The skies were overcast. Thunder rumbled in the distance as the wind whipped against the cheeks of the little boy who ran inside a nearby church for shelter. It was his first visit to a church and despite the bitter cold and his drenched clothes, he couldn’t help but be awed at what he saw.
“Oh my goodness, your clothes are wet!” he heard someone exclaim as he looked up and saw the vicar of the church approach him. The vicar held him by his hand and led him to the vicarage. Perched on a huge chair, the boy gratefully accepted the steaming cup of coffee, the vicar so kindly offered him and before long, both boy and vicar were deep in conversation while the sky unleashed its torrents outside.
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| Norman at the clebrations |
Years later, Norman Leitch, better known to many as the father of popular entertainer Ronnie Leitch confesses, that this chance visit to the Church of the Ascension, Bandarawela to seek refuge from the rain and the cup of coffee and conversation with Rev. Father Waltham , changed his life.
“I talked to him about my family,” says Norman, explaining that as they were a family of 12, it wasn’t always easy to make ends meet. The Reverend patiently listened to the 10-year-old boy and asked him to bring his father to meet him.
The next day, when Norman came with his father, Reverend Waltham welcomed them warmly and offered to help the family in any way he could, financially. He insisted on providing three members of the family with afternoon meals, which Norman recalls went a long way.
“It was mostly the planters around Bandarawela like Sir Thomas Villiers, owner of the famous Adisham Hall who attended the church,” reminisced Norman adding that he also met his future wife there.
When the Church of the Ascension, Bandarawela celebrated its 100th year recently Norman travelled by trainfrom Colombo to Bandarawela to attend the celebrations. “It was wonderful for me to be part of it,” he says.
At 85, Norman resides in Colombo. But nestled in the cool hills of Bandarawela, lies a church which holds a special place in his heart. |
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