Hon. OW & Staff Member 1956-1972
We have been notified of the sad death of Janet Evans who passed away peacefully on 3rd October 2024, aged 95. Janet is survived by her two daughters, Ginny and Nancy. Our thoughts and best wishes are with them.
There will be a Thanksgiving Service on Monday 28th October at 12.00 noon at Stonehouse Methodist Church, followed by a family service of Committal at Cheltenham Crematorium. There will be refreshments afterwards in the Morley Hall, Park Road, Stonehouse, GL10 2DW and a chance to share memories of her long life. Ginny and Nancy would be pleased to see anyone who remembers their Mother and is able to come.
Janet was a part of the life of many Old Wycliffians from 1956 to 1972 when, as wife of Tony Evans, Housemaster at Merton Lodge and Windrush in the Prep School, she cared for and nurtured the young boys boarding there. She continued to be involved as a relief Matron for about another 15 years and sang with Wycliffe Choral Society.
If you would like to have your memories of Janet posted on this webpage, please feel free to email them to TWS@wycliffe.co.uk
I was sad to hear of the passing of Janet Evans. When I was Housemaster in Windrush boarding house she was a relief matron every Wednesday evening. My son Simon was about 3 years old at the time and Janet was wonderful with him. She read him stories and even knitted him toys. They had a good rapport and he remembers her with great fondness.
– Denis Fisher (Hon. OW and Staff Member 1972-2009)
I remember Mrs Evans very well from my three years as a boarder at Merton Lodge, Autumn 1958 – Summer 1961. Also her older daughter Nancy, who was only a year younger then me and would join in with the boys playing French Cricket on the lawn. Virginia was then a new-born baby.
The Evans family had their own family area upstairs which the boys did not routinely access, but on two regular occasions we did. One was Sunday evening hymn singing, led by Mr Evans, all of us crammed into their living room as he played the piano and led the singling lustily. I don’t recall whether Mrs Evans or her girls were usually present on these evening sessions but I expect they were.
But the other occasion was entirely run by Mrs Evans, and that was boys’ bath time.
We boys has a downstairs area for toilet and shower, which got us by for a while, but every boy also had to take a bath every so often, and there was but a single bath in the Lodge, in the Evans’ bathroom. I remember each boy had a strict time limit enforced by Mrs Evans and had to scrub himself rapidly to pass muster. Also occasionally one or other Evans girl would forget that it was boys time and come in, only to be rapidly hauled out again by adult hand.
– John Lumby (J S 1958-1968)
