My uncle Howel Jones, who has died aged 96, was a teacher dedicated to the Methodist church, the application of his faith to local government and to young people, including his own large family, to whom he also imparted unwavering devotion to Liverpool FC.
He was born in Childwall, a suburb of Liverpool, to Welsh-speaking parents, Dilys (nee Jones) and Eames Jones, who were both office clerks. Howel, along with his brother, Glyn, and sister, Gwenda, was taken every Sunday to a Welsh chapel, where he did not understand a word. This might have put a child off religion for ever, but instead, Christianity became the bedrock of Howel’s life. In 1939 the family became founder members of Childwall Valley Methodist church, where, aged 16, Howel felt called to be a local preacher.
He had left the Holt grammar school the year before. After working in banking, doing national service and the early death of his father, Howel felt that life had more to offer, and in 1951 he enrolled for teacher training at Westminster College, London. On qualifying he returned to Liverpool to work as a teacher at Dovedale primary school.
He met Maxine Headey, my father’s sister and also a teacher, at church, and they married in 1956. The two of them felt the call to missionary work and three years later, now with a baby daughter, left for Meru in Kenya where their two sons were born. Howel, with just six years’ teaching experience, became the district supervisor of schools.
They returned in 1963 to Britain, where Howel taught at St Thomas’ C of E primary school in Kendal, Cumbria, and they had their fourth child. Four years later, they moved to Clitheroe, for Howel to take up the position of deputy head of St James’ primary school. From 1971-73 he was head of Daisyfield primary school in Blackburn, and then head of the brand new Brookside primary school, Clitheroe, until 1983.
Retirement enabled Howel to devote himself to local politics, serving as a Liberal Democrat councillor for 21 years from 1982, for Clitheroe town and the Ribble Valley Borough. He was also leader of the local Liberal Democrats for 17 years, was mayor of Clitheroe (1984-86 and 1993-95) and of Ribble Valley (1990-91), while continuing to serve the Methodist church locally and nationally.
The year 1987 brought Howel a double tragedy, with both Glyn and Maxine dying within a few weeks of each other. The following year Howel visited Glyn’s widow, Beverley, in Wellington, New Zealand, and they eventually married, in 1992, returning to live in Clitheroe.
He became honorary alderman of the Ribble Valley council in 2003 and consort to Bev when she was mayor of Ribble Valley (2009-10).
Aged about 12, I remember Howel advising me to “read the Manchester Guardian”, a habit I have kept up throughout my life.
Howel is survived by Bev, his children, Helen, Richard, Mark and Hilary, Bev’s children, Catherine and Alister, 17 grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren and Gwenda.
