Local Face: Sylvia Simpkin
Sylvia Simpkin was born at home in Aylesbury Road, Wendover, delivered by Dr Orme. Because her father, Charles, a Civilian Aircraft Instructor worked at RAF Halton she and her sister were able to attend Halton School.
Sylvia’s childhood was very happy even though it spanned the war years. She vividly remembers air raid drill in the shelters on the games field at Halton School but when she went to Aylesbury Grammar School they merely sheltered under desks. One night a Molatoff Cocktail was dropped on Coombe Hill resulting in five large craters. Sylvia’s father continued to instruct at Halton and also became an Air Raid warden so the war was exciting, rather than frightening to this Schoolgirl. Halton RAF Hospital was home to injured service personnel, with patients wearing bizarre uniforms of bright blue suits, white shirts and red ties when they went out. Overseas recruits trained as apprentices at Halton including Poles and southern Rhodesians but real war seemed somewhat remote.
As a teenager (before the word was invented), Sylvia enjoyed singing in the Grammar School Mixed voice and Girls’ Choirs under Mr. Charles Pope and started to learn to play the violin. Her father was an organist at Wendover Baptist Church in South Street and music has played a very important part in her life. At 15, the earliest one was able to, Sylvia joined Wendover WI so that she could join the choir, the rehearsals for which were held at her home and where the film star Robert Donat’s wife was for some time the pianist. At 16, Sylvia played the Dormouse in a long- running production of Alice in Wonderland involving many Wendover people.
Sylvia excelled at practical subjects such as art and science and matriculating from Aylesbury Grammar in 1948, starting work in the laboratory of Cow and Gate & Dominion Dairies in Aylesbury. From 1949 to 1952, Sylvia cycled 14 miles a day to the Forest Products Research Laboratories in Princes Risborough, when she acquired a motorbike! Working in Entomology she became an established Assistant Scientific Civil servant, leaving in 1954.
Meanwhile sister Joyce had married and one day at Joyce’s house Sylvia met Bernard Levitt, an Aircraft Apprentice. Nearly all Sylvia’s friends married ex-Halton Apprentices. Bernard and Sylvia were married in 1953 at Wendover Baptist Church by which time Bernard was stationed in RAF St Athan, South Wales. In July 1954 Bernard was posted to Singapore but Sylvia was not able to join him until October by which time she had had her appendix out rather dramatically! They celebrated their first wedding anniversary with four friends also celebrating their first anniversaries at Raffles Hotel. In 1956 Steven was ~ born in Changi RAF Hospital, Singapore. The following year they returned to England after a six week journey on a troop-ship and were posted to RAF Topcliffe in Yorkshire where Sylvia became the Treasurer of one of the few service WI’S and Simon was born at Catterick Army Hospital in 1958. In December 1959 they moved to RAF Cranwell and whilst there came to Wendover on leave and noticed The Cedars being built. They moved into a brand new house in August 1961 and Sylvia was there alone with the two boys until Bernard was posted to RAF Benson for his final 6 months service. Steven started at Halton School September 1961 and Simon in 1963. Austin was born at home in 1964.
Back in her home village again, Sylvia rejoined the WI even though the choir no longer existed and by about 1965 she had joined Wendover Choral Society, of which she is still a member. While in Singapore, Sylvia had developed cake-decorating skills. In 1964 she made the WI birthday cake and has been invited to do so again so many times including the 36th, 40th, 60th and most recently for the 70th anniversary of the Wendover Afternoon WI which was celebrated in July this year. Her former neighbour Ann Sear, who had been an Electricity Board demonstrator, encouraged a very shy and nervous Sylvia to help with her demonstrations to WI’S and eventually persuaded her to do demonstrations herself. Sylvia won several prizes for cooking and sewing at County WI events and was asked on two occasions to provide the decorated cake in the Bucks Federation’s exhibit at the Royal Dairy Show at Olympia and Bucks came third on one of those occasions.
In May this year, Sylvia completed 27 years and continues voluntary driving for the Two Shires Ambulance car service transporting patients from a large surrounding area to the Chiropody Clinic at Wendover Health Centre. She is also a driver for the Friends of Wendover Health Centre. Many of the patients remember Sylvia as a little girl!
Sylvia, one time councillor of Wendover Free Church and still an active member, believes that her many creative talents are a gift from God to use for the benefit of others.
Sylvia still finds time to fit in other activities. At school she had always enjoyed French and took it up again several years ago through Aylesbury U3A leading to holidays with Bernard in Switzerland and France. She is studying computing and painting with U3A. These skills are particularly useful because she does the office work and book keeping for Bernard’s Driving School (The Cedars).