1924-2009

Family, friends and, of course, ringers, gathered at the church of St Thomas à Becket, Pagham, Sussex, on a lovely, sunny June day to say farewell to Gee, who died on May 27th, aged 84, after a period of illness borne with great courage.

At her own request, strongly endorsed by her family, there was no mourning. Members of the family arrived and left the church to the sound of happily pealing, well struck, open bells. There was a lovely, cheery wave to the ringers from Gee’s daughter Caroline as she came in. The family was enormously grateful to tower captain Mike Wake for mustering members of the local band to ring for the occasion, and for so kindly allowing members of Gee’s beloved London County Association (now disbanded), including four past masters, to join in with them.

The moving, but happy service included some rousing singing (the hymns included the Ringers’ Hymn, "Unchanging God"), an address by the Vicar, the Revd Keith Smith, a celebration of "Mum’s Life" by Caroline, and the reading, by her son Peter, of a poem specially written by one of her grandchildren, Rebecca. Gee left the church for the last time to the sound of Gracie Fields singing "Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye".

At Harold Rogers’ request, the final touch after the service was rung by a band of ringers all connected with Southwark Cathedral, where Gee had herself rung so graciously over many years.

Gee (Gwen to her non-ringing family and friends) grew up in Putney. She was educated at the Mayfield School, West Hill, and went from there to Hockerill Teacher Training College at Bishops Stortford. But it was wartime, and she was evacuated to Tyneside, where her teacher training began. It was an area of widespread deprivation. This affected Gee so much that she determined to take a personal interest in every child that she taught, so that, through a solid education, each and every one of them would get the best possible start.

On returning to London, she took up ringing and met her future husband C. Montagu (Monty) Meyer in the tower at St Luke’s, Chelsea, where they married on August 11th 1951. Monty used to enjoy telling a story about one of Gee’s uncles walking into the church and up the aisle before the service, smoking a large cigar and failing utterly to understand why he was being asked to put it out.

When, in 1961, Monty took over the "roving company", originally formed by Thomas H. Taffender to provide Sunday ringing at otherwise silent towers, Gee supported him, regularly ringing quarter peals up to Stedman and Erin Cinques at towers such as Lambeth, Waterloo, Holloway, Fulham, Southwark and Cripplegate. Monty himself composed many of the quarters which, in pre-computer days, Gee would prove "longhand".

In fact it was Gee’s adeptness at turning her hand to almost any task that frequently got her into trouble. One Sunday afternoon, having cooked Monty’s lunch, Gee left him eating it while she, herself went down to service the car ready for him to go off quarter-peal ringing. She got the blame for taking too long and causing Monty to be late for the quarter! She also got the sharp end of his tongue during another quarter-peal attempt at Fulham. Frank Udall was taken ill and had to stop. He sat at the table in the middle of the room, fighting for his breath. Monty insisted on going for an eight-bell quarter instead. As Gee went to see if Frank was all right and to comfort him, Monty bellowed "Get out of the circle, woman!"

Truly, a match made in heaven! I mean that.

But Gee will probably be best remembered for the culinary creations she produced as a member of the legendary London County "tea squad". If the ringing at London County meetings was not always quite the best, the teas certainly were. Gee would produce delicious cakes and pastries and often tasty, hot main courses as well. Her children remember the great care she always took in preparing excellent meals at home, and that loving care and attention to detail was lavished, too, on members of the London County.

Although they had the house in Pagham, they kept on the Westminster flat for several years after Monty retired, but eventually, in 1988, took the opportunity to move to Pagham. Sadly, Monty died in 1990, but Gee determined to enjoy her retirement to the full. She loved her garden, she loved visiting gardens with new found friends, and took herself off, sometimes on her own, sometimes with friends, on many adventures. And she loved and adored time spent with her family, particularly her grandchildren. We chatted often, and she always wanted to be kept up to date with the latest ringing gossip from London. She always wondered what "Mont," her own version of his name, would have made of the latest "saga" and would give her own impersonation of what he would have had to say about it.

About ten years ago she suffered and recovered from a serious illness, but it returned a few months ago. This time she decided not to undergo any further treatment and made arrangements to end her days in a hospice when she could no longer cope with living at home. It was an enormously sad decline for one who had been so busy and full of life.

"My body is worn out. I can’t walk. I can’t enjoy doing any of the things I want to do," she explained in our last conversation a couple of weeks before she died. "But I’ve been lucky to have had a good life. I won’t be sorry to leave it now, so don’t be too sad. Now I am just enjoying looking out at my garden and enjoying the spring flowers for the last time."

Gee Meyer was one of ringing’s loveliest ladies, and we shall miss her. We dutifully obeyed her last wish not to mourn. But we send our love and sympathy to Peter and to Caroline and to all of the grandchildren.

Ringing, of course, had to be a part of our remembrance of Gee. A month after the funeral, a band representing her beloved London County (including five past masters), the tea squad, and the Fulham and Southwark Cathedral quarter-peal bands from the 1960s and ’70s, in all of which she had played such a key role, met at All Saints’, Fulham. We rang a very enjoyable lunch-time quarter peal and reminisced in the "Eight Bells" long into the afternoon, where we particularly thought of those invited but unable to be present for the occasion, including Kathleen Baker, Brooke Lunn, David and Lucy Woodward, Will Willans, Irene Rich, Eddie Adams and Stella Shell.

M.J.U.