Roy Hickman now lives in Tucson, but 42 years ago he was a mason in the Fulton area. Hickman helped piece together the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury on the Westminster College campus. The Christopher Wren church was built more than 500 years ago in London and dismantled there before being shipped stone by stone to Fulton. It stands now as the centerpiece of the Winston Churchill Memorial.

Hickman said being able to be a part of the re-building process meant a lot to him because Churchill was his childhood hero. When Churchill came to Westminster in 1947 to give his Iron Curtain speech, Hickman's family drove many hours to see the speech. Hickman's excitement over Churchill only increased when Churchill came within a few feet of the young boy.

Many years later, Hickman was working with stone as a mason in Missouri. When Westminster College decided to ship a church over from England, they asked Hickman to help rebuild it in Missouri.

"I was tickled," said Hickman of the opportunity.

Every stone from the Church of St. Mary was numbered and Hickman, along with two other masons, were in charge of putting the puzzle back together. Using cranes, imagination, and manpower, the three recreated the church. Some stones were as thick as 40 inches and weighed about 170 pounds per cubic foot.

Earl O'Rourke was the groundskeeper at the time of the reconstruction and watched the building rise before him. A lot of dirt was moved around in the process, and O'Rourke says because of the close proximity of the chapel to the campus dorms, students complained about too much dust.

As the building came to completion, the masons began planning for a cornerstone. The Church of England though, said no. Instead, a "dedication stone" was placed in the southeast corner of the chapel. The day of the dedication was filled with much excitement and fanfare. Dignitaries came from as far as Korea for the event, and Hickman thought even Queen Elizabeth was expected to be there. He said she fell off a horse shortly before the dedication and was unable to attend.

Still, Hickman and another mason felt more was needed. So they made their own cornerstone.

Hickman won't tell where they placed it, but said no one will ever find it. He's shown the location to his children and grandchildren and promises to leave the location in his will for the college's knowledge. He said his cornerstone is in a small copper box and holds several items including a brand new coin for each of his children.

There are other stories he won't take to the grave with him. Stories like the time he was working high up on the scaffolding and the man beside him had a heart attack. Hickman took off his belt along with his co-workers belt to secure the man onto a plank they lowered down with a crane.

Even though the chapel is more than 500 years old and has survived both WWI and WWII, Hickman worries if the building is not properly maintained, it could deteriorate beyond repair. He hopes a fund might be set up soon specifically for building maintence.

In the meantime, he's returning to his home in Arizona. And while he might live a long way away now, he says the chapel is never far from his mind.