Agnes Egan
Agnes,
lived at 187, Bridgnorth Road, Wollaston and was
not a member
of our congregation. As far as we know she
never worshipped at
Holy Trinity.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that she was a patient in the
nearby Corbett
Hospital and whilst there was able to hear the then single bell. She was,
we believe, visited in hospital
by the Incumbent Revd. Leonard Budge
who was at Holy
Trinity from 1958 until 1964.
Agnes appointed Revd. Budge (or any subsequent Vicar
of Amblecote)
and George Leslie Penn as her Executors
and Trustees of her will
She left money to provide a stained glass window on the
South side
of the Church in memory of her late mother
Orpah. The window space
having being reserved by
Rev. Leonard Budge.
She requested that the
window should be similar to
William Holman Hunt's painting 'The
Light of the World'.
What was finally produced, though a fine window, shows
little
resemblance to her request as it is a representation of
Saint Francis
of Assisi. Whether her idea was seen to be
technically difficult or just
out of keeping with the other
windows we do not know, but what is
certain is that she
did have a great love for animals and if for that
reason
alone it would seem to be appropriate.
'The light of the
World' The Egan Window
Agnes also
bequeathed money to provide and install a
peal of
eight bells of medium weight. She had the
foresight to request
the installation of an apparatus to
permit the bells to be chimed
by just one person when
ringers are not available. These bells
are carefully
maintained to this day and rung on most Sundays
and by teams of visiting bell ringers from various parts
of the country.
Her third
and final gift to the people of the parish was to
establish
the 'Agnes Egan Housing Fund' which provides
four bungalows
for aged widows, spinsters or married
couples who have resided
in the Parish for at least twenty
years and are members of the
Church of England.
The Parochial Church Council of Holy Trinity is able
to appoint
Trustees to this fund.
Agnes was specific in that the fund was not
to be a
Charity, the occupants were to pay their way, as she
wrote:-
'Life has taught me that what is free is not
always appreciated'.
In item 5
of her will, Agnes left the sum of £300 to be
invested
and the income provided to enable her grave
to be kept in good
order. There is considerable doubt
that this money was ever
received by the P.C.C. and in
recent years her grave began to
look tired and was
starting to fall apart. With the winding up
of her Trust
Fund a small amount of money became available
and the P.C.C. agreed that it was incumbent upon it
to try to
adhere to her wishes and the grave has been
beautifully cleaned
and restored.
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