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Ray receiving his award from
Upchurch Parish Council Chairman, Tyrone Ripley.
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Award
Congratulations to Ray Kemsley, this year’s very worthy winner of the Kent Association for Local Councils - Community Award for Upchurch.
The annual KALC - Community Awards are to acknowledge and give recognition to those who have made a significant contribution to their local community.
Upchurch Parish Council Chairman, Tyrone Ripley presented Ray with his award at this year’s Annual Parish Meeting, held in Upchurch Village Hall on Thursday the 18th of April 2019.
Thank you Ray, and to all this year’s nominees for everything you do for our village.
Nomination
Ray Kemsley moved to Upchurch in the 1960’s as a young police officer to take up residence in the police house in Oak Lane with his wife Brenda. He was the village ‘Bobby’ and for many years provided that essential public protection and service role.
Ray joined the One O’clock Club within the village which still meets each week to this day and has for over 40 years been an integral part of village life. The Club was the heart of the village social scene in the 1970’s and 80’s arranging village dances and social events in the village hall, including the renown New Year’s Eve dances.
Ray has at various times over 50 years been involved with most of the village institutions usually as a Committee member and often as Chair. He was instrumental in delivering the Fireworks Display in the ‘Paddock days’. Ray has chaired the Parents and Friends of Holywell School (PFHS) and was always found flipping burgers at their events, including the village fete.
Ray helped establish the Twinning Committee on which he still undertakes the annual exchange of school children with Ferques and this year arranged for our Parish Wreath to be laid at Ferques’ Memorial Service. He is a member of Upchurch Active Retirement Association and until its recent demise took part in the monthly paper drive for the scouts. He was on the most recent Fete Committee and performs sidesman duties at St Mary’s.
Ray also chaired and published the Upchurch Village Appraisal.
Ray is always there for the residents of the village, often visiting the elderly, taking them to appointments or doing odd jobs to help out and in his spare time Ray runs annual charity events at the Golf Club.
Ray’s greatest contribution to the village and residents, has been his dedicated service as a Governor at the village school. Ray started as a Governor when his daughters were at the school in the late 1970’s, around the time the then new school opened in Holywell Lane. During the past 40 years Ray has served as Chair of Governors several times and has Chaired every Committee at one time or another. Ray drove the project to finance and construct the new Library Wing which the school named the ‘Kemsley’ Wing in his honour. Two generations of children going through our village school, that’s over 1200 children who received the education they enjoyed in the buildings continually updated and equipped because Ray has devoted his life to that purpose.
So on behalf of UPC, and the residents of Upchurch, Thank you Ray for your selfless and tireless contribution to our village.
Upchurch Matters
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