Delighted Jean Downham, of Calne, was honoured for a lifetime of bell ringing on Sunday, fifty years to the day that she pulled her first bell rope.
Mrs Downham was presented with a silver badge from the Salisbury Diocesan Guild of Ringers in recognition of half a century’s work in the bell tower.
She was also given “the largest bunch of flowers I have ever received” at a celebratory barbecue on Saturday evening.
The following day Calne tower captain Hugh Pilcher-Clayton awarded her the silver SDGR badge as a gift from her fellow ringers.
Mr Pilcher-Clayton said: “It was a truly memorable occasion.”
Mrs Downham moved to Calne from Basingstoke in April 1959, and rang her first bell in the town on August 23.
Exactly 50 years later Mrs Downham is still ringing, but to mark the special occasion she was joined by her daughter Hilary and her son Philip.
As well as being a keen bell ringer, the mother-of-three is a member of the Calne and District Twinning Association.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here