“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another,” said the great Victorian novelist and humanist Charles Dickens (1812 – 1870).

Dickens fans from around the world gathered at the author’s grave in Poets’ Corner, Westminster Abbey in London in June for the 144th annual wreath-laying commemoration for the man whose writings inspired social reforms for children, the poor and disadvantaged.

Sandra Spencer, right, of Denton led this year’s tribute. A principal lecturer of English and director of the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, Spencer has been studying and sharing scholarship on Dickens as a long-standing member of the Dickens Fellowship, the event sponsor, founded in 1902. She helped found the Fellowship’s Denton branch in 1988 and currently serves as its president.

With its annual conference, monthly lectures, journal publication and network of scholars, the Fellowship has enriched Spencer’s appreciation of Dickens and his writings, she said. And the opportunity to celebrate the writer in the historical Poet’s Corner has been a capstone experience of this affiliation.

“Poet’s Corner never ceases to bring a lump to my throat for thinking about the kinds of people who have been honored here,” said Spencer.

Geoffrey Chaucer, Rudyard Kipling, Thomas Hardy and the composer George Frideric Handel are among the luminaries buried alongside Dickens in the South Transept of the Abbey beneath Gothic arches and medieval carvings of angels.

Following a traditional Evensong service, the Westminster crowd of approximately 100 people watched in silence as Spencer laid a wreath on the grey slate slab of Dickens’ tomb. Two students from Gad’s Hill School, the former home of Dickens, placed the second wreath, and the Rev. Robert Reiss, canon of Westminster, offered words of welcome.

In her opening address Spencer spoke about Dickens’ heritage as being more than great literature and as a legacy of social justice.

“Dickens had a faith in humankind that good could, and would, prevail,” she said. “His friends urged him to join Parliament, but Dickens thought he would be of greater service to society as an author. And he was right. His portrayal of orphans, ‘fallen’ women, criminals, the sick and the poor in novels such as Oliver Twist catalyzed change. Many institutions throughout England today came about because of the reforms he helped implement, from courts and prisons to hospitals, schools and playgrounds.”

Mark Dickens, the great-great grandson of Charles Dickens, was among those in the audience. Spencer said he expressed thanks to her after the ceremony, saying that her portrait of Charles Dickens was exactly as he would want society to remember him. 

In attendance from UNT were Gloria Cox, dean of the Honors College, Rafael Major, Honors College lecturer, Diana Elrod, director of theMcNair Scholars Program, Tracy Everbach,associate professor in the Mayborn School of Journalism, and 18 Honors College Study Abroad students.

(From left, Paul Graham, honorable secretary of the London Dickens Fellowship, Mark Dickens (great-great grandson of Charles Dickens), Sandra Spencer and Gloria Cox at the 144th wreath-laying commemoration of Charles Dickens at Westminster Abbey in London.)

“It is no small thing to be asked to speak at the Abbey,” said Cox. “For this event, Prince Charlesspoke two years ago. It was thrilling to be there and see our own Sandi Spencer standing with the dean of the cathedral. Sandi delivered her remarks beautifully, and from memory. We were all filled with pride to share such a wonderful moment.”

The laying of Dickens’ wreath was a highlight event for the students, all women, who joined Spencer in London for a three-week itinerary centered on British literature and global perspectives, with classes team taught by Spencer and Major at the University of London and day trips to notable sites such as Charles Dickens’ Museum (formerly the writer’s home), Keats House, Jane Austen’s House Museum, the British Library and Shakespeare’s Globe Theater.

“I could not have been more blessed to have Dr. Spencer as my professor,” said Ashley Utrup, a junior from Lewisville studying speech language pathology. “While the things I experienced and saw in London were astonishing on their own, the trip wouldn't have been nearly as rewarding without her. She was a constant source of understanding, love and knowledge over the course of the three weeks.”

The trip was additionally memorable for students when they met with Everbach’s journalism students from the Mayborn’s London summer abroad program in a serendipitous rendezvous arranged between Everbach and Spencer. The faculty members and classmates shared summer experiences over good food and conversation at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, a historic pub frequented by Dickens and in operation since 1538

“Meeting up with another group of UNT students in London was truly a surprise,” said McKalah Robinson, a sophomore in International Studies. “I got to talk with friends I have already met and make new friends as well. It was a great time, and one of the highlights of my trip. Overall I learned so much from this program and look forward to taking other courses with Dr. Spencer.”

— Julie West, University Relations, Communications and Marketing

Below, Two wreaths lay at on the tomb of novelist Charles Dickens at the 144th annual commemmoration of his death at Westminster Abbey in London. (Photos by Ashley Utrup)