William Rodney Freeman
East 1948-54
Bill was born on 1 July 1935 in Ipswich, Suffolk. He was evacuated to Gloucestershire during the war, then sent to The Leys where he thrived.
Bill loved his years at The Leys where he was a prefect, played rugby, cricket and rowed, but always kept very quiet from his children the fact that he had failed all of his A levels and had to do an extra year at school to re-take them!
In 1954 he started two years’ National Service in the Royal Signals, training at Catterick and Aldershot and achieving the rank of 2nd Lieutenant followed by a posting in Kenya.
In 1956 he started university at Christ’s College, Cambridge, where he studied Economics and Law. Here he organised the Poppy Day collections, raising a record £10,000 in 1959. After his degree he trained for three years as a Chartered Accountant in London. He only worked for two companies through his working life. He was Finance Director at Bull Motors in Ipswich and then with The Dairy Trade Federation, in London for 26 years.
He met Jenifer in October 1959, and they married in October 1962. Bill and Jenifer had 4 children – Peter, Catherine, Crispin and Simon – and were married for 62 years before his death in January 2025. Crispin and Simon followed in Bill’s footsteps, attending The Leys 1979-84 and 1983-88 respectively, both in Fen House.
In 1996, after retiring, Bill was ordained as a priest and spent 10 years working as a non-stipendiary assistant curate where his ministry was greatly appreciated throughout the parishes he served.
He loved village life, and was a key player in many of the village organisations throughout the 60 years he lived there. He used his knowledge of finance to research, apply for and secure in excess of £200,000 in grants for the church, village hall and other projects.
He loved exercise and fresh air and embarked on month-long walks across European countries, having spent two years training, planning each route and learning the language of each country he was visiting.
His travels lead to the discovery that he could paint, and encouraged by his wife, Jenny, Bill became a prolific artist. He used these skills and his accumulated knowledge and talent to raise funds for many different charities.
During his retirement he held plant sales in the village which raised over £50,000. He converted his favourite paintings into greetings cards, which are still sold across Suffolk, and which have raised, to date, over £50,000. All money raised from these activities has been split between his favourite charities: his local church and Hope and Homes for Children – a charity set up by another Old Leysian, which he was particularly struck by and chose to support for the rest of his life.
He was a kind, gentle, intelligent and very generous man, and is truly missed by his family and local community.
Words by Catherine Seel, Bill’s daughter