famed PVHG hospitality means that although the passing-round of a plate of free biscuits is banned under virus protocols, we can still provide hot tea or coffee to attendees.

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Guided Walk – Mill Street History – 7:30 pm Tuesday 15th June 2021, led by PVHG

Packington Village History Group PVHG offers a FREE guided history walk of our village’s Mill Street, starting at 7:30 pm on Tuesday 15th June 2021 (weather permitting! – else Tuesday 22nd June 2021)

Our starting point is over there, on the “Severn-Trent Corner” of Babelake Street, at the Junction with Bridge Street, across the road from Mill Street – meet before the 7:30 pm start.

The guided walk will be led by PVHG chair Robin Boucher, whose reputation as a fount of knowledge of both Packington and History is well-deserved.

Mill Street has been described as “The Jewel in The Crown” of Packington, containing some of the most beautiful and historic aspects of our village.

However – it hasn’t always been known as “Mill Street”..

It’s 68 years since the Coronation of HM Queen Elizabeth II – do you know where to find this reminder?

This wall, above, is almost 200 years old – 198 already. Do you know where on Mill Street it is to be found?

The ancient Mill Street steps above are 180 years old. Do you know where they are, and where do – or did – they lead?

Answers to many more of our – and your – questions should be available from our Walk Leader, Robin Boucher, on Tuesday 15th June 2021, starting from the top end of Babelake Street at 7:30 pm. PVHG hope to see you there.

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Agenda for AGM Annual General Meeting

Tuesday 23rd February 2021

This postponed PVHG Annual General Meeting AGM is to be held virtually on Zoom while Pandemic restrictions persist. Details will be published – please contact chair Robin Boucher on 411638 if you don’t receive them by Monday 22nd February 2021

  1. Minutes of last year’s Annual General Meeting AGM held on 28th January 2020
  1. Chairman’s Report for 2020 available here
  1. Treasurer’s Report
  1. Election of officers for 2021

Chairman: Candidate Robin Boucher

Vice-Chairman: Vacancy

Secretary: Vacancy

Treasurer: Vacancy

Committee members:

  1. Membership fees for 2021: proposal to waive
  1. Dates and meeting arrangements for 2021
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PVHG Chairman’s Report 2021

Packington Village History Group PVHG – Chair’s Report to Annual General Meeting AGM, 26 January 2021

The January AGM has had to be postponed, it became a successful Zoom trial. PVHG will now meet virtually for our AGM on Zoom on Tuesday 23rd February 2021. Here is the report from the chair:

Robin Boucher writes:

I ended my report to last year’s AGM with the words ”Roll on 2020” – I must be more careful what I wish for!

Following that well-attended January AGM, we met in February 2020 when we scrutinised Adrian Mongredien’s survey of Anglo-Saxon and Viking Packington. (Thanks to Adrian for all the work he did on this, now available here as a FREE download on our website). After this the Covid curtain fell and we have been unable to meet since.

This does not mean that nothing has happened. We have received and responded to occasional enquiries from residents of the village and further afield, we have sold a couple of our publications, and I have added 27 items to our archive. The group’s website pvhg.uk continues to flourish (thank you Robert). However, it has not been possible to further the group’s development in any meaningful way.

As we start 2021, Yvonne Eaton has declared her wish to stand down as our secretary and treasurer. I believe Yvonne has been involved with the group since it started around 1988: our archive includes examples of her work as secretary from thirty years ago. More recently she hosted numerous group meetings at her own home and when the archive was rendered homeless in 2017 she and her husband kindly agreed to provide temporary accommodation for it. I have found her an invaluable source of information and support while I have been group chair. A very big thankyou, Yvonne, for all you have done.

Obviously we now need to fill the roles of secretary and treasurer, which can be undertaken either separately or together. I have asked Yvonne to draw up a list of the tasks involved as a kind of “job description.” I would be pleased to hear from anyone associated with the group who would consider taking up either or both roles.

Looking ahead, for the time being Government rules and Covid risks prevent us from meeting in the normal way. At present it is far from clear how long this will continue. I am happy to try virtual meetings through Zoom, as some members have advocated, as a short-term measure. I recognise this will not appeal to all of the group’s members and friends and we will need to consider the position more fully if nothing changes in the first half of the year.

With regard to subscriptions, clearly members who paid up in January last year had very little to show for their investment. Putting that alongside Covid uncertainty, I propose to waive payments for this year. The treasurer’s report shows a robust financial position and we should be able to meet all foreseeable expenditure.

Finally, I am willing to continue to serve as chair for the coming year, if that is the wish of group members.

Robin Boucher

28th January 2021

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Gravestone Photo Resource now hosts Packington Records

Packington Village History Group PVHG has joined with a major internet repository of Gravestone Photographic Records to host hundreds of images of Packington gravestones, with the details of over 460 names recorded on them. There are still more to be added, when time permits..

YOU can now access these records, using the Gravestone Photo Resource (GPR) website

Here’s what you’ll see:

Continue reading “Gravestone Photo Resource now hosts Packington Records”