The Wolverhampton Deaf community lose a landmark, and the Deaf Church moves on

Following the celebration of the St Saviour’s Acton building in Sept, I’ve been sent notification of a further Deaf church on the move.

The blog post covering this (which also contains a couple of pictures), states that…

As many of you will already know, the Deaf centre at Rupert Street, Wolverhampton is in the process of being sold. We expect that the sale will be completed before the end of the year, so the Deaf Church community in Wolverhampton will have to find a new home.

It is a sad time to be leaving a building where we have so many memories. But it is also a time to reflect and thank God for all the joys and blessings the Deaf community has shared in this place.We think particularly of the devoted service of Mrs Violet Adams and her late husband Wilfred to the Deaf Church in Wolverhampton.

To mark the closure of the Rupert Street Centre we are holding a special service of thanksgiving on Sunday 9th November at 3pm. The service will be led by our Chaplain, Revd. Dr. Leonie Wheeler. Mr John Hay from the BDA will speak about the history of the Deaf community in Wolverhampton. After the service there will be refreshments and a special screening of some old films from the BDA film archive. The film archive has material dating back to the 1930s and includes footage of trips, rallies and other community events. You might even see someone you recognise! It should be a wonderful afternoon of celebration together and everyone is most welcome to join us.

Another case of a Deaf centre closing, and the church meeting there moving on. In the light of our London experience, it makes me wonder what measures are being put in place to capture the Rupert Street Centre, and to chart it as one of the Deaf communities (rapidly disappearing) landmarks.