October 2009

Autumnal

Pale amber sunlight falls across

The reddening October trees,

That hardly sway before a breeze

As soft as summer : summers loss

Seems little, dear! On days like these

Ernest Dowson 1867-1900

Magazine for Falfield, Oldbury

Rockhampton & Shepperdine.

EDITOR Mrs Maureen Bland.

Little Green Cottage, Ham, Berkeley, Glos. GL13 9QN

Tel: 01453 811004

PRINTED BY Oldbury Deckers. Tel: 01454 412153

4-ward is an independent community magazine

and material is published at the discretion of the editor.

Articles for next month's edition should reach the Editor

or Email 4ward@oos4ward.plus.com

NO LATER THAN 10^th OF THIS MONTH

4-ward Magazine Advertising Charges

Back Cover Whole page - £20 Half page - £10 Quarter page - £5

Inside Pages Whole page - £16 Half page - £8 Quarter page - £4

10% discount on all charges when paying for full year in advance.

Cheques should be made payable to “4-ward Magazine”

Advertising Contact Andrew Gazard 07831 849742

Naite Farm, Oldbury on Severn, Thornbury, Bristol, BS35 1RU

or Email 4ward@oos4ward.plus.com

Church Contacts :-

Thornbury & Oldbury.

Parish office 281900 Wed. Thurs. Fri. mornings

Revd David Primrose 01454 413209

Methodist Rev Peter Hatton 01454 412269

Rockhampton, Falfield, Tortworth, Tytherington & Cromhall

Hilary Legg 01454 413234

Christ The King Thornbury.

Father Alex 01454 412223

Local Village Web Links www.oldbury-on-severn.com www.falfield.org.uk

www.MyThornbury.com

Oldbury Memorial Hall – contact Peter Orford tel: 01454 415346

Oldbury Youth Club 07831 849742

2009/2010 CALENDAR DATES FOR OLDBURY

Sponsored by Ian Knapp Builders.

10^th Oct Sat Memorial Hall Supper Evening

2010

20^th June Sun Oldbury Fun Run 2010

Coffee mornings are held at the chapel on the 3^rd Saturday of each month in aid of charity.

A community library will be held in the Oldbury Chapel School Room on the 1^st & 3^rd Thursdays of each month 11.00 – 12.00 noon. Everybody is welcome to come along for a chat and a cup of coffee.

If you have any more fund raising or social events you would like to include in this diary, please contact Ian Knapp on 419332

Oldbury Deckers meet in the pavilion, West Marsh Lane-

Friday 5.00pm – 10.00pm

Primary age children have priority with all activities before 6.30pm

The contact number at club is 07831 849742

If unavailable contact – Barry 07732 637246 or Bob 411506

Whist Drives in Oldbury Chapel, 1^st & 3^rd Saturday of each month

STOP PRESS - Hold off rushing out for Christmas cards! There will be lovely new ones for sale from St Arilda's church plus blank ones for your own messages too. The picture is taken from a watercolour of St Arilda's in Spring by Gloucestershire artist R.A. Brown. Details to follow....!

The Saturday night thing

Saturday October 10^th

7pm – 9pm

This month’s Theme :

"The Holy Spirit" (Who or what?)

Come and join us!

At the Chapel

(open to 11 – 16 year olds)

“The cost for each session is £2. This is to cover the cost of the craft

(which has turned out to be really popular) and also to cover other running costs.

Thank you!”

The Saturday night thing

Film Night

At the Chapel

Saturday 24^th October at 7pm

Cost £2

Please bring some food to share.

For more information contact Lucienne 416149

Oldbury Church Flowers

October 4^th Harvest Flowers

11^th Mrs Lees

18^th Mrs J Mallows

25^th Mrs L Lees

November 1^st Mrs L Lees

8^th Remembrance Sunday

15^th Mrs Gazard

Flower Clubs
THORNBURY & DISTRICT	SEVERN VALE
Meetings at Thornbury Methodist Church Hall 2^nd & 4^th Thursdays Demonstrations and Practice Classes at 7.30pm	Meetings at Armstrong Complex, Thornbury Demonstrations 3^rd Wednesday in the Month at 2.00pm
October 8th Demonstration ‘Steps Along the Way’ David Martin October 22nd Practice Class ‘Vertically Challenged ‘	October 5^th Practice – Handtied October 21^st Linda Garrett Down on the Farm Comp – Autumn Glory

Oldbury Rain Fall

August 2009 August 2008 August 2007

47mm 90.0mm 30mm

1.85" 3.54" 1.18"

Time to Think About the Future?

Our life revolves around oil – from running our cars to growing our food and providing us with energy, plastics and medicines. But oil is not unlimited and we are using it up fast. What will be the consequences? Sustainable Thornbury invites you to a free showing at Rangeworthy Village Hall on Monday 26^th October of the film A Crude Awakening which looks at this issue. Doors open 7 pm for 7.30 pm start. Free admission. This film is the second event of a monthly series of talks and films looking at our future prospects in a changing world. More details on www.sustainablethornbury.org or tel 416778.

THORNBURY’S GOT TALENT

On 24 October, 2009, ACT (Arts and Community in Thornbury) is staging a talent contest open to all at Thornbury Baptist Church.

Come and see people sing, dance, juggle or even impersonate Gordon Brown. There may be people playing the saxophone or spoons, having their dog do tricks or making their grandmother disappear, because Thornbury is full of talent, oh yes it is!

With heats taking place throughout the afternoon and a grand final starting at 7.30pm, you’ll get the chance to vote with or against the judges and choose Thornbury’s number one talent. Do come along – You know you want to!

Tickets are available from Thornbury Garden shop from 1 October and for more information on ACT and its project to build a theatre and community arts centre in Thornbury, please visit www.ACTthornbury.org.uk.

The Wigan Girls ~ The Movie!!

“Thornbury’s Got Talent”, the show planned for October in aid of ACT has sadly had to be cancelled because not quite enough people seem to think they have talent! However, ACT (Arts and Community in Thornbury) knows that Thornbury has talent galore and the replacement event for 24 October is the living proof.

For three months from March to July, over 300 local people were deeply involved in the creation of an amazing community play, The Wigan Girls, which was written by local girl Janet Halfyard and directed by Barbie Davies. 2000 people came and enjoyed the wonderful musical play at the Leisure centre. All of the rehearsals and the show itself were lovingly filmed by David Wilkins and his team, resulting in a DVD of the creation of a community play and the actual show.

At 7.30pm on 24 October at the Baptist Church Hall, there will be a Hollywood-style première of The Wigan Girls ~ The Movie, red carpet, press, amazing dresses – the lot! Join ACT and the Wigan Girls team for this tongue-in-cheek night at the Oscars. Girls – dig out the satin and pearls, bedeck yourself with bling. Guys, brush down the old tuxedo, shine those shoes and come along to a fun night to remember. Sparkling wine and canapés will be on hand for a small donation and there may even be a celebrity or two to add to the thrill of the occasion! All this glamour for a mere £5. Tickets will be available from 1 October from Thornbury Garden Centre or by ringing 01454 416421.

Are There Bears in Canada?

“So the hunter lifted the dead beast’s head to show me his face and the next thing I knew was that the thing had clouted me across the head. I knew nothing more until I woke up in hospital three days later. The darn thing nearly tore my face off. The hunter put eleven more rounds into the bear before he finally croaked.”

The gas station owner smiled at our shocked faces. “This is bear country, so you never know what’s gonna happen when you go hunting in these here woods.”

We were at a remote gas station which also served as a general store, restaurant, bar, truck stop, a place to pick up hunting and a reception for lakeside camping and cabins for a night stop. This was northern Saskatchewan and the road to Flin Flon, a mining town on the Manitoba border, almost as far north as it’s possible to get in this part of Canada.

‘Bear hunting’ for us had been a fruitless exercise in drifting along mountain highways keeping an eye out for the grand beasts to no avail. Barbara and I had seen two captive Brown Bears on Grouse Mountain near Vancouver, but since then, nothing. We has begun to joke that bears in Canada was all a tourist con, with the odd animatronic ‘bear’ placed at strategic locations along the highway by Disney to perpetuate the myth. But the gas station owner’s tale was pretty conclusive evidence that we were either blind, or the bears were steering clear of our route.

Later that night in Flin Flon, I was sitting up late reading. We had all tucked into fast food and canned beer for dinner, with the remains of our feast bagged up in the motel bin in the bathroom. We had left the door ajar, with just a mosquito screen to keep the bugs at bay. It was very quiet outside. Then I heard an unmistakable grunt and deep snuffling, not a sound I’d heard before, but there was no mistaking the noise of an inquisitive bear, possibly drawn by the pungent aroma of left over fried chicken. I leapt from my chair and slammed the door shut. There was a brief commotion outside before silence returned. Bears are known to enter buildings looking for food if they’re hungry and tales of fridges with doors ripped off are not unknown. Not for nothing are motel doors covered with sheets of metal in these parts.

Eastern Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba are flat. Very flat. Flat for hundreds of miles. But this is country which is not without its own beauty and ability to awe. From the endless grain prairies in the south to the lakes and woods of the north, there is enough variety and places of interest to make this part of our journey a landmark of our adventure. Our daily routine of several hundred miles at a stretch saw the terrain roll by under vast open skies, where the weather systems developing above carry as much to interest the traveller as the enormous open prairie stretching ahead of our bikes. Not for nothing is this area known as ‘the land of the living skies’.

Such a contrast to our British Columbia adventure. The ferry from Vancouver Island deposited us in Prince Rupert, a lonely northern town, spitting distance from the Alaska border, where a cool mist and low cloud shrouded the early part of our ride to Prince George. The sun soon burned the fragile clouds away to reveal serene tree covered mountains, deep primordial lakes and wide rivers. This was a long ride, which took us to the beginning of the Alaska Highway and on through rolling farm lands to Prince George. This was where we joined the GlobeBusters Trans Americas 2009 team (see www.globebusters.com) for a few days riding in the Rocky Mountains. Huge steaks and a birthday celebration for one of their team providing a fitting party atmosphere to welcome us to their five month Tierra Del Fuego-bound motorcycle adventure.

Jasper provided us with our first day off, a town that sits at the start of the Rocky Mountains Icefields Parkway. Packed with tourists and trinket shops, but with comfortable accommodation in log cabins and the excellent barbeque skills of Kevin Sanders and Jeff the ‘Van Man’. A good spot for two nights of gentle partying.

The Icefields Parkway is nothing less than awesome. The grand peaks of the Rockies march down the American continent for over a thousand miles, dividing BC from the rest of Canada before presenting what must have seemed to be an impenetrable barrier to early explorers of what is now the United States. The road weaves between high peaks and past breathtaking glaciers, ice blue lakes and roaring rivers. An excursion to the beautiful Lake Louise marked a highpoint of the day before our night stop in the tourist trap of Banff, and the delights of Elkburgers.

We are now in Kenora, Ontario, the prairies behind us. We have entered an area of the continent that is dominated by hilly densely forested country, which has literally millions of lakes, both small and vast. Kenora marks a day off to get washing done, check over the bikes and catch up with emails and essential work.

We’ve been extraordinarily lucky with the weather until now, but it seems that the rain has finally caught us up after several days of riding just ahead of brooding storm fronts that have swept from the north and west.

Kenora is also half way across the continent and a fitting place to celebrate the journey thus far and anticipate the challenges ahead. With bikes running well and sprits high, we are looking forward to once again turning our wheels eastward along the endless road.

Craig Carey-Clinch

Kenora, Ontario.

TEACHER: Donald, what is the chemical formula for water?

DONALD: HI JK L MN O.

TEACHER: What are you talking about?

DONALD: Yesterday you said it's H to O.

Thornbury Library

1. Jeannie Johnson – author talk – Wednesday 7 October 7.30pm.

Tickets £2.50 members/£5.00 non members

Unfortunately Jeannie Johnson was unable to give her talk as part of the Thornbury Festival back in April but she has agreed to come back on 7 October. We will honour all tickets already purchased for this earlier event but we do have tickets left. These will be sold in advance on a first come first served basis. Jeannie Johnson has kindly agreed to give a talk based on her books, many of which are historical and based in Bristol. Jeannie Johnson, weekend columnist of the Western Daily Press writes popular fiction for women, much of which centres on Bristol. As J G Goodhind she also writes the Honey Driver mysteries which are set in Bath - think ABFAB with murder thrown in. All her books are available on Amazon, via her website www.jeanniejohnson.net or buy one after her talk.

2. Thornbury Library Committee

Thornbury Library Committee will be holding its AGM on Wednesday 14th October at 7.30pm in the Library. Members of the public who would like to raise any matters of interest are most welcome to attend at the start of the meeting. Entry will be via the back door in St Mary Street.

3. Saturday exhibitions - 17th October 10.00-12.00 - Sustainable Thornbury

As you may have noticed if you have visited us recently we are trying to arrange ‘manned’ exhibitions by local organisations on Saturday mornings. October is the turn of Sustainable Thornbury.Their website (http://www.sustainablethornbury.org/

contains the following information about the group. We are a community group concerned about sustainability, including climate change, world oil shortages, the rising cost of oil and food and how that will affect our area. We are now an official Transition Initiative (what used to be called a Transition Town). We want to help make our community ready for the changes we expect in the future. We expect oil to become scarce and expensive. Transport relies on oil, so bringing goods from a long way away will cause problems and be expensive. For essentials like food, it makes sense to produce them locally.

Visit the Library to find out more.

For more information on any of the above items please give the library a ring on 01454 868 006 (24 hour renewal line 08450 020 777) or visit our web-site on www.southglos.gov.uk/libraries.

Remember you can also access the web-site to renew your books, check the catalogue, reserve items and consult a wide range of on-line reference materials. You will need your borrower number and pin number (available from the library). We also offer a telephone enquiry service on 01454 866 900 or you can email your enquiry to askthelibrary@southglos.gov.uk

We also offer free internet access and word processing in the library.

Please note we can send your reservation and overdue notifications by text, email or voice message and we have also introduced pre-overdues for email contacts only

Keeping your computer secure – Part2

By Richard Churchill

Last month I discussed what nasties are trying to get your computer, this time I'm covering what you can do to protect yourself.(the previous article is available via the website at the bottom of the page)

So what makes a good security program for your computer? It needs to have a firewall; protection against mal-ware (viruses and spyware), and a good reputation for reliability. Unfortunately the old adage "you get what you pay for" doesn't fully apply in this case. Some of the most expensive products on the market don't necessarily compare well with their cheaper competition. All of the security products I have come across will protect your computer so there is no need to worry that you have the 'wrong' software, but what should you choose if you are buying or renewing now?

My personal top three are AVG, Kaspersky and Panda security products. They are innovative, don't bog the computer down, and are competitively priced. In comparison I have found Norton and McAfee are no better in terms of protection, have a greater impact on the performance of the system and have been charging premium prices.

You may have the best security product there is, but if you don't let it keep up to date it will be useless in a week or so. I sometimes get asked why security software needs to update every day, the answer is simply there are new threats appearing every day. Your security software should update itself automatically but it is important that you check every so often that it has.

Now that you have software protecting your computer what else can you do? Make sure you have all the latest operating systems updates from Microsoft (Windows) or Apple (MacOS). Updates close security holes and fix other problems that have been found, making life much easier for your security software. In Windows this is done using 'Windows update' which can be found in 'tools' menu of Internet Explorer.

Computer security isn't difficult, you just have to know what to do. The best advice is if you are in doubt call a professional computer repair engineer (like myself). He or she will have seen every virus and know how to avoid them.

I welcome any ideas or questions you may have, you can call 01454 616365 (ask for Richard) or email articles@yourpcguru.co.uk. Visit http://yourpcguru.co.uk/articles/ for past articles and more information.

TEACHER: Winnie, name one important thing we have today that we didn't have ten years ago.

•WINNIE: Me!

St Oswalds Rockhampton

Harvest Supper Saturday 17 October

Entertainment by The Filtonaires

‘just bliss - songs from the fifties and beyond

with an added touch of comedy’

Licensed bar

7.15 for 7.30 at the Village Hall

Tickets £7.50

Numbers please to

Jim Bennett 412431 Vera Cullimore 885845

Beth England 260882 Margaret Oliver 417685

Rockhampton Village Hall 100 club

August winners were :-

181 Tony England £15

166 Ivor Issac + Katie Dent £10

137 Margaret & Lawrence Oliver £5

173 Ian Parnell £5

An evening of music at Thornbury Methodist Church

An evening of light classical music will be held on Saturday 10th October at 7.30pm. Harvey French at the organ and keyboard and Kay Lacey will be the soloists. The programme will include works by Scott Joplin, Lehar, Irving Berlin, Widor and many others. Proceeds will be shared between church funds and Egbodidi village in Nigeria. Ticket are £5 and can be purchased from church members at the door.

To Market, To Market… at our local museum

Our local market town is Thornbury and, for over 900 years, that’s exactly what Thornbury was – a town with a market at its heart. First recorded in Domesday Book in 1086 (when the manor of Thornbury belonged to Queen Matilda, wife of William the Conqueror), the market proved to be a magnet over the centuries, bringing all sorts of traders, trades and professional people to the town: butchers and saddlers, blacksmiths and tinsmiths, shoemakers and bakers, photographers and hairdressers, doctors and surgeons, apothecaries and solicitors.

The nature of Thornbury’s streets and buildings developed in part because people from the surrounding area used to come weekly into the town to sell and buy livestock, produce and goods. Livestock markets continued in the town right up to 1996 with many local people involved with them in one way or another.

You can discover the history of the markets at a new exhibition in Thornbury and District Museum. Here you can see photographs of the market when it was held in Castle Street, The Plain and the High Street and the ornate pump was used for watering the cattle and washing the carts. You can also see photographs of livestock, auctioneers and farmers at the more modern market site in Rock Street, where Turnberries now stands. Farmers in the 4-Ward area have already helped with the exhibition. Maybe you went to market too or you know someone who did? If so, come in - the Museum would be interested in your memories of the market.

The exhibition ‘To Market, To Market…’ is at Thornbury & District Museum from September to December. The Museum is between the Armstrong Hall and The Wheatsheaf pub in Chapel St., Thornbury, with parking available in nearby car parks in St. Mary St. and Rock St. Opening hours are Tuesday to Friday, 1 – 4pm and Saturday 10am - 4pm. Tel: 01454 857774, if you need more information. To market, to market… to see people buying a fat pig…

Oldbury Village History Group

Tuesday 20^th October

7.45 p.m.

in the Memorial Hall

Roy Gollop

The Lost Ports of the River Severn

All welcome £2 donation requested

This illustrated talk has been very successful with neighbouring local history groups and there will be a chance to buy Roy Gollop’s book on the same subject. (Does he include Oldbury, I wonder?)

Please note: the Village History Group has no membership as such; instead we ask for £2 at each meeting to defray expenses.

The Churchyard Book of Oldbury on Severn

This has proved to be very successful – we have sold more than half of the current first printing of 100 copies. For anyone who has not seen it yet, the book has more than 300 pages, most of them in full colour, recording all the memorials in the church and the pre-1920 top churchyard at St Arilda’s in Oldbury. It is fully indexed by name, place name and occupation or status, and is the result of several years’ hard work by John Adnams with assistance from Oldbury Village History Group and the Thornbury and District Archaeology Group. Apart from its usefulness to anyone researching their family connections it is a very attractive book and an important historical record – how much longer will some of these memorials last as weather and pollution affect them?

At the moment the price is £20. This is thanks to the Fun Run Committee, St Arilda’s church and the Village History Group, as well as to many individuals who have kindly subsidised the first printing. Any further printing would have to be sold at the cost price of £40+. So get your copy now!

Obtainable from John Adnams or Jane Bradshaw

Vine Cottage The Bank House

Cowhill Camp Road

Oldbury on Severn Oldbury on Severn

BS35 1QH BS35 1PR

Tel. 01454 414367 Tel. 01454 413199

EVENTS IN ROCKHAMPTON VILLAGE HALL

Monday 5^th Whist Drive 7.30pm

Thursday 8^th Friendship Circle 2pm

Tuesday 13^th WI 7.30pm

Saturday 17^th Harvest Supper 7.30pm

Monday 19^th Whist Drive 7.30pm

Wednesday 21^st RVHMC AGM 7.30pm

To book the hall, contact Caroline Williams on 260940.

The Stroke Association's Castle 2 Castle Cycling Challenge

between Berkeley Castle and Chepstow Castle on Sunday 11 October 2009

The Stroke Association is hoping to attract more than 100 cyclists for this exciting new event.

If you are looking for a team or family outdoor fundraising activity with a difference this Autumn then take part in the Stroke Association’s Castle to Castle Cycling Challenge between England & Wales, across the old Severn Bridge.

Cyclists can choose the 44 mile circular route from Berkeley Castle to Chepstow Castle and return or, if this is a little too far, then you can try the 22 mile route starting at Chepstow Castle and finishing at Berkeley Castle. Cyclists will leave each castle in groups starting at 9.15 am and finish in Berkeley at 5pm at the latest.

Most of the route follows the National Cycle Network routes 4 and 41 along country lanes. Enjoy a ride through the pretty villages of Gloucestershire and admire the stunning landmarks, such as Berkeley Castle, Chepstow Castle and the Severn Bridges.

At the halfway point en route, cyclists can stop off at the superb White Hart Inn in picturesque Littleton-upon-Severn for lunch and refreshments.

To take part, participants will have to pay a registration fee of £10 for individuals and £20 for a family (maximum of 5). As an individual you will have to agree to raise a minimum of £50 and as a family £90 for The Stroke Association.

Whichever route you choose, the Castle 2 Castle Cycling Challenge promises to be a great day out for you, your family or your team of friends or colleagues – and all to support people affected by stroke and their families.

For more information or to register contact Chris Welch on 0117 953 1200 or email: c2ccyclingchallenge@stroke.org.uk

Falfield WI News – September

Mickey Flight our vice president welcomed members and visitors to the meeting. She congratulated Margaret Keast on the safe arrival of a new great grandson.

11 members had entered items for the Thornbury horticultural show and gained the most points to win the WI cup. Margaret Gover received a special award for her patchwork quilt in the handicraft section and Jenny Jones received a special award for her madeleines in the cookery section. Jenny also won the cookery section with the most points.

We also gained the most points at the Berkeley Horticultural Show with 10 members entering and brought the cup back to Falfield.

After the business our evening was spent having a go at indoor curling helped and instructed by members of Stockwood WI. This proved great fun with everyone able to try their skills whatever their ability.

Our speaker next month will be Mr Philip Taubenheim who will be happy to talk about antiques. Members are invited to bring along items that could be of interest.

Bosom Buddies

So the van carrying out mammograms visited us earlier this year and as a result, several people were diagnosed with Breast Cancer. How fortunate we are to be able to have this test and to be diagnosed early so that treatment can be carried out as soon as possible with very good results. Bosom Buddies are here to help you at this difficult time, so please use us. Ring me and I’ll do all I can to help you. Meetings are held at 32 Oakleaze Road, Thornbury at 7.30pm. – the next one being on 21 October.

From 10am – 1pm Bosom Buddies are holding their Annual Coffee Morning on 21 October, so everyone is invited to come along and help us raise money which is used to buy equipment for the Breast Unit at the BRI, and also help our members where necessary.

Tel 01454 884177 for further details.

26th ROCKHAMPTON HORTICULTURAL SHOW

The 26^th Show of the Rockhampton Horticultural Society took place in the Village Hall on September 5^th. The changeable weather caused some problems during the growing season, but exhibitors managed to produce some good examples of flowers, fruit and vegetables. The handicrafts and children’s classes were well represented, and the newly introduced Open Class of a vase of dahlias resulted in some fine collections.

The Rockhampton Society cup winners were:-

Pat Child –The Marie Ball Cup for the most points overall.

Jim Bennett – The Runner’s-Up Cup for the next most points overall.

Pat Child – The Jean Bennett Memorial Cup for the most points in the Floral Arrangements, Preserves,Cakes and Handicraft classes.

Jim Bennett – The John Child Memorial Cup for the exhibit judged “Best in Show” in the fruit and vegetable classes.

Beth & Tony England – The Reg Riddiford Memorial Cup for the most points in the Dahlia Classes.

Aggie Barnes – The John Child Junior Cup for the most points in the children’s classes.

The Children’s winners were:-

Aggie Barnes – Voucher for most points in the under 7 years old classes.

Benjamin White-Horne – Voucher for most points in 8 years and up to 14 years

The Open Class winners were presented with vouchers kindly donated by Eastwood Garden Centre:-

Elaine Hodge (Pilning) 1st Prize

Mervyn Jacobs (Pilning) 2nd Prize

Gwyn & Mike Finding (Rockhampton) 3rd Prize

The Garden News Top Tray Award:-

Jim Bennett – 1st Prize

Pat Child – 2nd Prize

Charles Eardley-Wilmot 3rd Prize

The Garden News Top Vase Award:-

Gwyn & Mike Finding – 1st Prize

Jim Bennett – 2nd Prize

Penny Dommett – 3rd Prize

Proceeds from the show this year are for the Great Western Air Ambulance

It's walking men!

If you have seen the adverts for the Men's Walking Weekends you may have asked some of these questions: Where do they walk? Why do they walk? Who walks? How far do they walk? Since we joined the church some 30 years ago we have enjoyed many walks of one sort or another led by many people and have walked in some wonderful areas around our lovely countryside and have been richly blessed.

Where do they walk? Recently we have walked the Lake District, Peak District,

Brecons, Pembrokeshire, Shropshire, Dartmoor and the Jurassic Coast near Lyme Regis. We are fortunate to live on this beautiful island and as we walk we marvel at God's creation and the beauty and majesty of it.

Why do they walk? We fellowship with each other as we walk. eat together and chat. It is good to know each other better and in the past few years we have listened to our life stories. Often I would attend the passing of an elderly friend only to discover that I knew little of their life story, I realised how my life could have been enriched by sharing experiences this side of heaven. We have had some wonderful evenings being amazed at the talents, travails and travels of our fellow walkers. I have been blessed by a deeper understanding of these life journeys - always something new to learn, appreciate and treasure.

Who walks? Most come from TBC, the rest mainly from St Mary's and St Paul's. Most are regulars from the Men's Breakfast programme. Age is no barrier with our age range 30 to 70 - it would be great to welcome more younger members to come with us. Accommodation is basic bunk houses where possible or hostels, usually in lovely out of the way places.

How far do they walk? On the average weekend we complete 3 walks and cover 20 to 25 miles, depending on the terrain and how many ice cream and cream tea stops we make. Some are not as fit as we used to be and since our motto is to enjoy rather than endure', we accommodate all levels of enthusiasm - some return early for an ice cream or cream tea, whilst others trudge on to the end, but we all enjoy the effort, exercise and fellowship.

Dartmoor is our next destination in September with our Saturday walk being led by Brian Maddocks of Brixham Baptist Church and, for 30 years, an official guide with the Dartmoor National Park. Also our host at the Dartmoor Expedition Centre near Widdecombe-in-the Moor, John Earle, a retired BBC travel and expedition presenter and cameraman, will be telling us of his exploits on Saturday evening. That is of course after we have enjoyed the hospitality and excellent food of the Rugglestone Inn. It's tough at the top - roughing it as we do!

Why do we walk? Well, it is good fun, good food, good fellowship and awe inspiring. I should also have mentioned that each morning we have a thought for the day and on Sunday after breakfast we celebrate communion as we give thanks for our amazing God and His amazing creation. Come and join us on Dartmoor on 18th to 20th September - you will be very welcome - contact Ian Baker 01454 418187.

Ian Baker

Tytherington

Gymkhana Society

Come and Celebrate a Successful 41st Horse and Dog show

at our Annual General Meeting

Tuesday 20th October. 8pm at the Swan Pub, Tytherington (Barn room).

The committee would like to thank all those people who made the 41st Annual Charity Horse and Dog Show a great success (even though we did not manage to run a Dog Show this year).

We are grateful to all those who helped to organise, set up, and run the event; to those who bought and sold raffle tickets; ran stalls; sponsored classes and cups, and to all those that attended on the day. It would not have been the success it was without the support of the community and some excellent luck with the weather (again)!

We would like to extend and invitation to all, to attend our annual general meeting. Come and share a drink with us. Hear about the success of the day and be part of sharing out the proceeds to the main charity, Hammer Out and local organisations and good causes.

A few people are resigning from the committee this year, having been involved for many years. For the event to continue next year we are in desperate need of some more willing volunteers to take on tasks e.g. run the raffle, run skittles for a pig and to take on other roles that would suit people with experience with horses and/ or dogs.

For more information, please contact:

Sian Mann (sec) on 01454 412026 (e-mail sian_mann@hotmail.com) preferably by the 20th October 2009.

Kids Are Quick

TEACHER: Maria, go to the map and find North America .

MARIA: Here it is.

TEACHER: Correct. Now class, who discovered America?

CLASS: Maria.

TEACHER: Glenn, how do you spell 'crocodile?'

GLENN: K-R-O-K-O-D-I-A-L'

TEACHER: No, that's wrong

GLENN: Maybe it is wrong, but you asked me how I spell it.

THE OLDBURY CALENDAR

IS BACK !!

2010 Calendar: Celebrations

through the Ages

12 full pages showing

a variety of celebratory events

with pictures from 1904 to 2009

Each calendar has a full colour cover, black and white images month by month and an envelope

for posting

£6.25 each, £18 for 3, £29 for 10

To order

Contact : Allan Knapp on 413396

Mike Prophet on 411154

Andrew Gazard on 412153

Cash on collection/delivery, please

PLAN NOW FOR THAT SPECIAL LOCAL GIFT

Copies available soon: order yours now !

Christian Comment

Harvest

‘We plough the fields and scatter the good seed on the land,

But it is fed and watered by God’s almighty hand’.

So goes the well-known harvest hymn; but there is a deep truth here. Whether we like or not, we are actually dependent on God in all that we do in life. Yes, we do our part (ploughing, scattering, or whatever our work may be) but, without God, nothing will grow, as it is God who sends the rain and causes the sun to shine. For God, as the hymn goes on to say, ‘only, is the Maker of all things near and far’. Humanity and the entire natural world are God’s creation. The key question is (and this goes to the heart of what Harvest is all about) ‘how will we respond to all that God has given us? Again the hymn helps.

‘We thank you then, O Father, for all things bright and good,

The seed-time and the harvest, our life, our health our food’.

Thankfulness is one of those things in life that is in short supply. It is so easy to grumble and complain; about the government, that we aren’t paid enough, that life is not going our way. But if we stopped for a moment and called to mind all those things we have, we might think a little differently. We live in a beautiful, peaceful country that is generally well-ordered -imagine living in Afghanistan right now! If you own a car, then you are part of only 8% in the world that does, one of so many, many things to be thankful for – all that God has given us.

But there is one other thing that is worth mentioning in terms of our response to God. Not only are we to be thankful people, but we are to be people who offer something back to God. We have been given so much, we have enough food to eat and clothes to wear, but what else does God require of us? Our lives. God wants to be involved in our lives. God wants us to give them to over to Him so that He is in the driving seat. God wants us to live our lives for him so that when the ‘final harvest’ comes, we will be part of his kingdom and safe in his storehouse.

Bruce Goodwin