Growing Up

I was born in the black and white cottages in Hearts Delight Borden on 30^th December 1925. We moved to ‘Beauval’ built in Wises Lane Borden in 1927, it was named it Beauval after Bauvais in France where my father served in the First World War.

I have a photograph of my father standing by a house in The Street Borden It was a ladder makers & carpenters shop near the boarded house with wisteria. When my father died my mother earned money to raise the family by fruit picking, and taking in laundry.

Both my sister Joan and I went to the Borden Primary School in School Lane until we were 14 years of age. I missed a lot of school lessons because I suffered from asthma and therefore I was not entered for the school examination for entry to The Technical School on Sheppey.The two Miss Edwards who taught ‘the little ones’ and I also remember Mrs Parker. The headmaster was Mr McCullock, he died of a heart attack and Miss Howells became headmistress. Mrs Finlay taught Science and Miss Kift (sister of Reg Kift) also taught us until she died of asthma.

As children we used to pop the Shop run by the two Miss Greensteads we bought sweets which were served in a rolled paper cornet.

We celebrated the Silver Jubilee with a Parade and marched past the Church carrying a Union Jack.My photograph shows myself and school friends. In the foreground from the left, Herbert Rainer with flag,Harold Goodhew with flag,Peter Wenband with bandaged knee,McCullock, no cap,Monty Martin light cap,McCullock in background,Graham Godfrey,Les Tong in V neck cardigan,and Geof. Hattie.

Working Life

My first job was at ‘Parretts’ the Printers where I worked in the shop and in the office. I was also an office boy in the stores at Detling Aerodrome. I moved to work at Wraights the Builders and completed 27 years; I was articled under Reg. Kift. Wraights Drawing office was in the building now used by Lloyds the Chemist and the Wraights ‘works’ were on the land now used as the London Road Trading Estate. I served as a Building Surveyor at Kent County Council for twenty seven years until I retired.

Family

My mother was born Eleanor Thomas in 1894 in Princes Street Sittingbourne and she died aged 80 years in 1974. Nellie, as she was known, was a member of the Women’s Institute in Borden. My father was Ernest Wenband; he worked as a secretary at Pullens Garage which was near Holy Trinity Church on the site now used by Focus Do It All.

My Uncle Arthur worked on barges that carried cement and bricks to London and returned with ‘rough stuff’ (coke and ashes) this was mixed with clay and used in brick making.

Both my father and my uncle are buried in Sittingbourne Cemetery; my uncle’s head stone records him as Wenban which is an American relative’s influence on the name.

Life in the Village

I was a ‘Choir Boy’ at Borden Church, the organist was Miss Saywell. We were invited into the Vicarage by the Rev. Crouch when war was declared; the vicarage was in The Street. I remember Horace Granstead as another choir master; he had a Radio shop in Park Road Sittingbourne. The next choir master was Cyril Landon.

One day during the War we went out through the door in the vestry and saw two new graves, they belonged to two German Airmen who had crashed at Oad Street and their entries were the last two in the old book. The remains of George Bierly and Fritz Korreller were taken back to Germany after the War.

Mr Miller was Sexton of the church.

I started playing the piano accordion at the Co-op Youth Club in East Street and I was invited to play at the ‘Victory in Europe’ party, I continued playing until 1972 as a dance band playing for dances in the village.My sister did the catering and we raised money for charity including Churchill’s Aid to Russia Fund.

George Sherlock was the Village Blacksmith and he ran whist drives in the old village hall which were followed by a dance. The hall was originally an Army hut used the First World War.

I remember when our band played at Stockbury village hall, the hall was lit by Tilley Lamps and we had to stop halfway through to pump the lamps for more light.

I restarted playing the piano accordion in the early 1980s with an organist, we played for Modern Sequence dancers and we recorded tapes for keepsakes.