From his own written memories dated 2011:
We lived in Sternfield from 1950-1959. The Trotmans were: my father the parson, my mother Dorothy, my brother Mike (younger than me by 4 years) and our dog, Pip and until her death our granny. We all lived in Sternfield Rectory (now called Hill House) opposite Sternfield Church gates. I was 13 when we came to Sternfield and 23 when my parents retired to Aldeburgh. Mike and I were at boarding school and then joined the Royal Navy and Army respectively.
My parents always impressed on us that Benhall & Sternfield were two separate villages but one parish. My father at first tried to have alternating church services but quickly gave up the unequal struggle and each church was treated separately and equally within the parish.
My father’s church wardens at Benhall church were Don Sampson and Major Guy Pedder who had lost a leg in WWI and whose wife’s name was Lettuce. Mike and I could never say her name without giggling.
Benhall had its own shop and Post Office, Sternfield was physically much as it is today and had neither shop nor Post Office. But the men of both villages were members of the Benhall Hut (now Benhall Club) and the children of both villages went to Benhall School where the Headmaster was Mr. Leverett. He retired while we were there and his successor was young Mr. Terry Lavis.
My mother used to send a birthday card to all the school children and we had a variety of rather rowdy children’s parties in our garden.
Obviously, I knew Sternfield better than Benhall. My father’s churchwardens at Sternfield were Clem Daniel and Humphrey Scrimgeour. In fact, my father used to boast that the first girl he married was Janie Scrimgeour!
There were three notable ladies in the choir, Elsie Baldry, Julia Smith and Nellie Cracknell and my father called them the ‘Sternfield songbirds’. Julia Smith was a stalwart member of my father’s flock and she used to apply the 3-barley sugar test which was: 1. Unwrap one boiled sweet at the start of the sermon.2. Unwrap a second one after five minutes and 3. Unwrap a third one at ten minutes with an obvious exaggerated throat-clearing to denote she’d had enough!
I also remember my father telling us how as he stood in front of the altar at Benhall church waiting to start a service when Ted Ayden arrived on his bike, late as usual. Ted hurried up the path and in preparation for singing the hymns he took out a tin of Dentafix and sprinkled the powder on his false teeth which he removed from his pocket, as if he was sprinkling salt onto fish and chips.
Sir Arthur Penn was one of the Queen Mother’s favourite courtiers and periodically she would come and spend a few days at Sternfield House with the Penns. On one such occasion my brother and I were asked to help and hand out peanuts & crisps.
We arrived early to be met by Sir Arthur and Her Majesty in the hall. Sir Arthur said, ”You’re much too early boys,” and Her Majesty said, “Don’t worry Arthur, I’ll take the boys round your lovely garden until you’re ready,” which she did!
I will end my memories with one at evensong in Sternfield one November when it was very cold. The lights kept flickering as the Penns (at Sternfield House) were having some major work done involving a new transformer. Finally, the lights went out completely and my father preached by candlelight and then said that the final hymn would be one we would all know even in the dark. He had forgotten that the organ was pumped by electric power, a fact that Violet Newson shouted out to him across the Chancel!
At that moment the lights came back on and we all sung lustily. As Nellie Cracknell said goodnight to my father afterwards, she said with conviction, “Rector, I reckon you must have worked a miracle!”
