The Revd G. Alex Potts: 1942-2025
Christianity, family, cricket, India and the military are the main themes running through Alex’s life
Alex Potts, or more formally, George Alexander Potts, was born on 31 May 1942 at Agram Military Hospital, Bangalore (now Bengaluru), South India. He was the youngest of seven children and his was the fourth generation to be born in India, dating back to Victorian times.
Alex’s first contact with Christianity was when he was christened at Holy Trinity Church, Bangalore, and then when he attended Ebenezer Baptist Church Sunday School, run by a Canadian group. He was educated in Bangalore at Bishop Cotton Schools, before completing his education at Baldwin Boys’ High School. He kept in touch with a number of school friends from those days, as many came to the UK in those post WW2 days. By this time he had become fanatical about the sport of cricket, which lasted the rest of his life.
In 1959, at the age of 17, he sailed on his own from Bombay to Tilbury, London, where he soon joined the RAF as a pay clerk. Posted to RAF Kai Tak, Hong Kong, he joined the Youth Fellowship at Kowloon Union Church where the seeds of his faith appeared, guided by the minister the Revd Norman Kemp. But he always claimed that the highlight of his time in Hong Kong was playing cricket for the Governor General’s Cricket Team against a touring Jim Swanton XI. Records show that he was ‘caught Ramadhin, bowled Sobers, for 10’.
Back in UK, he was posted to Gloucester. He attended Brunswick Road Baptist Church where his faith developed and crystalised, and where he was baptised by the Revd Philip Withers, who became a lifelong friend and mentor. He left the RAF when he felt called to train as a Baptist minister, at Bristol Baptist College. In 1967, as part of a Student pastor scheme, he went to Wednesbury Baptist Church where he met Janice, who was home for the summer from her college. They were married in the same church and on the same spot they had met a year earlier.
1969 saw Alex being ordained back at Gloucester, and he was called to be the minister of Perry Beeches Baptist Church, Birmingham. He spent three and a half years there as a pastor, honing his pastoral skills and building relationships which lasted the rest of his life. In 1973 Alex was called to be the minister of Salisbury Road Baptist Church, Plymouth, Devon, where he and Janice spent almost eight years. His time there saw experiments with worship services, women’s ministry, youth work with the Girls’ and Boys’ Brigade companies (including memorable annual camps), hosting youth groups and bands, UK/USA Exchange Mission. There was involvement with the other Baptist churches, mentoring (the Revd Barrie Smith), the Baptist Association, Free Churches, the citywide Mission for Life, as well as work with all denominations in this historic city. And, while in Plymouth, Alex and Janice adopted their beloved daughter Gemma.
A call to be a Chaplain in the Royal Army Chaplains’ Department in 1980 came about while he was working with a local youngster interested in joining the army. After training at Sandhurst, his first posting was at Nienburg, West Germany. So, with Janice and daughter Gemma, he spent many years living in both Germany and UK. Nienburg was followed by Colerne (near Bath), Guetersloh (West Germany), and Harrogate then Catterick (Yorkshire). While there, he went with the United Nations to the former Yugoslavia during its troubled break-up.
From Catterick he was posted to Hohne (Germany), which was the site of the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen. Alex also made two extended visits to Northern Ireland before his last posting to Bramcote (Nuneaton), Warwickshire. Retiring from the Army in 1997 he accepted the post of Community Chaplain with the Army, still at the barracks at Bramcote, before finally retiring in 2009.
There are memories of baptisms (in a hydrotherapy pool), dedications, seder services, church walks, preaching in other countries (with an interpreter), battlefield services, Remembrance Services (including one in Belgrade), royal visits, and working with Christians of all denominations and people of all faiths and none. Throughout all these years he felt fulfilled in his calling to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to all.
Cricket had been a constant love of Alex’, from playing in India, Hong Kong, Wednesbury, Plymouth and Germany, to supporting Leicester County Cricket Club and attending his beloved Cricket Statisticians’ meetings. His house is still a veritable shrine to cricket. Everyone knew what to buy Alex for his birthday: Wisden!!
Now the family settled in Nuneaton. Grandchildren Kacey and Lailla came along. But so did ill health.Amongst other conditions (Alex loved giving a personal ‘organ recital’!) he had eyesight problems, with Retinitis Pigmentosa (tunnel vision), and had to give up driving and the freedom it gives. This was a source of irritation and annoyance for him as his eyesight failed. He joined, and got a lot of help from, Blind Veterans UK (a military charity). He was able to have residential training and to use equipment and software which BVUK provided, together with the friendship and support of their local groups.
Alex had had a triple heart bypass operation and pacemakers. As he was moving house from Nuneaton to Four Oaks, Birmingham, with Janice, Kacey and Lailla, he collapsed and was rushed into Walsgrave Hospital, Coventry. There, and later in Four Oaks, thanks to the persistence and care of doctors and heart nurses in the NHS, together with the friendship and support of Four Oaks Baptist Church, he was given another ten years of retirement with his family. Birmingham Hospice has been a huge support to Alex for a number of years, with their love and care. In the end this enabled him to be at home when he died, peacefully.
He couldn’t have chosen a better life for himself, serving the Lord he loved.
Janice Potts