Alan Chapman was a civil engineer who aimed to build bridges of understanding between people of different cultures and backgrounds.
He trained in engineering at Battersea Polytechnic and in 1952 was awarded a BSc(Engineering) from the University of London. He became an Associate of the Institute of Civil Engineers. He then worked for British Railways, keeping up the repair of its bridges.
He was born in South London on 16th March 1927 where his parents, Gwyneth and Arthur Chapman, shared a large house with others in Croydon. He was educated at Whitgift School.
Their home was a centre for the work of Moral Re-Armament (MRA) after the Second World War. They put the principles of MRA into practice, including taking daily time for silent reflection, and aiming to live by absolute moral standards. Alan grew up with that background and remained involved with MRA (now renamed Initiatives of Change, IofC) throughout his life.
A well as being a bridgebuilder by profession, he also believed in building bridges of understanding between people. In the 1970s relations between Britain and Egypt needed rebuilding. Inspired by the ideas of Moral Re-Armament, a programme of student exchange visits was started. Alan lent his newly acquired people carrier to help take a visiting group of 15 Egyptian student leaders around Britain.. Over the next years he himself drove the vehicle for a succession of Egyptian, Jordanian, Palestinian and Sudanese students. He played a quiet and vital role in restoring trust, rooted in a Christian conviction that Britain has a calling to serve countries we once ruled.
Alan was always generous with his money and for 21 years was a trustee of the Barnabas Charitable Trust, which supports people who give their whole time to MRA/IofC without a fixed salary.
He was a keen sailor and had a great interest in astronomy.
He met and married Sheila Reville in 1981. They moved to live in Hove where he became a stalwart of the south coast group of friends who met to live out and advance the principles of IofC. After Sheila died in 2009 he continued to live in Hove. In 2018 at the age of 91 he married Odette Dang, originally from South Vietnam. They visited IofC teams in India and France. He died of pneumonia in Hove on 6th August, aged 95.
He had no children and is survived by Odette.
An unassuming man he quietly lived his Christian faith and brought many people in touch with the work of MRA/IofC.
