EARLY DAYS
OF
Kingswood baptist church
By
Rhoda Warren
(These notes were written a few weeks before Rhoda's call to higher service. This final version was just to late for her to see but is produced as a memorial tribute and an encouragement to all who knew her.)
Some thoughts of early days connected with Kingswood Baptist Church
Recently talking to friends I got to reminiscing about these things and was challenged to write some of them down. These are personal memories rather than history, though inevitably that will be included.
In 1954 there was nothing but fields, cows and a muddy lane at the corner where the Church now stands, with a Board announcing it was a site for a new church. The only houses were those being built down by the Railway Bridge.
It was Mr E.B. Walling, a respected Lay Preacher of Southend, who had the vision for a Baptist Church in Basildon. The Essex Baptist Association (EBA) and Southend Baptist Union (SBU) accepted this call, which they believed was of God, to build the church in Kingswood. According to the Testament pattern, this church was born out of prayer. Jesus, in the Upper Room set the example, saying “I do not pray for these only (Apostles) but also for those who believe in me through their word” (John 17,20).
Following the decision, in December 1954, to accept and build on this site it became necessary to set up a Building Committee (which would mean raising some £17,000 to £18,000. The plan at that time was to build a Hall, then a Manse, followed by a call to a minister to the Pastorate. God had other ideas and in the event Rev F.C. Rushbridge was called to come as our initial Pastor under the Baptist Union Home Mission Fund. This meant that his stipend was a joint one from the Home Mission, the EBA and ourselves. Over the years Kingswood were able to provide more and more of this money until, during David Gardner's ministry (1974-1993),we became self-supporting.
Mr Frank Sampson who was responsible to the EBA and SBU to start the work, was already driving from his home with his wife, once or twice a week to “go door knocking “as each house was occupied. He had earlier made a contact with John and Pat Watson, and the following week I moved into the town.
A Sunday School now started– Sunday mornings in the builders hut. Pat Watson, Barbara Witham and I were the local teachers and Frank Sampson brought others (who returned to take their classes in their Southend churches in the afternoons) in his Worker-bus, irreverently called by me the (Glory Bus). Having picked them up at various street corners on his way, his last stop was for me waiting on the corner of Methersgate and Church Road. I would be complete with Bible, flowers and a vase, a broom, dust pan and brush-the hut was in such a state these latter were necessary! We could not do anything about the broken windows, so Sunday School was enlivened by sparrows and butterflies which caused great excitement. In the rafters were sparrows nests and one Sunday we suddenly heard the cheep cheep of nestlings. One of the 4-5 year olds heard them and suddenly shouted listen! What's that Miss? Evidently it was one of his first encounters with birds. Johnnie (not his real name) used to arrive every Sunday in a scruffy jersey, licking an ice-cream-liquefying, so making a glorious mess of himself. On another occasion he suddenly noticed a peacock butterfly and then we got, of course, at the top of his voice aint that pretty? Miss's response was to abandon the lesson she had prepared, to talk about caterpillars', chrysalises and butterflies and so introduce the idea of resurrection to these youngsters.
Visiting at this time, Witchards– still continued, complete in Wellington Boots (you could tell if the family were at home by whether or not the willies were on the doorstep) and, as the area was unlit, with torches!
This was hard and yet a responsibility and privilege. Whilst we were doing this, Rev John King of St Andrews was similarly engaged in the Fryerns area and his connections and (as a non-conformist you must find less)!
The questions we were asked were very varied– and we had to prepare for anything; one of the most frequent was where is a Baby Clinic and the Health Visitor? (soon after the hall was in use, two Thursday afternoons a month there was a Baby Clinic in the long room, until one was opened in Great Oaks.) The young mums, of which a large portion of the families consisted, were subject to (Basildon Blues)-depression. They were used to mum and other members of their family being nearby and to find that they knew no one, that there were no shops, cinemas or other social activities was a shock. One of Basildon's nicknames in those days was (Nappy Valley) and if as a woman you had neither a bump or a pram you were very much the odd one out!.
To return to questions –one asked fairly regularly was where is there an Anglican Church or a Roman Catholic Church?. The answer would be given and Rev King and Father Barrett of St. Basils were informed of such names and addresses. On one occasion I was stumped; the man of the house wanted to know where there was a Boxing Club, as he wished his son to be taught. Enquiries were made and the information passed on later.
During this time an afternoon service for adults was started once a month, again led by Mr Sampson. He also led a small group of interested people who were meeting in each others homes, one night a week , for Prayer and Bible Study.
When the Primary School opened in 1957, Services and the Sunday School were held there. An outstanding memory centred there was the afternoon that a spastic little girl attended who became known as little Miss Echo– she repeated every word Frank said! I'll never know how he got through that occasion.
At the same time it became apparent that the work needed a full-time leader; the Building Committee, after much prayer, invited Cyril Rusbridge to accept the task. At a United Prayer meeting, one of many held at Avenue Baptist church and Leigh Road Baptist Church, we were told Cyril Rusbridge had visited and was prepared to leave his church in Bristol to accept the call to Basildon. This had been extended to him by the Building Committee on behalf of the small, group who had started to gather together, following an Initial Service in the Builders Hut, sited where Bader House now stands.
By this time the Manse was built. On its completion, Cyril Rusbridge and his family (Joan –Mrs Rusbridge, Helen, Cynthia and Alison, aged 7 yrs,5 yrs and 4 months respectively) moved in; it was January 1958. It was a memorable snowy day when they walked on planks into the just completed Manse. There were no other houses in the area at this time and still no street lighting. Because the light from the hall of the Manse streamed through the stair-window, it was quickly nicknamed the lighthouse.
As Kingswood was developed and occupied it became in truth a place of light, love and help.
Yes , very quickly there were problems all around broken homes, alcoholism, suicides actual and attempted and, probably one of the biggest, loneliness.
Under Gods hand the work, though hard, slowly progressed and in February 1958 the members of the Group, who were meeting regularly, decided the time had come to be constituted into a church. So, on the first Sunday in March, Rev Cyril Chilvers of Leigh Road welcomed in 23 foundation Members. The text on this occasion was called to be saints (Cor. 1 v 2)... Yes, saints in Basildon! The following Sunday evening we had the joy of witnessing the baptism of the first addition to the infant church. The baptism service took place at Laindon.
Somewhere about this time I was asked to go to friends at West Mersea for the weekend. When I got there I discovered I was expected to tell the congregations of the morning and evening services about the New Church at Basildon, as they were that day asking for contributions to the Presidents Purse which we were to be given.
Whilst we were having lunch a phone call came through to say their speaker expected at Sunday School had been taken ill, with the result that ill was asked to take his place, again talking about the work in Basildon!.
Soon the foundations of the building were put in and gradually the Hall became a fact. On Saturday October 4th 1958 the premises were open by Mrs Walling and at the following service they were dedicated. This was followed by tea being served simultaneously in the manse, the hall and the primary school, which had accommodated an overflow gathering –relayed! The evening meant a Thanksgiving Service and were we thankful because on Friday evening when we gathered for prayer not a chair had arrived –we borrowed Manse ones. The hall chairs were delivered about 9 o'clock on the Saturday!
On the following Sunday week we held our first baptismal service in the church, when four people confessed their faith in the lord. Horror of Horrors, this was the occasion when the baptistery leaked, flooded a large area of the church, warping some of the wood block floor.
Since this ,work has continued; we have seen many accept, by faith, Jesus as Saviour and Lord. We have had many members who have, for various reasons, left us and gone to new spheres of service. But there is still much to be done in bringing the people of Basildon into a living, vital relationship with god.
I've not said very much about money, yet nothing can be done without it. As we go forward into plans to extend the premises we own, it might be advisable to say the debts on our present property (including interest-free loans) were repaid in eight years, though the expectation was that it would take ten.
Now we shall be challenged again to meet large commitments to repay money we shall owe. We can meet these and more, if we all do our share –God is never any mans debtor, he will judge. For several of the early years the Sunday School collected ship half-pennies as their share of the giving.