Daphne Ewings -  A sister of Ken Beaton ? married the Rev. Beecher  who was appointed Bishop in Nairobi and the first occupant of a newly built residence built of local grey stone and in the style of a Cotswold manor house. It stood in the middle of a large plot of vacant land on 'The Hill' and was given the name 'Bishopsbourne'. The EA Standard ran a feature article on the new Bishop and his residence and among other observations commented that "... the Bishop's wife is an enthusiastic gardener." I lived on 'The Hill' and saw the house built; I did not however see any marked evidence of any gardening having been done. Indeed at the time of the newspaper article the place appeared to be nothing more than scrub land with a large, rather splendid, house standing in the middle of it. Every time I passed it, I was constrained to remark "... and the Bishop's wife is an enthusiastic gardener."

Rhodesia - went to Kenya in 1927 as an assistant master in the Alliance High School, Kikuyu and three years later joined the Kenya staff of the Church Missionary Society. He became Archdeacon and a Canon of Mombasa in 1945, and was a non-official member of the Legislative Council of Kenya representing African interests from 1943 to 1947, when he was appointed a member of the Executive Council of the Colony. He was consecrated Assistant Bishop of Mombasa in 1950 and Bishop three years later. He is a co-author of a Kikuyu-English dictionary and has translated parts of the Old Testament into Kikuyu.

Limuru cemetery - Leonard James Beecher, 1906 - 1987, Archbishop of East Africa (1960-1970)

Telegraph - 18/12/1987 - Obituary - The Most Reverend Leonard Beecher the former Archbishop of East Africa who has died in Nairobi aged 81, played an important part in preparing the way for Kenyan independence and in securing reconciliation after the violence and pain of the Mau Mau era.

Beecher was essentially a man of peace. For 60 years he lived in Kenya where he was trusted by both the black and white communities, and within the nation and worldwide Anglican church he was regarded as a statesman of the highest calibre. Before Independence he served on the Legislative Council of Kenya, representing African interests and from 1947-1952 was a member of the Executive Council.

Leonard James Beecher was born in South London in 1906 and educated at St Olave's Grammar School and Imperial College London before going to Kenya to join the teaching staff of Alliance High School where he remained until his ordination in 1930.

For the next 15 years he held a number of different missionary appointments having a particular interest in theological literature and in 1942 became editor of the Kenyan Church Review. He was also involved in the compilation of an English Kikuyu dictionary and in the translation of the Bible into Kikuyu.

In 1945 he was appointed Archdeacon of Mombasa by which time he was already involved in the developing political life of the colony. In 1953 when he became Bishop of Mombasa the diocese comprised almost the whole of Kenya. Beecher quickly became aware that the political independence of the nation had to be accompanied by the independence of the church.

The huge diocese was divided, several new bishoprics were established and in 1960 Beecher became first Archbishop of the newly created Province of East Africa changing his own diocesan jurisdiction to Nairobi in 1964.

By any standard Beecher's achievement was remarkable and his many friends and admirers were delighted when he was appointed CMG in 1961 followed by the award of a Lambeth Doctorate of Divinity a year later. On his retirement he became Archbishop Emeritus.

His wife the former Gladys Leakey, a canon's daughter whom he married in 1930, died in 1982, and he is survived by 2 sons and a daughter.

Gazette 5 Nov 1982 wife's probate