>Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2006 20:48:54 +1000 >From: "alison" <rodneyalison@optusnet.com.au> >Subject: Silver Tray Mystery >Dear List >I am writing to you hoping someone may be able to help me. I have in my >possession a silver tray >that was my grandmothers. The inscription on the >tray reads : > P.A.F.S No 7 > Presented to Sister E Smith > From the Officers & Sisters > April 28 1915 >I have just discovered that my grandmother was married in the Flemington & >Kensington Pres >Church I believe this church burnt down in 1970's. >The tray may have been given as present as they were married two weeks >later on the 15 May >1915 and after moved to NSW. >Would there have been some sort of organisation that was part of the church >that she may have >belonged to, or could there have some other >organisation, there may be no link to the church at >all, I really have no >idea. >Alison Brown >Gold Coast Qld >rodneyalison@optusnet.com.au Hi Alison, PAFS was a Friendly Society. I'm not precisely sure of the exact name, but it may have been Protestant Alliance Friendly Society. I don't know its precise structure, but there was probably a local branch in Kensington, I would think. Some of these societies still exist, but I don't know about that one - it might possibly have been taken over in comparatively recent times (like forty years ago) by another organisation, such as IOOF or IOR or AOF - do these mean anything? :-) Independent Order of Oddfellows, Independent Order of Rechabites and Ancient Order of Foresters, and others of course. They all had the same aim of providing sickness and unemployment benefits for members, but they also had a pretty active social side to the organisation. I would think there would have been a local Kensington Branch of PAFS. http://www.australianunity.com.au/au/info/companyhistory.asp This will give you a bit of an idea of what they were all about. Best wishes, Lenore Frost Essendon, Vic

On Thu, 16 Mar 2006 10:37:10 +1100, Lenore Frost wrote: >Some of these societies still exist, but I don't know about >that one - it might possibly have been taken over in comparatively recent >times (like forty years ago) by another organisation, PAFS in Victoria merged with the Over50s Friendly Society. Tom