The Village Squire, 1981-06, Page 15Day triI)I)i ng
by Eileen Cade -Edwards
St. Luke's -in -the -Garden
I t would be hard to imagine a
more picturesque little chapel
than St. Luke's -in -the -Garden.
With its beautiful, stained glass
windows, its mellowed creeper -hung
brickwork, and in the spring and summer
its exquisite old-world garden, it could
easily be a tiny medieval church in an old
English village. Inside too, the sense of
the past is reflected in the simplicity of
design and in the loving touches of hand
carving - a craft associated more with the
past than the present.
y
et St. Luke's is only 49 years
old - young compared with
most of the area's churches. It
was built in 1932 on the sprawling
grounds of the Queen Alexandra Sanat-
orium - later to be known as the Beck
Sanatorium, and now the CPRI -in the
village of Byron, long before Byron was
annexed to the city of London.
For Dr. Frank Pratten, much -loved and
highly regarded superintendent of the
Sanatorium from 1919 to 1932, the
completion of St. Luke's -in -the -Garden
represented the fulfillment of a dream for
it had long been his wish that someday a
beautiful little interdenominational
chapel would be built on the grounds of
the sanatorium, for the use of that
community.
On November 10. 1931, Dr. Pratten
witnessed the dedication of St. Luke's -in -
the -Garden "to the Glory of God, and in
loving memory of Sir Adam and Lady
Beck" (both of whom had worked so
devotedly for the Sanitorium) Mrs. C.H.
Strathearn Hay, daughter of Sir Adam
and Lady Beck, officially opened the
chapel. The dream had at last become a
reality.
Funding for the building itself -
which was constructed mainly
of fine old brick - was the gift of
the ladies of the Sanatorium Aid Society
while the furnishings were purchased
from both individual donations and by
donations from various churches in the
London area. A committee of Anglican,
Presbyterian, United and Baptist com-
munions was responsible for choosing the
designs and subjects for the furnishings
and memorial windows. Finally, a bell,
retrieved from the pioneer Nicholas
Wilson School was placed in its new home
in the chapel's belfry.
Unfortunately, the dedication
ceremony _ was the last , public ap-
pearance Dr. Pratten would make, for on
December 10, 1932, he died at his home.
Funeral services were held in the little
chapel that had been so close to his heart.
In the south transcept two large stained
glass windows, dedicated to his memory,
can be seen.
When in 1961, the provincial govern-
ment purchased the Sanatorium property
and established the CPRI (Children's
Psychiatric Research Institute) the little
chapel began to attract outside attention.
Though no longer used for regular
Sunday services, St. Luke's became
increasingly popular for small weddings -
the chapel accommodating only between
80 and 100 persons at a time -
christenings and family memorial
services. Last year close to 200 weddings
were performed there.
p
am and Scott Tomlinson look
back with enthusiasm on their
winter wedding at St. Luke's a
few years ago. "It was so beautiful,"
Pam recalls. "Snow had just fallen and
the colours from the memorial windows
were reflected on the soft, white ground
all around the chapel."
For Pam, also, St. Luke's -in -the -
Garden was a dream come true. "1 fell in
love with the little chapel the first time 1
saw it," she says, "and 1 knew at once
that this was where I wanted to be
married."
While there are weddings throughout
the winter months in St. Luke's, by far
the most popular time is spring and
summer when the chapel takes on its
'picture postcard' appearance. Begonias,
impatiens, marigolds and countless other
annuals and perennials fill every inch of
space in the surrounding flower beds and
flowring shrubs press against the warm
brick walls.
Hendrik "Hank" Oosterwal, head
agriculture worker - as the landscape
gardeners are called in the CPRI
community - feels "very good" about the
(cont. on page 24)
VILLAGE SQUIRE/JUNE 1981 PG. 13