Sunday School

I grew up in a Methodist family and have remained a member all my life, although since 1976 is now known as the Uniting Church in Australia.

My baptism occurred at the Bracknell Methodist Church on 28 November 1943, travelling there by horse and jinker. Bracknell was four miles from Bishopsbourne but the church where Mum had been associated before marriage.

Sunday School was attended from the age of five years at the Little Hampton Methodist Church which was located 1½ miles from the farm. In the early years we reached Sunday school by dad’s bicycle, Yvonne standing on the bar and for safety clutching Dad around his neck, with me sitting on a bag at the handlebars. 

Little Hampton Sunday School met at 2.00 pm an hour before the church service. At peak, around 20 students attended. Biblical stories were given, text verses handed out to be memorized, and which would later be tested. Hymns would be sung, and prayers spoken. The aim was to learn the best values for living life.

Once a year, in November, a Sunday School anniversary was held to celebrate the year’s work. It was held at the Bishopsbourne Public Hall with students being assembled on a platform erected on the stage. From there we would sing songs learned during the year and receive prizes. Attending were a large number of people from the community.  Some days later it was followed by an American tea and social events including various games being played.

In later years the Sunday School students as a group visited the Mersy Bluff at Devonport which was very much enjoyed.

Youth Group Activities 

After finishing Sunday School, church life continued via church attendance and involvement with youth groups mostly at Longford and Bracknell. Activities included games nights, car rallies and church camps at Turners Beach, near Ulverstone, also at the Methodist Ladies College campus in Launceston. The camps were organized by MYF (Methodist Youth Fellowship), with people attending coming from throughout Tasmania.

Ministers were in attendance and led Bible studies and fellowship times.

A social/money raising event at Bracknell is particularly remembered, it featured magical items performed by church member, Stan Prewer. As a magician he was very skilled, and people present were left mesmerized by his tricks.

At Bracknell some church members decided to join the Northern Tasmanian Batinton Association, which at peak had 28 teams, with several other Methodist Church groups joining, also Launceston Church of England teams and a Church of Christ team.

Birralee near Westbury also fielded a team but played without electricity, for lighting using kerosene hurricane lamps.

Local/Lay Preaching

I commenced as a local preacher in 1965 and continued till 2020 or for 55 years. My official recognition was given on 16 November 1966 and recorded in the Bible presented to me by members of the Westbury Bracknell Methodist Circuit.

For a number of years, I conducted 25 to 30 services a year, with the maximum being 35. During that time attended over 60 Methodist/Uniting churches, three Baptist, and five Aged Car facilities.

Most services were in the north of Tasmania, stretching from Beauty Point at the entrance of the Tamar River, to Ross in the Midlands, and from Scottsdale, in the northeast, to Somerset in the northwest.

On one occasion conducted four services on the one Sunday, Perth and Cressy in the morning, Campbell Town in the afternoon and Hagley in the evening.

Many of those 60 plus congregations have now closed but are remembered as being vibrant, faithful, dedicated and hard working.

Several services are still remembered, one at the Karingal Home for the Aged at Devonport. At the service was 100-year-old Julia Kelly and she made an approach for a large print Bible. The request was carried back to the Latrobe Sunday School, who organized a fund-raising sock dance which was sufficient to purchase a Bible. A presentation was arranged with four from the group attending Mrs. Kelly, at Karingal. A reporter also attended to report on the event, which with a photo appeared on the front page of the Advocate newspaper. Mrs. Kelly was delighted. See photo below.

Also, at Devonport when visiting the Melaleuca Aged Care Home there was a congregation of five, all sitting in wheelchairs.

Once a year for about 10 years would travel by air to Flinders Island to conduct worship and do some visiting.

Services at the large and historic Ross Church were at times interesting. With the Church being advertised as a tourist attraction, at times people would wander into the church while a service was underway, some just looking around with a few sitting and listening for a time.

To preach the Word of God has been a privilege and it has been a joy to join in worship with fellow sisters and brothers in Christ.

Other Church Activities

• For 17 years was a member of the Tasmanian Resource and Development Committee – dealing with property and finance matters. At times acting as chairperson.
• A member of the Tasmanian Presbytery
• A representative to the Victorian-Tasmania Synod in Melbourne on a number of occasions.
• Attended BOMAR (Board of Mission and Resources) meetings in Melbourne for some months.
• Represented Tasmania (one of three lay persons) at the Church National Assembly in Adelaide, July 2012.
• A church Elder at Burnie, Latrobe and Westbury.
• Member of the Order of St. Luke – a healing ministry

Other General Activities

• Hobby farming, purchased a 126-acre property at Bishopsbourne in 1974
• Sporting activities – have played in football and cricket teams, batinton, badminton and squash, also athletics particularly sprint running. Set a new school record at Queechy High School of 10.4 seconds for the 100-yard event and won several minor gift events at the Tasmanian Carnivals.
• A member of the Air Training Cadets (ATC) from 1957 to 1960 – 4 years, with rank rising from Cadet to CUO (Commissioned Under Officer). 
• A member of Probus at Westbury.
• Coin collecting – Australian Pre-decimal coins. I started out helping our Church minister, Rev. Wally Barnes, but became interested – collected coins, all denominations, produced by various mints apart from the rare 1923 half-penny and the 1930 penny.
• History both family and general. Have done much research and recording. A major work was the compiling and writing of the French and Badcock family history book, “Go….Be Fruitful and Multiply”. This grew out of the 1982 Reunion, held to celebrate 150 years since arrival in Tasmania. I completed much of the 610-page book, over a ten-year period. The book sold at $42.00 a copy and quickly sold out with books now selling to $1,000 a copy. It has become a valuable source of information for the Menzies Medical Research Foundation. At the 1982 Reunion around 2,500 people attended and 2,000 at the book launch in 1990. I worked as secretary for both reunions.
• Blog “History Over Dinner”. This commenced in year 2020 at the instigation of our daughter Rebecca Badcock and records articles written by me over the years. Around 100 articles appear in the blog. Other articles have been deposited with the Launceston Library and Tasmanian Archives.

By Ivan Badcock – 21 September 2024