This page shows first a chronology of some notable events in the life of the church family in 2007.
Chronology
22 Dec Wedding of Carol Gillott and Jay Bristow
at Christ Church URC, Leatherhead: a Churches Together
wedding!
24 Nov Inaugural Concert for our restored Thomas
Parker Organ
20 Nov The
Queen's Diamond Anniversary
12 Oct Congratulations to Ven Arthur Siddall and
Sue. Arthur, who is Archdeacon of Switzerland, Italy and Malta in the
Anglican Diocese of Europe, has been appointed Chaplain of St John the
Evangelist, Montreux-Territet.
2 Oct Institution and induction of Carol
Coslett as Rector of the new
United Benefice of Betchworth and Buckland
October - welcome to Mike
Stewart, Non Stipendiary
Assistant Curate
14 Sep Funeral of Rene
Vokes
13 Sep Funeral of Marion
Moore
5 Sep Funeral of Joan
Ralph
19 Aug Parish Calendar now has links to the Communion Readings
1 July Ordination of Mary Cruddas at Guildford
Cathedral
30 June Marriage of Rev David Ireland, Parish Priest
at Mickleham, & Mrs Angela Parfitt
13 June - Summer Family Newsletter on-line
9 June - death of Mary
Hamilton following a car
accident
3 June celebration of a double Golden
Wedding - the Lewises and the
Weetmans
1 June Thanksgiving service for the life of Jill
Leach
9 May Funeral of John
Forehead
20 March Former Assistant Priest Rev Juliette Hulme
is interviewed on BBC Woman's Hour. Juliette, who served as an Army
Chaplain in Iraq, is Chaplain at Wells Cathedral School - hear via http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/listenagain/2007_12_tue.shtml
21 Jan Those qualifying to be on the new Parish
Electoral Roll were invited to make use of the application
form link to print off the form. Completed forms must be
received no later than 14th
March via the Parish Office or the Blue Box in
the Parish Church. This year everyone has to apply afresh. [application
form link has been removed]
Autumn Market 2007 - from the December 2007 magazine
What a fantastic result for this year's Autumn Market. We took a little over £5000, which is slightly up on last year, more than 2005 and almost the same as in 2004. This is not a final figure as some money is still to come in from advertisers, always slow to pay up! Who can believe that the Jewellery stall took nearly £1000, or Craft well over £600!
Earlier in the week before the market, we think there will never be enough items, and by the Friday evening we start to panic that, not only will there not be sufficient to put on the tables, but that no-one will come! Thank goodness our fears are always totally unfounded, and the queue that forms by about 9.30 on the morning suggests many have been looking forward to it.
This year there were a few slight changes. Veronica Kay, and all her helpers, felt that they should now call time to standing behind the China and Glass stall; Howard and Sue Beales kindly offered to take over. I am not too sure that they fully realised what they had taken on, but they arrived hotfoot from the pyramids on the Saturday morning and had everything organised in no time. Also, Eric and Pat Weetman, and Mike and Mollie Lewis, who have done sterling work over the years behind the bottle tombola, decided to put up their feet.
I would like to say a very big thank you to all of them for the many, many hours that they have spent raising quite a substantial sum over the years.
We had a new stall with us this year. The Friends of Triel agreed to come and promote our twinned town in France, and a very colourful addition they made. We hope that they feel it worthwhile to come again. It was good to see such great photos in the Leatherhead Advertiser, excellent publicity and, this time, quite unasked for.
It is impossible to give individual thanks, because it would fill the magazine, but the whole day is so successful as a team of over fifty people run it. That may sound unwieldy but from the moment we have our meeting in June the whole thing seems to roll forward. So I will just say another great big thank you to ALL the stall holders, and those who help them, to ALL the choir who always work so hard in the kitchen, to ALL those on the entry desk and in the office collecting and counting the money, and to ALL who are involved in putting up our banners, flyers and posters.
I must mention three people by name. A very special thank you to Linda Hauxwell for all she does to make the programme so successful and so profitable. To Catherine Diffey who spends the whole day in the Reeves Room hoping to entice more children to play the many games that are up there, and also to Jane Andrews in the office who, like Veronica, puts on a very brave face when we ask her, yet again, to do some more printing, even though she is knee deep in other Church matters.
It has been fun, but it is time to have new ideas and thoughts. There
may well be a new organiser next year, nothing is definite yet, but
Watch This Space!
Frances Presley
New appointments: Michael Stewart & Jane Andrews - from September 2007
I was delighted to be able to announce earlier this year that Michael Stewart will be joining the parish as Non-Stipendiary Deacon. I gave full details in the June magazine. Mike's ordination will be on September 29, the Feast of Michael and All Angels, at St John the Baptist Egham when there will be one other candidate, Craig Holmes, who will serve in the parish of Egham. All are welcome at the service.
I am also delighted that after an advertising and interviewing process I have been able to appoint Jane Andrews as Parish Secretary to succeed Veronica Kay who has recently retired. Jane is known to many people through her roles in church life as Chalice Assistant and Baptism Visitor. She is very well qualified and experienced for the post and takes up her new duties from the beginning of September.
Thank you! Veronica Kay & Dorothy Paine - from September 2007
Thank you all so much for coming to the reception in the church hall following the service on Sunday July 22 to mark Dorothy's and my retirement and for the most generous gifts to us both. It was all a real surprise; we were overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity shown to us.
David Eaton, Veronica, Dorothy
Dorothy, Veronica and the cake
Thank you also to those who provided refreshments, including wine, soft drinks, coffee, biscuits, cakes and also a delicious large "church-shaped" chocolate cake along with beautiful flower arrangements for us both.
For me it marked the end of about thirty-four years working for the Vicar and Parish. Initially I worked from home assisting Canon Sandy Morris's secretary, Kitty Loveridge, by typing minutes, reports, accounts etc. and also printing the monthly parish magazine on the Gestetner machine in the Reeves Room. When Kitty retired some years later Sandy asked me to be his secretary and I had the pleasure of working for him in the lovely surroundings of the old Vicarage.
On Sandy's retirement I moved to what became the Parish Office and after a short interregnum David Eaton was appointed. David has been a great person to work for and I thank him most sincerely for his understanding, kindness and support. I have very much enjoyed working for the Parish and will treasure the friendship and caring shown to me and my family by so many during this time. It has been much appreciated.
I do, of course, feel sad to be retiring as the Church
family has been at the centre of my home and working life. However,
although I am taking a back seat now I look forward to seeing everyone
and worshipping in our beautiful Church of St Mary and St Nicholas.
Thank you again. With my love and best wishes.
Veronica Kay
Thank you all for your good wishes when I 'retired' from
the Parish Office at the end of July. I very much appreciated your
generosity and kind thoughts.
Dorothy Paine
from the July 2007 magazine
Goodbye and thank you. Veronica Kay has
indicated that she will be retiring from the post of Parish Secretary
at the end of July. As you can imagine, this is a great sadness as
Veronica has been a huge support during my time in Leatherhead.
However, I entirely understand that the time has come for Veronica to
retire and to let the torch pass to someone else.
Veronica's dedication and ability have meant she has successfully managed parish business, as well as my own secretarial needs, with great efficiency and goodwill. She has been more than ably supported in this on a voluntary basis by Dorothy Paine and together they have made a terrific team in our office. There will be a chance to say thank you to them both over coffee after church in the Parish Church Hall on Sunday July 22. Please give them both your support on that occasion. You will find below an advertisement for Veronica's successor. This is a key role in church life. Please pray for the right person to be found with the necessary skills and abilities.
'Caroling' (Coslett & Smith) from the August 2007 magazine
Two old friends of this parish, both of whom happened to be called Carol, have recently been appointed to new parishes. Carol Coslett, who was both a Reader and Music Co-ordinator here before training for ordination, is to be the new incumbent of what will be a new United Benefice of Betchworth and Buckland. Her induction is on Tuesday, October 2, at 7.30pm at St Michael's Betchworth.
Carol Smith, who lived in Leatherhead and partly trained here, is to be the Vicar of St Luke's, Moulsham, in the Chelmsford Diocese. She will be inducted there on November 1, All Saints Day, at 7.30pm.
We offer both Carols and their families our warmest prayers and congratulations. All will be welcome at these services.
International TV star Anne Grindrod - from the August 2007 magazine
We have an international TV star in our congregation! During the Diana concert, televised worldwide on July 1, Anne Grindrod was interviewed, because she had met Princess Diana when the Princess visited SeeAbility. A shot of Anne's house was shown. Anne spoke well and also appeared attending the concert.
As you might imagine, I am not a particular fan of most
of the music at these concerts but as my daughter, Caroline, was there
she asked me to record it for her. Being over six hours long, I had to
change DVDs after four hours. On completion of the recording, being no
expert, I quickly checked the DVDs to see that they had recorded. It
was OK, but to my surprise the first few seconds were of the interview
with Anne!
Bernard Salsbury
Church Watch - from the August 2007 magazine
The Church Heritage Forum estimates that church tourism benefits the economy by £300 million each year. "Cathedrals and historic churches are a quintessential feature of our landscape and are part of the historic narrative of our national identity, which has a strong appeal for domestic and foreign visitors alike," the Forum told a Government committee's inquiry into tourism. The potential for greater development is not always recognised and, as a result, is not supported.
The current interest in genealogy and the tracing of ancestry, in which churches play a key role, is an area that could be promoted, the Forum suggests.
Local initiatives have shown that encouraging church tourism by providing training and resources can double visitor numbers. They have also shown that opening up more churches brings real benefits to community cohesion and encourages churches to provide other community activities. Church buildings and cathedrals are consistently in the list of most-visited tourist attractions, particularly Bath Abbey, Canterbury Cathedral, Durham Cathedral, Fountains Abbey and Westminster Abbey. Visitors to cathedrals last year spent £91 million in the local cities. The benefits of visitors to parish churches are more difficult to quantify, as they do not charge for entry and most are not stewarded, but between 35 and 50 million visits a year would be a realistic estimate. The Churches Tourism Association's website is: http://www.churchestourismassociation.info - Do your bit by joining our church watch group.
Congratulations and every blessing to the Irelands - from the July 2007 magazine
We wish the Revd David Ireland, Parish Priest at Mickleham, and Mrs Angela Parfitt every happiness, on the day and in the years to come, when they marry on Saturday June 30 at St Michael's Church at 12 noon. The service will be taken by The Bishop of Dorking and I will be in a supporting role. As many people will know, David's wife Jane died last year, and so did Angela's husband Rob. David wrote recently in the Mickleham magazine: "I am delighted to say that I have proposed to Angela and she has agreed to marry me! I cannot believe my G(o)od fortune."
Ordained and rejoicing! Mary Cruddas - from the July 2007 magazine
As mentioned in last month's magazine, Mary Cruddas will be ordained at Guildford Cathedral at 10.30am on Sunday July 1. We wish her every blessing and thank her for her considerable contribution already to church life. Please come and support Mary at the Cathedral and the "Bring and Share" lunch afterwards. If you have not yet received a ticket please speak to one of the churchwardens.
Mothers' Union Trustee Sheila Sutherland - from the May 2007 magazine
Congratulations to Sheila Sutherland on being appointed a Mothers' Union Trustee for the Diocese on 26th March at a special service at the Cathedral by the worldwide Mothers' Union President. The Mothers' Union continues to be an influential Anglican organisation across the world. Sheila is branch leader here in Leatherhead, where the branch has been in existence for more than 100 years, and gives generously of her time and abilities to Mothers' Union. We thank her for her services to the church.
Organ Restoration Fund May 2007
Celebrating success: Linda Hauxwell's Diploma - from the April 2007 magazine
After several years of study and gaining practical experience, Linda Hauxwell was awarded a Diploma in Pastoral Counselling from the University of Nottingham. Her Home Group has toasted her success. The group meets weekly to worship, pray and study together.
It's a great place to get to know people,
to encourage one another, to share both the ups and the downs of life.
If you would like to be part of a home group, speak to Linda or me; we
are to be found having coffee in the hall after the morning service.
Mary Cruddas
What did the Georgians do for us? April 2007
Tuning Up: restoration of the Georgian Organ - from March 2007
Celia Hamilton and the Hospital Chaplaincy Award from the February 2007 magazine
There is no better time than now to mention Celia Hamilton's work as Hospital Chaplain's Assistant because the Chaplaincy Department of the Epsom & St Helier NHS Trust, which includes Leatherhead Hospital, has been given a Charter Mark, awarded for excellence for the work of their Chaplaincy team. This means that an independent judging panel was satisfied that they provide an exceptionally high quality of service. They are the first such team in the NHS to earn this distinction and congratulations and thanks must go to this dedicated band of workers.
The team, led by Revd Chris Vallens, consists mainly of part time volunteers, of whom Celia is among the most experienced. She is one of the unsung heroines of our church, and because she is so modest about her work, most people are not even aware that she is a fully trained Hospital Chaplain's Assistant. She trained for this work in the diocese of Wakefield in Yorkshire, one of the first four women in the diocese to be trained and the only one to complete the course, qualifying just before coming to Leatherhead in 1971.
In January of that year she was licensed by the Bishop of Guildford to work in Dorking Hospital, where she continued until 1985 when the post was closed down. However, when the Epsom NHS Trust was set up she started working at Leatherhead Hospital and still continues to do so. Her work includes visiting patients in the wards and day rooms on Tuesday afternoons and assisting with the communion services there on Friday mornings; communion is taken to those not well enough to attend the service.
In addition to all this Celia organises the services at the hospital on the first Sunday of each month, which some of our church members regularly attend, and takes turns in leading this service. How fortunate we are to have such an excellent Chaplaincy team here in Leatherhead. Linda Heath
The Phoenix Rises: young people at All Saints - from the January 2007 magazine
I started going to All Saints' Church when I moved to Leatherhead in 1977. At that time there was a good congregation. Saturday was the day for cleaning, polishing the beautiful altar rails, and arranging the flowers in readiness for the Sunday service. There was a said Communion Service on a Tuesday morning and a pram Service on a Thursday.
During Lent the pictures and crosses would be covered with purple cloth and, of course, no flowers allowed; but on Easter Saturday a faithful band of "flower ladies" were there and the Church was transformed by all the beautiful daffodils with arrangements at the end of each pew and around the font at the rear. It was a labour of love and fellowship and one elderly lady used to bring a bag of sweeties to share around.
Later in the year we had the Michaelmas Fayre on the green outside (the bungalows were not yet built), with all different kinds of stalls, which drew in passers by.
The Sunday school was thriving, with one young girl bringing hordes of other children with her from over the bridge. Over the years the congregation started to dwindle; some families moved away, others became too elderly and infirm to attend and others died. Youngsters were tempted into other activities on a Sunday morning. In later years the numbers have dropped further, but nevertheless those who come are very faithful and have a great fondness for All Saints' as it has been their Church for many years.
The youngsters now put together a service on every second Sunday evening, to which at first I went with some trepidation. However, I need not have worried, as I found the services very uplifting and meaningful and I am very impressed with the confidence and friendliness of these teenagers. Most of the congregation are a little past the "first flush of youth", yet are welcomed and made to feel valued.
So well done everyone, keep up the good work. The old and
the new can mix together and it is a joy to see new life beginning at
dear old All Saints'.
Sheila Reynolds