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SUMMARY:Celebration: 10th anniversary of the Stretton Windows - historical
  talk and celebration event
DTSTART:20251207T190000Z
DTEND:20251207T203000Z
DTSTAMP:20260701T213847Z
UID:12493642025-12-07 19:00:00+00:00achurchnearyou
CATEGORIES:
DESCRIPTION:St John the Baptist Church Kidderminster is marking the tenth 
 anniversary of the installation of its magnificent stained-glass Stretton 
 windows.\n\nIn 2015\, three modern stained-glass windows were installed in
  the church in memory of the Stretton family\, whose impact and legacy liv
 es on in Kidderminster.\n\nLionel Stretton has an important place in medic
 al history having pioneered the use of Tincture of Iodine for sterilising 
 the skin in surgery. This had far-reaching benefits worldwide and undoubte
 dly saved many lives when compared with previous practices.  Iodine is sti
 ll used today and Lionel’s importance in medical history has been likene
 d to that of Joseph Lister.  Lionel\, his father Samuel\, and son John pro
 vided three generations of surgeons managing and delivering medical servic
 es in Kidderminster between 1856 and 1952.\n\nIn honour of the anniversary
 \, there will be a special event at St John’s Church on Sunday 7th Decem
 ber 2025 at 7pm.  Chris Stretton is the grandson of John and presents this
  talk on the lives of the three surgeons: Kidderminster’s Medical Dynast
 y. His uncle\, Antony Stretton (Stretton’s Nurseries)\, bequeathed money
  to fund the stained-glass windows and establish a Charity to provide burs
 aries for local medical students.\n\nPart one of the talk details the impo
 rtance of Lionel’s work and the two books that have been published promo
 ting this\, one being Lionel’s memoirs and the other a record of the thr
 ee surgeons’ work. It also includes details on the informative website\,
  design and installation of the stained-glass windows and historical recor
 ds from the hospital\, found in the Worcestershire Archive at The Hive.\n\
 nPart two tells the individual life stories of the three doctors\, illustr
 ated with period photographs and material collected by the family.  Part t
 hree closes the talk with details of the Charity and media initiatives tha
 t promise to make the whole story much more widely known.\n\nThe evening w
 ill include Chris’ talk\, a blessing and rededication of the windows\, a
 nd refreshments.  \n\nTeam Vicar\, Laura Betson\, said: “Visitors to St 
 John’s always comment on the beauty of the Stretton windows\, particular
 ly when the sunlight shines through\, transforming the inside of the churc
 h.  We are honoured to have this memorial to three remarkable members of t
 he Stretton family\, and encourage Kidderminster residents to come and cel
 ebrate the windows and discover more about the life and legacy of these lo
 cal doctors.”\n\nAll are welcome to attend the celebration event on Sund
 ay 7th December at 7pm.  It is free of charge (donations welcome).  All th
 ose attending will also receive a special booklet with information about t
 he windows and their significance\, from the dedication service ten years 
 ago.\n\nFor further information please contact Team Vicar Revd Laura Betso
 n\, St John’s Church\, Bewdley Road\, Kidderminster\, DY116RL\, teamvica
 r.kwtm@gmail.com
GEO:-2.2614350773849434;52.386519748502124
LOCATION:St John the Baptist
URL:https://www.achurchnearyou.com/church/18774/service-and-events/events/
 1249364/
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