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May 2020 May 2020

BERE REGIS HISTORY SOCIETY

None of you will be surprised to hear that our monthly
meetings have been suspended until further notice. I would
like to emphasise that all annual memberships already paid
will be honoured and extended by the number of months
that we have to miss out during the current coronavirus
pandemic. We will continue to explore our local history both
ancient and modern.
Our Archaeology Section have continued to do various research during the shut-
down, and that work has now accumulated the finds in our area to a new total of
18,398. The long term aim of that Section is to fill in the gaps of the 5,000 years that
people have lived at Bere, which represents about 250 generations, so that's a lot
of "great, great, greats" for those whose ancestors perhaps go back that far.
This might be a good opportunity to make an appeal to the people of Bere Regis, all year round and we did not want to miss
and to think of family possessions or documents or even things that we have out on our usual April camp called Bunnies
found in our gardens. These items might be very useful articles for future and Bivvies; so this year we decided it hold
researchers of the village. They can be donated to the Society and will be treated a virtual camp where we all stayed at home and camped either in our homes or
with respect and properly recorded in the archives. Even lending something so gardens. The Scouts were set a number of tasks – just like on a real camp – they
that it can be recorded would be useful. One day we might have a proper had to build a shelter to sleep in, cook a two course meal (outside), wash up (they
museum in the village so that a more formal storage of items can be established. could do this indoors), draw a map of their ‘campsite’ and cook breakfast. The
usual ‘bunny’ part of the camp would be to skin and cook a rabbit but this year
However long the current situation persists, the BRHS will continue to be a place during their exercise Bogey and Dancer delivered chocolate bunnies for the
where the history of Bere Regis will be respected and studied, whilst having Scouts to enjoy instead.
respect for all of our village's histories and possessions.

John Pitfield, Project Secretary
Beaver News
I would normally use this space to celebrate the end of the Spring term for
Beavers, and to say well done to Louisa and to Ollie for achieving the highest
THE STORY OF CHILDHOOD IN BERE REGIS award that a beaver can earn – the Chief Scout Bronze Award! This takes two
IN THE YEARS AROUND THE TIME OF THE years, and involves a regular commitment to meetings and completing some of
the work at home, and by no means everyone gets this before they leave us. And
FIRST WORLD WAR we have had a good Spring term, with most beavers gaining the Global Issues
badge, for which we have been learning about recycling, fair trade, endangered
animals and water filtering.
At this difficult time we thought it would be interesting to reflect on what it was Some have also got the Communicator badge, and we had fun with morse code
like to grow up in Bere Regis 100 years ago. Back in 1982 a little book was written and semaphore. We didn’t complete the practical parts of the Navigator 1 and
by William (Bill) Lucas. Born in 1906, he was brought up in my house on Barrow
nd
Hill. He served in the RAF during the 2 world war and was subsequently Explorer badges, as we were due to do this at the end of term once it became
headmaster at a school in Barnstaple but clearly remembered his young days in light enough, but I will work out some way for these activities to happen under our
Bere Regis. changed circumstances over the next few weeks. Several Beavers achieved the
Teamwork Challenge badge and others finished off the Skills Challenge badge,
I was lucky enough to meet him in 2004 when his niece brought him to the which directly help toward the Bronze Award. Well done all of you for working so
hard.

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