St Mary's Parish Magazine -
February 2002
What have the
ringers been up to?
WHAT’S ON THIS
MONTH? - February
Readings for
Sundays and Festivals in March
Daily prayer
topics in February
On Friday February 1, Candlemas, there will be a
Choral Eucharist at 7.30pm. It will as usual begin in the Centre as we hear the
proclamation of Jesus as the Light of the World, and we then carry our lighted
candles in procession into church before the Eucharist continues in the usual
way.
Don’t forget that on Sunday February 3 there
will be NO 9.30 Eucharist! That is the day when we have accepted the invitation
from St Michael’s congregation to join them for their 130th Anniversary
Eucharist, at which Bishop Tom will both preside and preach.
Wednesday February 6 is the real date of the
50th anniversary of the Queen’s accession to the throne, which is being
nationally marked later in the year in the finer weather with two Bank Holidays
at the beginning of June. The 10am Eucharist that day will take this as its
particular topic for prayer and thanksgiving. The service will be in the normal
straightforward weekday format and in the Carew chapel, unless large numbers of
people tell Selwyn beforehand that they will be coming, in which case the
format will still be simple but it will be easier to use the High Altar. Please “signify to the curate” - as the
Prayer Book used to say - by Candlemas at the latest!
The Guides and Brownies will be joining us once
again for the 9.30 Eucharist on Sunday February 10.
On Shrove Tuesday, February 12, there will be
the usual opportunity to make merry before Lent begins, in the shape of the
annual pancake party in the Centre, Tickets, price £2.50, from Anne May or
Betty Walker.
On Ash Wednesday, February 13, both Eucharists will
as usual include the imposition of ashes as the mark of our corporate
commitment to the process of Lent. They are (said) at 10am and Choral at
7.30pm. The ashes are made by burning last year’s palm crosses, so please make
sure that you have returned yours to Selwyn either in church or through the
Rectory letterbox by lunchtime on Shrove Tuesday.
The Women’s World Day of Prayer will be celebrated
on Friday March 1. There will be two services locally - at Beddington Gardens
Methodist church at 10.30am and at Holmwood Gardens URC at 7.30pm when the
speaker will be Jenifer Davison. The services have been organised by the women
of Romania with the theme “Challenge to Reconcile”.
This is the fifth time I have reported on the state of our finances. I
celebrated the first day of the New Year by preparing for the Finance
Committee’s budget meeting on January 2 - so will take this opportunity,
although it’s in advance of budget approval by the PCC, to explain how we need
to approach the coming year.
As most of you will know, the “shopping list” on the board under the
tower represents the difference between our anticipated income and expenditure
in the course of the year. Our “anticipated income” is made up of cash
collections, stewardship giving, income from the hire of the Centre, magazine
sales and advertising, and this year’s tax rebate. Our “anticipated
expenditure” includes not only our regular housekeeping bills - utilities,
telephones, insurance, altar expenses and so on, but also our Fairer Shares (up
by £1,500 to just over £28,000 in 2002) and the £12,000 per year that is repaid
to the Diocese against the loan incurred when the Church Centre was built. If
anybody isn’t aware of the full story behind all this, please either ask me, or
pick up one of the blue leaflets available in church.
In order to make up this shortfall, we ask for specific sponsorship of
various items of expenditure. But if I ever find myself in a position (which
hasn’t happened yet) whereby I don’t have enough money in the bank account to
pay a set of bills, it is the overall position of the shopping list that will
dictate which suppliers are paid first. In other words, if (for example)
sponsorship has been received for payment of the bills for general maintenance
but not for printing and stationery, then Mr Slegg will be paid before United
Business Machines!
Our fund-raising efforts last year have more than succeeded. Our “shopping
list” target by December 30 was £13,995; the sum achieved by that date was
£15,275. This means that we’ve exceeded our fund-raising target for 2001 by
£1,280. Thank you!
As in previous years, this excess will be sent to the Diocese as an
additional payment against our interest-bearing mortgage - thus both reducing the interest we pay, and bringing the day closer when we can
pay it off completely. The money outstanding on our mortgage has now decreased
from £103,000 (December 1997) to just over £24,500 (December 2001). If we can
continue in this way, we can revise our target date from the original 2017
(which is what we thought back in 1997) and from Easter 2004 (which is what we
thought six months ago) to Christmas 2003 - just two years away.
You might like to know where the £15,275 came
from:
Nearly £8,000 was received in
one-off gifts, from people who either sponsored individual items on the List or
made a general donation.
Fund-raising events accounted for
nearly £3,500, including our magnificent Christmas Fair; concerts and
playreading; pudding and plonk and sausages and sangria.
Our Yellow Pages scheme raised
over £1,500 - my special thanks to all those who give their time and talents in
this way.
The remainder came from our wall
boxes, from donations made by wedding couples, and from a windfall from the
Electricity Board when it refunded some over-paid VAT.
Don’t forget that all this doesn’t include any of the money raised for
the Tower and Bells Fund, which has separately raised an amazing £12,461 during
2001, bringing the total of the fund by early January to £19,383. This has been
raised by events such as the sponsored peal, the sponsored swim, the quiz; by
appeals and by sales of goods; from the ringers’ fees; and a great deal of the
money has been given by donors outside the St Mary’s community. I can only
repeat what I said six months ago: we are so very grateful to the ringers for
keeping up such superb work towards a vital piece of maintenance - which will
benefit us all - without calling on our regular fundraising. Thank you
again.
So, that’s last year - and thank you all for making it such a success.
Now we need to draw breath, and look forward to what is needed from us in 2002.
As you will realise from your own personal finances, the world of money
never stands still. We expect our regular expenses to increase, at least in
line with inflation; similarly, we hope for increases in our regular income.
This year, however, we have a bit of a “double-whammy” to cope with.
You probably know that it’s likely that gas costs will increase
substantially during the year. In addition, after over-charging us for several
years, British Gas managed to underestimate our payments last year, and has now
redressed the balance by increasing them again anyway! The net result is that
we have needed to allow an additional £1,000 above last year’s gas budget.
Secondly, you may not have realised that the number of weddings booked
at St Mary’s has been declining, as it has become possible for couples to marry
in hotels, in stately homes, down caves, in hot air balloons… At this stage, we
have only 14 definite bookings for 2002, as against more than 30 during last
year. It’s very unusual for bookings to be made less than 12 months in advance,
so we can be reasonably sure that our income from wedding fees will decrease
accordingly; so our budgeted income has had to go down by £1,000.
These two matters together mean that the new shopping list under the
tower shows a total of £15,995 for the year - an increase of that £2,000 over
last year. This means that we now need to raise £308 per week on the shopping
list to continue to pay all our bills - an increase of £39 per week over last
year.
There is one further option in helping our books to balance, and one
that the Finance Committee would like us all to think about. A major part of our income is our
stewardship - committed regular giving, through the envelope scheme or direct
to our bank account. The greater our
stewardship, the smaller our budget shortfall will be.
St Mary’s has an average active membership of around 100 people. If
every one of us was able to find about an extra 75p each week - less than £3.50
per month - we would be able to reduce that shopping list from £16,000 to just
£12,000, and we would know that our regular income and our regular expenditure
would match. In other words, once our mortgage has been repaid, all our
fund-raising efforts could be concentrated on the projects that need them -
such as the Tower and Bells, or completing the upper floor of the Centre, or
raising money for other causes - knowing that our housekeeping bills have
already been covered without any further worry.
If you do feel able to adjust your contribution in this way, and if you
already pay directly to our bank account, you will need to complete a new
mandate. It happens that we will in fact be asking you to do this within the
next few weeks anyway, as we will be changing our bank. Please speak to Heather
Cosgrove about joining this scheme, or to Anne May about Envelope Giving.
This is a very difficult position to be in: to congratulate my friends
and colleagues on the magnificent achievements of the last year, and at the
same time to ask for additional efforts in the new one. I can only thank God
that each of you brings your own personal gifts, like the Magi - generosity,
energy, inspiration and enthusiasm - all year round; and ask for your
continuing help.
Cassie Tillett
During Lent, the Friday lunches will take place as usual at The Rectory
at 12.45 pm. The first will be on Friday the 15th. We shall as always be
raising money towards the projects included in this year’s Bishop’s Lent Appeal
- details are not to hand as yet, but there will be posters giving full details
of the projects in church and in the Centre in plenty of time before Lent
begins.
Details of the results of last year’s Bishop’s Lent Appeal have recently
emerged. Cheques have been presented to:
* Regular water supply for Tangwene community,
Manicaland - £10,000
* Diocese of Manicaland/Eastern Zimbabwe (linked
with Woolwich area) £9,000 for roof on half-finished diocesan office to help
the mission of the church
* Diocese of Central Zimbabwe (linked with the
Croydon area) - £9,000 for breeding cows
* Diocese of Matabeleland (linked with Kingston
area) - £9,000 for AIDs orphans and bibles, catechism and prayer books in the
local language
* SPCK Worldwide - £5,000 for the replacement of
worship books destroyed in Mozambique floods
* USPG - £20,000 for day care centre for orphaned
children in New Delhi
* Shaftesbury Resources Centre, Camberwell -
£20,000 for a replacement furniture van
* Codrington College Library, Barbados - £15,000
towards a new library
On Christmas Day lunch was served to 70 people at St Michael’s church
hall. This was funded by the churches of Beddington and Wallington. Sainsbury’s
were very generous, sponsoring the event and organising their staff with lists
and trolleys.
There were many helpers. The hall was decorated on Christmas Eve with
decorations made by the Sunday School (including ours) and by Holy Trinity
school children. The tables were laid and decorated, vegetables prepared and
turkeys cooked.
As each person arrived, they were given a free raffle ticket and sherry
or fruit punch and shown to their table. The turkey was accompanied by all the
trimmings and several vegetables. Then followed Christmas pudding, trifle,
mince pies, chocolates, wine, tea or coffee. From the leftovers, take-away
meals were made up for anyone who wanted one. Special diets were catered for.
Every raffle prize winner was cheered and clapped. We sang carols until the Queen’s speech. The
atmosphere was excellent. Everyone enjoyed the food and company and I do not
think that we shall have any difficulties filling at least one hall next year.
We already have enough money.
Then the cars arrived to take home the happy guests and other people
came to take down all the decorations and tables. I shall certainly want to go
next Christmas. I must confess that when Revd Patrick Grant first suggested it
I was very doubtful. Oh ye of little faith . . .
Pam Vernon
The ringers have had a high profile over the past year, especially in
regard to their fund-raising activities. We raised an encouraging sum of
£12,000 during 2001, bringing our grand total so far to around £20,000.
At our AGM on January 6 we considered how we had achieved this and how
we could proceed. We had benefited from the Annual Quiz we run, organised a
very popular Pub Games Evening, a highly entertaining Karaoke Night, run a
Plant Sale, Open Days, Have-a-go Day, provided refreshments and sold goods
through various outlets. The two biggest sources of income were the Sponsored
Swim and the Sponsored Peal. Together they raised £5,000 and as we can’t repeat
those, we are looking for more lucrative ideas.
We will continue to run events in church, which can be both an enjoyable
social occasion and a source of revenue for us. We are extremely grateful for
all your support and assure you we do try to entertain you and give you value
for money!
Behind the scenes, though, lies the purpose of our ringing. Bells are
there to call the faithful (and often others) to worship and your ringers are
there for every Sunday service, Christmas, New Year, weddings, etc. (We
suspect there are more of us in the tower than at some Sunday evening
services!) We are the envy of many a tower in the area in that we are always
able to raise a band.
Stewart has not only been our Master but Master of the Surrey
Association as well. (His term of office ends in May.) In July we celebrated
with him his 50 years of ringing at St Mary’s, where previously he had been a
chorister. Stan Coleman, our Steeplekeeper, has provided us with emergency
lighting, curtains to keep out the draughts and an effective approach light
outside.
We had a good outing in September and an enjoyable theatre trip to see The
King and I. We celebrated birthdays with after-practice curries and enjoyed
other social activities together. All work and no play, etc . . .
Some sort of a record was struck when three grandchildren were born to
members of the band in the same year - Matthew to Kath Chilcott in May, Hannah
to Stewart and Jean in June and Luke to Sue Bailey in August. Ringers of the
future?
We have done well in ringing competitions, which is good news for you
because it means we ring well and shouldn’t offend your ears. (Practice nights
are often of a different standard but then that’s what practice is all about.)
Two of our probationers have gained full membership by ringing the required 500
changes - about 20 minutes continuous ringing - and we welcomed Angela Collins
and Mike Morgan to the upper echelons at the AGM.
Ringing is very much a team effort and because we rely on each other in
the tower, this seems to spill over into other aspects. We could not have
achieved so much in our fund-raising if it were not for the unstinting support
of everyone. There is still a lot of hard work ahead of us but together we’re
determined to get our bells rehung before we’re too old to ring them!
Although we record excellent attendance figures, we still do need new
recruits (or lapsed ringers fancying a return). You need no special skills at
all - just be prepared to be committed to a new challenge.
Speak to Stewart or any other ringer if you’re
interested or ring 020 8660 4254 or turn up on a Thursday at 7.45. You will be
made welcome.
Regular shoppers in Sainsbury’s will know that the store gives you 1p
for every bag of your own that you carry away their goods in. There is also a
collecting box where these pennies are supposed to end up. The resulting
collection is then passed on to each month’s lucky charity.
The Wallington branch has kindly agreed that the collection in March
should go to St Mary’s bell restoration fund. Looking at the list for the past
year, March seems a pretty good month to have - particularly as Easter falls in
that month this year.
So when you’re visiting Sainsbury’s Wallington store in March make sure
you’ve got shopping bags with you and get back your pennies from the cashier
and just drop them in the box. And don’t feel you have to have every bag full -
more bags means more pennies!
St Mary’s handbell ringers have also had a good year. We were awarded
Honours for our performance at the Croydon Music Festival in May and came home
with a magnificent trophy from the Hounslow Festival in October.
We took part in the Churches Together event at St Elphege’s in July,
entertained the residents of an
Abbeyfields home in Hurst Green, and “went to prison” in December. This latter
was a new experience; Downview Prison has been converted to a women’s prison -
not without its problems!
We went to ring at their Carol Service, which this year was held in the
Prison Chapel. In past years it had been held in the Visiting Room, which isn’t
actually part of the prison, but the Chapel is. So we had to have security
clearance, be escorted everywhere and be “branded” with an ultra violet stamp!
The Chapel had a nice feel to it (and a Christmassy smell, if you like
incense). The service went well and our ringing was greeted by unexpected and
enthusiastic applause. Coffee and mince pies were supplied afterwards, possibly
to take our minds off the fact that we were locked in until all the women were
back in their “accommodation” and accounted for!
We’ve been asked to go again to play for one of the weekly groups and
I’m sure we will - subject to there being no problems with our security
clearance!
If tower bell ringing doesn’t appeal to you, perhaps handbell ringing
will. We are looking for new recruits (or again, past participants) and would
really welcome you if you came along. We meet on Sunday evenings at 2 Peaks
Hill and transport may be available if necessary. Contrary to popular belief,
you do not need to be able to read music; a reasonable sense of rhythm is
helpful. (Speak to Stewart or ring 8660 4254 for your New Year Resolution!)
Jean and Stewart Kimber
Jan 13 Michael James Delaney, 38 Claydon Drive
Mark John
McCormack, 2 Elberon Avenue
Holly Jane Clark,
7 Richmond Green
Georgia Louise
Tizzard, 32 Meller Close
Jan 18 Sally Pauline Reygate, aged 63, of 25 Holmesdale Park
Jan 21 Thomas Henry Botright, aged 78, of 3 Queenswood Avenue
Wassail!, the evening of poetry, prose and music for the turn of the year, made
a happy beginning to 2002’s social events calendar.
The sequence of over 40 short pieces began with John Betjeman’s Waiting
bells of Advent and concluded with a recording of our own bells following
Tennyson’s Ring out wild bells. Between these the readings ranged from
Christmas shopping, through Christmas Day, Herod’s musings over the slaughter
of the Innocents, the journey of the Magi, and reflections on the new year.
The five readers, with remarkable versatility, led us through this wide
variety of readings into laughter, sympathy, thoughtfulness, fright and
nostalgia.
Each piece will have been a highlight for someone in the audience, but
mention must be made of poor King John Hore (“not a good man”) sitting, hoarse
and in his ill-fitting paper crown, hoping for a visit from Father Christmas;
of the rendition of Pooh and Piglet’s hunt for a Woozle; of the audience
shouting panto-style in the extract from Goldilocks; of The Ballad of the
Breadman; and of the pin-dropping suspense evoked by Jackie Egerton’s
account of Alfred Noyes’ The Highwayman.
This taste of familiar and unfamiliar helped us all to recapture moments
of childhood and later memories and to experience above all that most
comforting pleasure - being read to. Wassailers, thank you.
Pat Kingsbury
The calendar of events for 2002 promises a year of musical treats -
beginning with Fauré’s Requiem to be sung by St Mary’s choir in
March. There will be a welcome return by the Albinoni String Orchestra
on the early May bank holiday Monday and then, in July, the choir sings again
to celebrate the centenaries of two composers, Thomas Morley (1557-1602)
and Maurice Duruflé (born 1902).
October brings a concert of organ music by Andrew Wilson and in
November, our friends the Chimes Musical Theatre celebrate their
fifteenth anniversary with a Grand Concert.
|
Fri |
1 |
Candlemas Choral Eucharist |
7.30pm |
|
Sat |
2 |
Annual Quiz Night. Church Centre
7.00 for 7.30pm |
|
|
Sun |
3 |
2 BEFORE LENT |
|
|
|
|
150th Anniversary Eucharist at St Michael’s |
10.00am |
|
Mon |
4 |
Bible Study Group meets, 23 Mortlake Close |
8.00pm |
|
Tue |
5 |
Parents and Toddlers meet in Church |
10.00am |
|
Wed |
6 |
Eucharist to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Queen’s Accession |
10.00am |
|
|
|
St Mary’s Guild meets, St Mary’s Court |
2.30pm |
|
|
|
Magazine Panel meets, 2 Peaks Hill |
3.00pm |
|
Thu |
7 |
MU&OG: A talk by Sue Nicolaou from Sutton WelCare. Church Centre |
8.00pm |
|
Sun |
10 |
1 BEFORE LENT |
|
|
|
|
Guides and Brownies join in Eucharist |
9.30am |
|
Mon |
11 |
Bible Study Group meets, 23 Mortlake Close |
8.00pm |
|
Tue |
12 |
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Party, Church Centre |
7.30pm |
|
Wed |
13 |
ASH WEDNESDAY |
|
|
|
|
Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes |
10.00am |
|
|
|
Choral Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes |
7.30pm |
|
Thu |
14 |
Churches Together meets, Wallington URC |
7.45pm |
|
Fri |
15 |
Lent Lunch at the Rectory |
12.45pm |
|
Sun |
17 |
LENT 1 |
|
|
Wed |
20 |
MU Corporate Eucharist |
10.00am |
|
Thu |
21 |
MU&OG AGM, Church Centre |
8.00pm |
|
Fri |
22 |
Lent Lunch at the Rectory |
12.45pm |
|
Sun |
24 |
LENT 2 |
|
Sun Mar 3
Lent 3
Exodus 17: 1-7 (page 113)
Romans 5: 1-11 (page 115)
John 4: 5-42 (page 116)
Sun Mar 10
Lent 4
1 Samuel 16: 1-13
Ephesians 5: 8-14
John 9: 1-41
Sun Mar 17
Lent 5
Ezekiel 37: 1-14 (page 130)
Romans 8: 6-11 (page 132)
John 11: 1-45 (page 133)
Sun Mar 24
Palm Sunday
Isaiah 50: 4-9a
Thu Mar 28
Maundy Thursday
Exodus 12: 1-14 (page 162)
1 Corinthians 11: 23-25 (page 165)
John 13: 1-17, 31b-35 (page 165)
Fri Mar 29
Good Friday
Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (page 167)
Hebrews 4: 14-16, 5: 7-9 (page 172)
John 18: 1-19:42 (page 173)
Sun Mar 31
Easter Day
Acts 10: 34-43 (page 214)
Colossians 3: 1-4 (page 217)
John 20: 1-18 (page 218)
Sun Feb 3
Canticles: Noble in B minor
Anthem: Salvator Mundi - Tallis
Sun Feb 10
Canticles: Dyson in F
Anthem: I will love thee - Kalinikoff
Sun Feb 17
Canticles: Stanford in G
Anthem: Wash me throughly - Wesley
Sun Feb 24
Canticles: Sumsion in G
Anthem: Miserere Domine - Lang
Fri 1 Thanksgiving for the gift of Christ the Light of the World
Sat 2 Our bell ringers
Sun 3 St Michael’s church, celebrating their 130th
anniversary
Mon 4 Our Bible Study group
Tue 5 Our parents’ and toddlers’ group
Wed 6 Her Majesty the Queen, celebrating her Golden Jubilee
Thu 7 Local businesses and shopkeepers
Fri 8 Our preparations for Lent
Sat 9 Local residential homes for the elderly
Sun 10 Local Guides, Brownies and other uniformed organisations
Mon 11 Churches Together in Beddington & Wallington
Tue 12 The Spires Centre for the homeless, in Streatham
Wed 13 The grace to keep Lent faithfully
Thu 14 Local hospitals and clinics
Fri 15 The Bishop’s Lent Appeal
Sat 16 Local councillors
Sun 17 Citizens’ Advice Bureaux
Mon 18 Christian poets and mystics
Tue 19 All church treasurers, currently preparing annual accounts
Wed 20 The work of the Mothers’ Union, locally and nationally
Thu 21 Travel agents and all involved in tourism
Fri 22 The Bishop’s Lent Appeal
Sat 23 Clergy working with young people in schools and colleges
Sun 24 Those being ordained today
Mon 25 All who work in the industries and on the estates in the parish
Tue 26 Parish Electoral Roll officers, as a national revision begins
Wed 27 All involved in preparing couples for marriage
Thu 28 The work and staff of local theatres
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