My Days At Ongar Secondary School And After

A Memory of Chipping Ongar.

I attended Ongar Secondary School from 1945 to 1949. Some of the students I remember were Keith Mills (we were longtime friends, he passed away 2005), Len Shuttleworth, Hugh Brace, Brian Buttle, Jim Parrish, Marion Jennings, Don Eustice, Gordon Knight, Annie Stanford, Bumper Richardson and many more. Those of us that attended Ongar Secondary School got along well together. The boys were into soccer and cricket and there were 4 houses, as I remember, Shackleton, Scott (my house) Cook and Livingstone. We competed in sports every year, the houses included the girls too as they had their own sports programs. Netball was one of the games that the girls played in and it was well received by everyone. My friends and I used to walk to Ongar Railway Station where there was a small Cafe owned and operated by my then friend, Fred Childs (son of the owners Mr and Mrs Fred Childs), who lived in a cottage next to the Secondary School. Fred Junior had a sister Eileen Childs who went to the Secondary School. My mother and father emigrated to Michigan, USA along with my Nan Lawlor and my siblings and myself in September 1949. In 1953, I joined the US Air Force and in 1954 I was stationed in Morocco, N. Africa at Sidi Slimane AFB. I became a Courier flying from Sidi Slimane to Bovingdon Airport outside of London once a month to pick up supplies. During my first trip to London, I got to visit Ongar Secondary School and Mr Fleet was still there as Headmaster. I stopped in and saw his secretary who had been secretary of the school for along time, I cannot remember her name, but she was a lovely lady - she had me meet Mr Fleet, and he remembered me. We had a nice talk and I asked if I could go around the classrooms and say hello to some of the teachers that were still there when I left in 1949. Mrs Carter was the music teacher, I knocked at her door and could see the students she had that day in the classroom. Mrs Carter recognized me and we talked for a little while, she was a really sweet lady and I believe that I learned alot about music under her instruction. Her late husband was the Headmaster when I attended my first year, and when he passed that is when Mr Fleet was appointed. Miss Horsnell was still there as was Mr Allain (we all knew that these two teachers were seeing each other, and I had heard later that they got married). I learned in later years when I was stationed at RAF Greenham Common, Newbury, Wiltshire that the School was closing down. Any of you that might be out there and remembers me, I married a gal that lived in Bristol and we have been married for 59 yrs come June 4th, 2014. Together we were at 3 different bases over the years. It gave me opportunity to visit Stondon Massey, where my parents lived prior to leaving for the USA in 1949. I met up with lots of friends and cousins who I still keep in touch with. This March 1st, 2014 will be my 80th birthday. I think about the good times I have had, and the friends and family over there in England that I have kept in touch with, and have visited over the years, and I will never forget where I came from, my life has been full.
All the very Best to all out there that went to Ongar Secorndary School.
God Bless One and All....David Lawlor, Arizona, USA February 1st, 2014

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