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Fond farewell for village stalwarts
A VILLAGE has said goodbye to its best-known residents.
Joyce and Dennis Jones have lived in Nuneham Courtenay for more than 60 years, but are moving to a bungalow in Watlington because they are no longer able to cope with the stairs in their house.
The couple have been involved in village life for almost all of the 60 years. They ran the village post office for 32 years - and older residents remember the couple because they weighed babies on the post office scales to save mothers paying bus fares to the nearest clinic.
Many of the babies, now grown up, were at a farewell party for the couple at a packed Nuneham Courtenay village hall on Saturday. Mrs Jones said: "Those 'babies' now have their own children, but they still some to see me."
Talking about weighing babies at the post office, she said: "In those days, people were not earning a lot of money. I told the mothers that if they brought their babies in, I would weigh them once a week.
"Not many people had telephones then, and if babies were ill, I would ring the doctor for them."
Mrs Jones first arrived in Nuneham Courtenay during the Second World War as a member of the Land Army. She met Mr Jones who was in the RAF and stationed nearby.
They married and after the war returned to Mr Jones' home in Yorkshire, before moving back to Oxfordshire, to Littlemore, and then to Nuneham Courtenay in 1949.
When the postmistress retired, Mrs Jones took over. She said: For a few years we turned our front room into a post office, but when the old PO building became available, we moved into that. We ran the post office from 1951 until 1983, when I retired."
The couple were stalwarts of many village activities. Mr Jones started a youth club, which met on Friday nights, and was also a member of a committee that launched an annual flower show. The show stopped a few years ago when entries declined.
Mrs Jones said: "I was Brown Owl for the Brownies and Captain of the Girl Guides. I became president of the WI, and played the organ in the church until it closed about 20 years ago. After that I joined the choir at nearby Marsh Baldon."
Mrs Jones said: "Another thing we did was to hold Communion services at our house for the elderly who were unable to travel out of the village."
She said: "I also started the Nuneham Players and we would entertain the elderly."
Mrs Jones is 84, and her husband is 88. They have two children, Jenny and Duncan.
Villagers paid tribute to them. Long-time friend June Harris said: "Joyce was the backbone of the village for so long. She was involved in anything and everything.
"She has been a friend to me and to everyone.
"It will be very sad when they have gone. My children have always called her Auntie Joyce."
Neighbour Sheila Brooks said: "They will be sadly missed. She was always there when people needed help.
"Joyce and Dennis are two beautiful people. They are characters."
3:32pm Wednesday 23rd April 2008
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