Day 21 - Bert, Jack and Ben Nevis - A personal Reflection

Born the son of a Primitive Methodist Minister Bert Bissell has been described as a modern Methodist Saint. On VJ Day 1945 he climbed Ben Nevis and built a Peace Cairn for world peace. He climbed Ben Nevis a further 107 times, the last at the age of 91 just before his death. Fort William became his second home where he was given the freedom of the town and he is buried in the cemetery. I never met Bert, but I am indebted to the Young Men’s bible class he started with four friends at Vicar’s Street Methodist Church in Dudley, just outside Birmingham on Sunday 13th September 1925. Within four years the bible class had over 300 members and over the years produced 18 Methodist Ministers and over 100 Local Preachers. One of those friends who started with Bert was a Local Preacher, Jack Bloomer who at the time was training to be a teacher. On finishing his training he left Dudley to take up a position as English teacher at Strodes Grammar School for boys in Egham. Jack, took his enthusiasm for bible study with him, and discovered a small group of Primitive Methodists meeting in a “tin Chapel” which had once served as a First Aid Hut in 1WW and had been purchased as a Church Plant in the growing area of Egham Hythe, near Runnymede. Jack found they held a bible study group on a Thursday, he decided to go and found a small group of elderly ladies, who welcomed him to their group.

Jack decided to make his home in Egham, and under his care the church began to grow eventually the tin chapel was replaced with a brick building and Jack became deputy head of Strodes until his retirement. Why do I mention this, in the late 1960’s my family moved to Egham and we made our spiritual home at the church. A couple of years later both my parents were seriously ill in hospital and neither were expected to live, it was Jack and his wife Julie who took charge and took an 11 year old into their home, they called upon the church community to pray for healing for my parents, and reassured me that that whatever happened God was in control, thankfully at that time both survived. It was Jack who encouraged the small group of Young People in the church to participate in worship, to become Stewards and start a youth club, that was to become one of the largest MAYC Clubs in the District. He was always the first to support our “wackey” ideas, and always there to pick us up and “dust us down” if they didn’t work, knowing we were never short of ideas. And of course to support a new local Preacher on “Trial” who he believed God was calling to full time ministry. I thank God for the Bert's and Jack’s of the church who are strong in their faith and generous in giving time and space to allow others to test theirs.

Castle Stalker

So today we journeyed through heavy showers to Fort William to the foot hills of Ben Nevis, the weather didn’t allow us to climb or walk, so if we have time we will return another day. Tomorrow we are off to the Islands of Mull and Iona – the cradle of Celtic Christianity.