Joan Glascodine
Profile
A petite lady quietly joins our congregation on one or two Sundays each month. Not looking her 85 years - yes she was born in 1922 – I have discovered one of the secrets of our community, the hidden depths of this lady; read on and be intrigued and amazed.
Joan Glascodine is so unassuming - she thinks she has done nothing special in her life – and yet is very good company, as I discovered firstly on the Chapel Society picnic in the grounds of Blenheim Palace when we chatted as we strolled in the sunshine, and later over a soup and sandwich lunch at her bijoux riverside apartment in Abingdon.
Done nothing special in her life? I can tell you frankly it is a very hard task to cram into our Editor’s allotted word count the numerous activities, talents and experiences of this one lady.
Born in Bradford, her family moved to Scotland when she was little more than a baby so her first religious experiences were in the Church of Scotland which her mother encouraged her to join, though there were some problems when the classes at her local church clashed with the timing of rehearsals for a professional company at Aberdeen Theatre!
Did you know we had an actress in our midst? From the age of ten, Joan has been involved in amateur theatricals, although nowadays this is limited to giving readings at her local U3A entertainments, but perhaps if WWII had not intervened it might have become a career.
Joan was working in the audit section of a solicitor’s office in Aberdeen in the early 1940s, and of course as a twenty-ish young single woman she knew she would have to join the ‘war effort’. If you volunteered, rather than wait to be conscripted, you did get some choice in which service you entered, so Joan applied to the RAF. There had been a possibility of joining a well-know repertory company in London, but accepting the inevitable she served at RAF Kinross, an Operational Training Unit of Bomber Command – when she was mentioned in dispatches for ‘Distinguished Service’ in The London Gazette in January 1945 - and then was posted overseas.
Travelling in the Mauritania, which was being used as a troop ship destined for Ceylon (Sri Lanka), the women were, to their surprise, disembarked in Egypt. They lived, initially under canvas, in Heliopolis (a suburb of Cairo) and worked at the Air Staff HQ.
There was however some spare time, so Joan joined the touring shows that entertained the servicemen in N Africa and she and her fellow thespians travelled around the Middle East doing plays and reviews. At this time she was also promoted to sergeant (having refused officer training as it would have meant moving away from working with so many outstanding and brave people).
Joan prepared for civilian life and her return to the UK in 1947. She decided not to pursue a professional acting career, but joined every amateur group she could while working in Aberdeen, firstly in local government and then providing administrative support to a group of voluntary organisations, so most evenings were taken up with theatricals.
Family moves brought Joan to the Sussex Coast and then later she moved to Richmond; her inclination always to take on interesting and worthwhile rather than financially rewarding jobs. Her happiest time being that spent at the London Marriage Guidance Council.
The ‘travel bug’ really bit in those wartime years, as it was a simple job when you had a few days leave, to hitch a ride (flight) to other parts of the Middle East. Her love of travel has never waned and Joan continues to go to exciting and exotic destinations, braving ‘Delhi Belly’ and ‘Gyppy Tummy’ - though now perhaps not taking on such hectic schedules.
Searching for a suitable home away from London on her retirement, it was a serendipitous move that brought her to our area. On a week-end visit to Oxford, seeing Abingdon on a bus and recalling the wartime connection between the RAF stations at Kinloss and Abingdon she decided to take a trip. She liked what she saw and moved there in 1982.
So what were the religious influences throughout Joan’s life? There were the books of the C S Lewis wartime radio series, Beyond Personality, and she greatly admired the remarkable Padres who ran the ‘moral leadership’ course in Jerusalem which was preparing service personnel for the return to the UK and civilian life. Later Gerald Priestland and Faithfully Yours, another radio programme, and then having heard the inspirational Methodist preacher Leslie Weatherhead when he visited Eastbourne, she read all his books, and The Christian Agnostic had such a profound effect on her she still has it at hand.
About ten years ago, having become less comfortable with the services at her local URC/Methodist Church, and through her wide reading having realised that her views were in line with Unitarianism, Joan sought out her nearest congregation, Manchester College Chapel Society.
Arriving early on her first visit she was impressed by the notice outside:
This Church welcomes all who seek the meaning of Life.
It has a respect for the Christian tradition coupled with a modern religious outlook which incorporates freedom of individual thought.
It welcomes all who believe that religion is wider than any one sect and deeper than any one set of opinions.
It seeks exploration of all possible truths from all possible sources.
Its fellowship provides strength and encouragement for daily living.
Like many Joan is cautious about being labelled, so these words speak more than the one word ‘Unitarian’ in describing her religious philosophy. She enjoys her visits to our chapel and is an enthusiastic Assistant Librarian of our collection of books and worship materials.
And the lighter side to our friend? Not just a serious reader, she enjoys the stories of Neville Shute and listening to light classical music and opera.
As in most lives there has been private sadness and disappointment, but the twinkling eyes and friendly smile are always there.
Valerie Walker December 2007