A well-known Dumfries couple, Tom and Janet Henderson, celebrated their golden wedding anniversary yesterday.
Both elders at St Michael’s and South Parish Church, they founded and organise the annual Dumfries Light Up A Life appeal.
The event is now in its 23rd year and has raised tens of thousands of pounds for local causes and towards the upkeep of the historic church, where national poet Robert Burns lies in a mausoleum in the cemetery.
Light Up A Life sees the public sponsor hundreds of bulbs lit up on a Christmas tree in the grounds, overlooking Dumfries, in tribute to loved ones.
Janet (nee Scott) has always used her talent for baking to raise cash for the appeal’s administration costs such as printing and stamps, so they does not eat into the sponsor money.
Her prowess in the kitchen is well known by family, friends and churchgoers and, during the decades, she has used her home-baking skills to help raise cash for many good causes and for many events.
She also published her cherished recipe book which is full of time-honoured sweet and savoury recipes handed own by her mum, who was also called Janet.
Janet’s family are part of Dumfries’ town centre heritage.
For more than a decade, during the 1960s and 70s, her parents ran S and S Bakeries in the High Street, opposite what was the Lyceum Picture House and now Loreburne Shopping Centre.
Her dad, Gavin Scott, was the masterbaker and joined with businessman John Smith to form the popular bakery.
Janet had a Saturday job there and has fond memories of working with her parents and all their customers.
She met Tom when he moved to Dumfries from Edinburgh with auto-electrical company, Lucas.
He had been an elder at West St Giles Church and that now means he has been a Church of Scotland elder for 67 years.
The pair met at St Michael’s – where Janet was christened in 1942 – and were married at St Michael’s at 3pm on March 18, a Thursday, and half-day closing.
Gavin walked Janet down the aisle and baked them an amazing wedding cake.
Tom used to run a youth club at the church which Janet says is their “second home”.
Between them they have five children and numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren.
And Janet said their recipe for 50 happy years of married life is “sharing everything together and having a loving family and friends who mean so much”.
