Tributes to John Morgan-Owen
Part of John's obituary describes his character:
Famed for his humour and with stories abounding of his high jinx, John Morgan Owen was, in fact, totally dependable and honourable and could be relied upon in every situation. True, he was always laughing; nothing was serious except his God, Queen, country and family. In his younger days he met the spectre of an imminent financial crisis following the crash in the value of shares head on and without complaint to anyone. That he survived and rose handsomely above what he construed as little more than a local glitch was of no surprise to his family.He had a wonderful singing voice, an encyclopaedic knowledge of hymns and claimed to know every rugby song ever written. All life was fun. He said:
There is not one day I have not enjoyed.
John is survived by his wife whom he married on Sunday, 5 October 1958 at St. John the Baptist Church, Chester, and by his son, Timothy, an artist and designer, who designed a hatchment for his late father; see this report of its dedication:
The Bishop of Ludlow, John Saxbee stepped over the border into Wales on Sunday, July 29, 2001, to dedicate a hatchment in the tiny church of St Mary the Virgin in Snead. The village lies just inside Powys, but is part of the Wentnor group of parishes in the Diocese of Hereford. …. The artist Tim Morgan-Owen who lives in Derbyshire painted the Snead hatchment in memory of his father John Morgan-Owen, who for many years was leader of Derbyshire County Council. It has been placed in Snead Church where the family worshipped until the 1920s and where there are graves and other memorials of the Morgan-Owen family. In earlier times, ancestors of the Morgan-Owens were Welsh princes and they have lived in Mid-Wales and in the parish of Snead for centuries. Legend has it that there is a secret tunnel under the river Camlad, the only river to rise in England and flow into Wales. The tunnel is said to run from Owlbury, the house where the Morgan-Owens lived to below Snead Church pulpit! The dedication service was attended by a large congregation, including the High Sheriff of Powys and his wife. Also present were the Mayor of Bishop's Castle, relatives and friends of the Morgan-Owen family, representatives of political and civic life of Derbyshire, and parishioners of the Wentnor Group of parishes.