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Our Lady of St Rose of Lima

paul stacey

paul stacey

master brummie
Our Lady of St Rose of Lima, Gregory Avenue Weoley Castle, I went to this school from 56/59. The headmistress was Mother Mary Martina, and a Sister Rose I remember from the annex by the cemetary. Father O'Rielly was the priest in charge. I did'nt have a very happy time there, but had some wonderful friends, Vicky Hewett, Roselind Courtney, sammy Samson, at dinner time we used to go to the park next to the castle square. Chasing the girls and playing kiss chase in the old air raid shelters. In the winter when snow came we made a slide down by the statue of the virgin mary. I looked in 2003 and it still looked the same except I am very nearly and old man now and both my mom and dad have passed on now.
 
Hello Paul, I notice you've mentioned Rose Courtney in your message, she is my cousin and I am in contact with her, when I mail her next, I'll mention your name. Regards Margaret Anderson.
 
.......... edit my Father had (Edit : one member of staff) by the throat one afternoon as he had whacked me for some obscure reason and the nuns were not much better they used to rap yer knuckles with a ruler needless to say my parents took me out and sent me to St Marys Harborne I am Glad to say
 
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hello margaret
thanks for your message if it is roselind please sent my greetings and best wishs to her and familey, and hello from the distant past.
regards
paul stacey
 
hello otherhalf
Edit ......(one member of staff) frightened me ,I was always wary if I had'nt been to confession on the saturday because on the sunday I would be caught by the ear and told I was going to hell fire and damnation, Edit ......... I did go back once when I was in the army in my uniform and Mother Martina recognised me straight away and was quite formal, but welcoming
as I was leaving across the playground she came running after me and putting her arms around me begged me to take care and come back safe from ADEN.
paul stacey
 
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Hi Paul

Edit ........... I dont remember Mother Martina but as St Rose was my local church I grew up in Weoley Castle and I remember father Oreilly very well as My Dad And Him Hated the sight of each other I think it was a case of the mad scot and the mad priest banging heads on a number of occasions ...he was to me the most intimidating and arrogant priest I have ever come across.
 
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hello otherhalf
I don't know how old you are but there an irish teacher who took me for maths and (edit) ...... put me off maths for life, if you got less than 50% in tests you were riddiculed in front of the class (edit) ....... I wish I could remember his name as I hated him I think the brain locks it out, in saying that there was a few good times and some good friends.
regards
paul stacey
 
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hello anybody
looking for Alan Fisher, in 1964 was living in Hilltop West Brom, joined the Coldstream Guards in 1964. Also Chris Gummley, he lived either in Frankley or Northfield in late 50's early 60's.
paul stacey
 
Hello all,

I went to St Rose from about 1965 to 71. Mother Martina was quite sweet then, maybe she mellowed in old age. Father O'Reilly was the same though, all fire and brimstone. I think he had lots of problems (edit) ..... He certainly was not a happy man.
Does anyone remember Mr McCann, he used to go so red with rage and throw the chalk across the room - I guess he had problems too!!. All in all my memories were quite good. I really liked the May procession around the church, maybe it was because we got to sing Queen of the May and strew petals.

I spent many evenings in the "Square Park" waiting for some boys we fancied to come over and play football. I was brought up in Beckbury Road just at the junction with Barcheston. I had a great childhood and many fond memories of Weoley Castle and count myself lucky to be brought up in Birmingham.

I visited from Canada last year and took lots of pictures, its true everything looked bigger when I was little and it's a shame to see how some of the areas have got to look a bit tatty, like the duck pond and of course they've closed the Raven pub. A lot of the men who went to Sunday mass went straight over to the Raven after. I also remember midnight mass when the back of the church was full of very merry people.

It is nice to hear of Weoley on this site my nan and grandad moved there from Aston when Weoley was first built (Chatwell Grove off Alwold) so my dad was brought there too.

Best wishes to all
 
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hi tydavnet
thanks for the name I had Forgotten Mr McCann he (Edit) ........put me off maths for life,I was very happy living in weoley castle, and had many friends, it was sad to return after mom and dad had passed, it felt very lonely to be there as I had left when I was 15yrs old and never returned. I have been to Canada a few times with the military Yellow knife chieften ottowa got RTU'd once for fighting with a sgt who was french canadian seems they still carry a grudge from the 18th C against the english, the place and people I found great, and would have liked to have gone in the canadian police if my wife had agreed.
regards
paul stacey
 
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tydavnet said:
Hello all,

I went to St Rose from about 1965 to 71. Mother Martina was quite sweet then, maybe she mellowed in old age. Father O'Reilly was the same though, all fire and brimstone. I think he had lots of problems (edit) ..... He certainly was not a happy man.
Does anyone remember Mr McCann, he used to go so red with rage and throw the chalk across the room - I guess he had problems too!!. All in all my memories were quite good. I really liked the May procession around the church, maybe it was because we got to sing Queen of the May and strew petals.

I spent many evenings in the "Square Park" waiting for some boys we fancied to come over and play football. I was brought up in Beckbury Road just at the junction with Barcheston. I had a great childhood and many fond memories of Weoley Castle and count myself lucky to be brought up in Birmingham.

I visited from Canada last year and took lots of pictures, its true everything looked bigger when I was little and it's a shame to see how some of the areas have got to look a bit tatty, like the duck pond and of course they've closed the Raven pub. A lot of the men who went to Sunday mass went straight over to the Raven after. I also remember midnight mass when the back of the church was full of very merry people.

It is nice to hear of Weoley on this site my nan and grandad moved there from Aston when Weoley was first built (Chatwell Grove off Alwold) so my dad was brought there too.

Best wishes to all
Click to expand...
Hi there. Some great memories of the school, which I attended and left in 1961. In fact Mr McCann was my Dad. At the time he wasn't having a happy home life, which perhaps explains his behavior. He died a few years ago having lived to 94.
 
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Great piece, but you must remember it as its time in history, it was normal to receive corporal punishment, in schooling at this time, most teachers of the day would not possibly be employed to teach children today, and the priesthood was not subject to the strict regulation as now, it was hard on kids then, but many happy memories too. Paul
 
I was a pupil around 1960 for couple years and have very bad memory of the Mother Superior making me have extra portion of the thick stalk cabbage at lunch, then when I couldn't eat the stalks, was made to sit with my dinner plate on my desk and after everyone went home, was force-fed them. I didn't get home until very late tea time and my Mom, now deceased, a devout Catholic got 2 buses to school to complain. As punishment for this, I wasn't allowed to sing as promised, at Birmingham Town Hall. I know times were different then, but in anyone's world, this was abuse.
 
I was there a few years before you, when Mother Mary Martina was HM, and Father O'Rielly was priest, it was very tough, though of course in the 50's there was not a word , called abuse, unheard of in those days when children were disciplined from birth really, thought nothing of it .!!
 
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