Worship at St Andrew's Anglican Church in Colyton began 125 years ago

St Andrew's Church parishioner Shirley Pearce with some of her memories. Photo / Judith Lacy

In July, Shirley Pearce will mark 65 years as a parishioner of St Andrew's Anglican Church in Colyton.

Aged 86, she still drives herself to services at the wooden church near Feilding. She still serves as sacristan, looking after church linen and setting up for communion before the service.

Pearce was one of about 90 people who attended a service of thanking last November to celebrate St Andrew's 125th anniversary.

She's been an Anglican all her life. Growing up in Kiwitea as Shirley McKinnon, she worshipped at St Agnes' Church which celebrated its 130th anniversary last February.

Pearce married Keven Pearce in July 1957 and moved to the Pearce family farm in Colyton. Colyton identity Edith Bussell came to see her.

"She asked me was I an Anglican. Then she phoned me and offered to pick me up."

Bussell drove a navy blue Fiat Bambino. "She would pick me up and away we would go."

In 1992, a Hammond organ was presented to St Andrew's in memory of Bussell. She also used to ring the bell.

"Nobody can ring it like Mrs Bussell did," Pearce says. "I don't know what she did. I hear it being rung and I think 'Mrs Bussell you should have taught someone before you departed'."

Bussell died in 1991 aged 81. A memorial tablet to her reads "in full assurance of her faith and trusting in the living Lord".

St Andrew's Church in Colyton was opened in 1896. Photo / Judith Lacy

For about 20 years, Pearce was part of a group of women from St Andrew's and Feilding churches St John's and St Brigid's who visited male patients at Lake Alice Hospital.

They would take afternoon tea and each woman had a man to visit. Pearce's man was Patrick and his job was making boxes for kiwifruit.

The Christmas party for the men was held at the Pearce farm with Father Christmas arriving on the back of a Land Rover.

In 1988, Pearce received a letter from the recreation officer at Lake Alice thanking her for hosting the Christmas party. It was addressed to "Mrs Shirley Pearce, Friendly Feilding Lady".

A huge macrocarpa hedge used to be in front of the church. At the 125th celebration, former organist Heather McKinnon's children told Pearce they used to compete to be the first to get the key to the church that was hidden in the hedge.

St Andrew's used to have evensong as well as a morning service. "That was lovely in the quiet of the evening."

Pearce has fond memories of the priests who served St Andrew's. Ray Somerville married her and Keven at St John's while John Malcolm took Keven's funeral service in 1993. "When Keven was ill [John] was so good."

She says Huntly Dryburgh was a trick and a hoot who played the piano accordion.

A photo taken after the first service stil hangs in St Andrew's Church. Photo / Judith Lacy

A plaque in memory of Justine Gandar was unveiled by her daughter Frances and son Paul at the 125th service. Gandar was a lay reader, vestry member, florist, organist and Sunday School teacher at St Andrew's. Her husband Les was a Minister of Education in the Muldoon Government and from 1979 to 1982 was the New Zealand High Commissioner in London.

St Andrew's was opened on November 11, 1896. It was named after St Andrew's Church in Colyton, Devon, from where the Bussell and Power families had come in 1884.

The 125th service was taken by Rev'd Graham Conlon, whose mother attends St Andrew's in Devon. In 2013 a piece of stained glass from its Devon namesake was gifted to St Andrew's.

The Hocken stained glass memorial window is reflected on the church's TV. Photo / Judith Lacy

In 1957, a Sunday School room was attached to the west side of the church while in 1966 a stained glass window in memory of Harry and Maud Hocken was installed. The Hockens had been among the first parishioners of St Andrew's. The window depicts the feeding of the 5000.

In A Township Like Ours, Dell Adsett recalls children giggling helplessly through the singing of a hymn because the organist had played a wrong note.

"Or some mundane sound had filled a sacred silence - such as a cow bellowing in a nearby paddock. It was enough to make the whole pew rock with laughter."

One Sunday the giggles were replaced by laughter when a young boy let a frog loose.

St Andrew's features in Joe McMenamin's mural on the side of Colyton Hall. Photo / Judith Lacy

St Andrew's is part of the Parish of the Oroua and its bishop's warden Bryan Guy showed the Manawatū Guardian through the church. He and wife Jo started attending St Andrew's about 20 years ago and he has got more involved in the church since he retired from farming about 10 years ago. He said 20 people were at the last service with numbers swelling up to 60 at Christmas and Easter.