Spotlight - "Chill Out With Cocoa" - The story of Stella Boyce
Stella was born in Ghana, West Africa. But lets go back a bit.
Her father Charles Patterson was born in Soufrier the second town of St Lucia. As a young man his ambition was to be a priest. He passed his matriculation exam with distinction thereby winning a scholarship to study in Great Britain. He travelled on a banana boat and as the only black man on board, he was not allowed to sit with the other passengers. This left an indelible impression on him and so he decided not to enter the priesthood. He enrolled at Liverpool University where he studied languages and excelled in the written and spoken aspects of the French language and its literature.
Charles next travelled to the Gambia where he taught French in a Methodist Boys' High School. This is where he met Stella's mum, Winifred, who was also a teacher.
The couple then moved to Ghana to start a new life together, Charles taught French at Achimota college and Winifred stayed at home to look after 3 children, Stella, her sister and brother.
Stella spent her early childhood in Ghana but things were soon to change. Charles wanted the children to meet his parents and to experience St Lucia. Stella had never met her grand parents and so off they went to St Lucia by boat.
This took days and sadly during their journey Charles recieved word that his father had died.
By the time they had reached St Lucia, Stella's grand father had been buried. She did however meet her grand mother and aunty and enjoyed her early teenage years here.
Charles and Winifred went back to Ghana leaving Stella and her siblings in the care of her aunt.
Had to pop this photo here of a beach in St Lucia. It speaks for itself.
Stella attended the Holy Trinity church and school which was situated in a compound. The church was at one end, the school the other and the burial ground to the side.
Her secondary school was St Joseph's convent and even though this was a Catholic school Stella leaned more to the Anglican church.
Drama and art were Stella's favourite pass times and she got involved in the islands art festivals. It was then that she met Roddy Walcott a poet and playwrite and the co-ordinator of the festivals.
More information on Roddy Here.
After leaving school Stella worked for WINBAN (Windward Islands Banana Growers Association) as a secretary for 2 years and then the Bank of Nova Scotia for 1 year.
In St Lucia Stella went to church regularly, the services started at 7.30 and ended around noon. Unlike our experience the Church of England service there included a 2 hour sermon.
Well it sometimes lasted longer and many left before it started. I am sure I would have dropped off.
After church Stella would visit with friends, drink cocoa tea and chill out. This is made as follows:- Grate a block of cocoa and boil it down, add a little nutmeg - serve with hot milk and sugar and ofcourse biscuits. Stella
tells me the drink was very filling and just the right thing after the long sermon.
By this time Charles and Winifred had moved to Ethiopia and had more children. They asked Stella and her sibblings to come out there to meet their new brothers and see more of the world. Stella found employment at Haile Selassie university working as a secretary to an English gentleman in the mathematics department. More info on Haile Selassie Here . A coup d'état occurred in Addis Ababa in December 1960 and life for expats like Stella was unsettling. Stella and her sister got out and they moved to England.
Arriving in Oxford via London Stella settled into a residential college to further her education. Her sister took up nursing in Eastbourne.
Stella came to London to visit with friends and worked there during the holidays to gain more experience. She was drawn to St Andrew's one Good Friday when Father Johnson was the priest. She did not return for a while.
One Sunday Stella came back to St Andrew's when Father David was the priest. At the end of the service with the blessing and dismissal, Father David was not happy with the muted reponse and asked the congregagtion to say it louder as if they meant it.
Stella was impressed by this and she believed, like him, that the responses should be said with conviction. She met Father David after the service and told him that he was a man after her own heart.
With the encouragement of Father David, Stella got invovled with the church - readings, welcoming and later church warden.
Soon After the death of Father David, Stella was elected church warden with Chrissie Beale and they both kept the church going during the interregna with the support of the area Dean, Stephan Welch, local priests
and the congregation of St Andrew's. This included Sunday services. This was a difficult time for the church and a huge task for the wardens.
But Stella realised that this was part of Gods plan, from the ministry at Holy Trinity church in St Lucia to the task as Warden during this interregna at St Andrew's.
Stella got to know many of the congregation and their concerns and was able to re-assure them that things would be ok. It was clear to her that Father David would have liked them to continue his work.
Stella said "God will answer our prayers and always remember that it's our church".
Stella welcomed Father Gavin to St Andrew's and served as warden during the time he was priest there. Trevor took over as warden from Chrissy. Father Gavin planned to leave for Wales so the forseen interregna was a breeze for Stella.
She had been there before and was able to sail through with Trevor Dawson to the eventual licensing of Father Martin.
Stella gave up her role as warden last year (photos here ) but is still very much involved in the church.
She is a fount of knowledge and will always lend an ear. Her name means 'The unreachable star' but in Stella's case its the opposite.
I just call her a star.
Her strength both mentally and spiritually is an inspiration and I know we can learn alot more from this incredible lady.
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