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Giving and Fundraising, Harvest, Services, St George's Church, St John's Church, St Mark's Church

Harvest!

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Come and celebrate the fruits of the earth and share with others at our harvest festivals on Sunday, September 26.

The services are at St John’s, Hale, at 9.30am, St George’s, Badshot Lea, at 10am, and St Mark’s, Upper Hale, at 11am. There will also be an online service here on the website and on Facebook available from 10am.

Please bring non-perishable food to church to share with Farnham Foodbank. Currently the Foodbank is in desperate need of tinned hot dog sausages, tinned stewed steak, tinned minced beef and fruit jam.

Rev’d Lesley Crawley says: “Harvest is a time when we not only celebrate the gifts of God’s earth, but think of others who are struggling to feed themselves and their families. This is a growing reality in Britain today, even though we are one of the most economically developed countries in the world. Obviously we want to give to help alleviate this need, but the church is also there to challenge and ask questions about why this should be the case and what we can do about it.”

Photo by Elaine Casap.

Services, St George's Church, St John's Church, St Mark's Church

Bring your pets to church!

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We are holding a pet service at each of our three churches on Sunday, October 3.

Bring your dogs, rabbits, rats, mice, gerbils, hamsters, spiders, snakes or whatever other pet you own for a blessing at any of the services – 9.30am at St John’s, Hale, 10am at St George’s, Badshot Lea, and 11am at St Mark’s, Upper Hale. Cats are obviously welcome too but tend to be difficult to herd into anywhere, let alone a church where there are other animals. If you like you can bring a toy pet or photo of your pet and children are welcome to come dressed as animals too.

Castle Vets, which has a branch at 131 Upper Hale Road, just up the road from St Mark’s (and where the Church Cat receives her excellent care), is kindly sponsoring the publicity for the services. You can contact them on 01252 718128 or visit www.castlevetsltd.co.uk/

“We decided to hold the service on October 3rd as it is a day which celebrates St Francis of Assisi who was known for his love of and care for animals and is often depicted with them,” says Rev’d Lesley Crawley. “We want to celebrate the joy of our pets as part of God’s creation, and give thanks for what they give to us. For many people having a pet is an enormous comfort and can help our mental health by reducing stress and anxiety. They can also be great companions especially to people who are on their own.

“We expect the services to be chaotic and great fun, so please come along!”

So bring your pet, and celebrate. You may just find yourself singing ‘All God’s creatures got a place in the choir’!

Picture by Hannah Lim on Unsplash.

Events, Giving and Fundraising, St John's Church

Hale Fayre hailed as great success

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The Hale Autumn Fayre was a great success.

Jeremy Hunt opened the fayre at St John’s Church, Hale, on Saturday, September 4th. He also led the singing as we wished the Head Girl from Farnham Heath End School a happy birthday. Along with her fellow students she was selling programmes.

Entertainment was provided by the  Farnborough U3A Ukulele band, Terry Owens singing songs of the 70s, and our church musicians, singing and playing a medley of songs and pieces. There was brisk trade at the many stalls and all parts of our community took part – Hale WI, Hale Derby and Joan, Parkinson’s UK, Usborne Book, Humblebee Gifts, by aspen crafts, Lizzie Marks and many more. There were plenty of takers for the tea and cakes, the barbecue and the beer.

Among the revellers was Cllr Sally Dickson, Councillor for Hale and Heath End, who drew the raffle, and the total raised by the afternoon was around £3,000.

Lesley Crawley said: “It was a wonderful event for the whole community with all ages taking part and enjoying themselves. The money we raised will go not just to maintain the churches in the parish, but to support community groups such as the toddler group and Connections, our fortnightly get-together for older people who might otherwise find themselves isolated. Our thanks to everyone who came and everyone who worked so hard to make it such a success.”

Here is a snapshot of what went on:

Belief, Bible, St John's Church

Joyful confirmation at St John’s

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There was a joyful atmosphere at St John’s Church on Sunday evening when we hosted a confirmation service at which the Bishop of Dorking, the Right Rev’d Jo Bailey Wells, confirmed 11 people from four parishes, including five from the Parish of Badshot Lea and Hale.

Freddie Brown, Ollie Beckett and Tracy Boyce from St George’s, Richard Myers from St Mark’s and Simon Alexander from St John’s were all confirmed in a service which also involved a baptism, renewal of baptismal vows and a lot of splashing of the congregation by Bishop Jo as a reminder of our baptismal vows.

In a sermon which reminded us of the importance of simplicity and rootedness, Bishop Jo preached on verses from Psalm 1 –
‘They are like trees
    planted by streams of water,
which yield their fruit in its season,
    and their leaves do not wither.
In all that they do, they prosper’ and Mark 9 –
 ‘Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me’.

Each of those being confirmed had arrived at the decision following their own path with their own stories, stories which Bishop Jo encouraged then to share over refreshments afterwards, refreshments which had been provided by a team from St John’s led by Sylvie Burrows.

If anyone would like details of confirmation or about exploring faith, contact Lesley Crawley. There will also be a new Questioning Faith’ series starting on Zoom on October 26, and running for six weeks. Again, contact Lesley.

Craft, Events, St Mark's Church

Come to the Craft Market

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This Saturday (September 18th) we are holding the third of our monthly craft markets at St Mark’s, Alma Lane, Hale, GU9 0LT, from 10am.

We will be busier than ever this month, with stalls ranging from crochet to dried flowers, jewellery to upcycled garden items, pottery to glass, Brazilian sweets to preserves, ceramics to cards, floral designs to silks, and plenty more besides.

Come and browse, come and support local creatives, come and enjoy tasty rolls and cakes, come and listen to live music, come and see the Kitty Milroy murals! It opens at 10am and runs until 2pm. Everyone is welcome.

Children and Youth

New Youth Minister in the Parish

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We have a new Youth Minister—Michelle Chapman.

Michelle will be a familiar face to the St George’s congregation, to those who attend Bible Book Club, or watch the Toddler services. She joined the parish just before lockdown and has become a key member already. Now she is stepping up her involvement by taking on the role of volunteer Youth Minister.

Over to Michelle for more:

My role as a youth minister

Having worked most of my adult life with children and youth why stop?

I love being a part of the lives of all children and young people. The work is challenging at times, but everyday is different and learning for me never stops. I am constantly learning new vocabulary and I have had my share of explaining some new words to some very elderly ladies, thinking ‘arrrgh, just how do I explain that one?’. One in particular sticks in my mind; do ask me when you see me. If you embarrass easily, then think beforehand!

I am very excited to be appointed as Youth Minister and have already enjoyed leading (with the help of many volunteers over the weeks; thank you to all) the communion-before-confirmation classes and confirmation classes. It great to see our young people develop their faith and discuss the big questions even though we don’t have the answers. It’s a privilege to see our young people progress onto the next part of their Christian journey.

My role will also involve developing the church school links, finding out what the church can do for the schools in the parish. It is a great opportunity to make a difference to the lives of young people within the parish.

The Youth Minister role cannot work without volunteers, so please do get involved where you can. We will be re-starting Messy Church in October and there is an exciting plan in the pipeline for a school-church link which will also involve volunteers during the school day. If you would like to get involved and make a difference to the young people within the parish, please do make contact and keep an eye open on the newssheet.

Every so often I will send out a plea, and even though this is my first write up, today is no exception: Please can you wash and save your single portion yoghurt pots and any glass jars big enough for a battery operated tealight.

Many thanks

Michelle Chapman

To contact Michelle, email michelle.chapman@ntlworld.com or call 07876115458.

Art, Children and Youth, Craft, Events, Harvest, LGBTI+, magazine, Social Events, St John's Church

The September Magazine is Out

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Our September magazine has just been published full of plenty to read and discover for this coming month.

We kick off with the Autumn Fayre (on Saturday, September 4, at St John’s Church, 12-4pm) then take a look at our new monthly craft market, get ready for Harvest, meet our new Youth Minister, have a think about Living in Love and Faith, and look forward to the Confirmation service on September 19. There’s a message from Anne Young in Cornwall, a huge thank-you to Wendy Edwards who is retiring, some thoughts on the changes ahead from the Church Cat and lots more, including local businesses who advertise and support us in our work.

To read all about it, download your copy below, or if you would prefer a printed version email the editor, Stella Wiseman.

September 21Download
gifts, support

Refugee donations

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With the Afghanistan refugee crisis escalating, many Afghans have fled their homes with few possessions and some of them are seeking refuge in this country. Farnham Help for Refugees is collecting donations to be distributed to refugees in and around London, and, thanks to an already overwhelming response, is now asking for just toiletries, men’s clothes and mobile phones.

If you can help, please bring donations to any of the church services – Sundays, St John’s at 9.30am, St George’s at 10am and St Mark’s at 11am; or Wednesdays, St Mark’s at 12pm, or drop them off at St John’s which is open during the day. There will be boxes available in each church. If you can’t come to the services but want to give, please call the administrator on 07842761919 or email admin@badshotleaandhale.org.

There will be a specific collection day later in the year; we will let you know when.

Thank you for your help.

Picture by Maria Teneva on Unsplash.

Events, Giving and Fundraising, News Releases, Social Events, St John's Church

Come to the fayre

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Come and join us at the Hale Autumn Fayre on September 4th at St John’s, Hale Road, 12-4pm.

There will be stalls, games, food and drink – a barbecue, bar, tea and cakes – a grand raffle with loads of prizes, and music. The fayre will be opened by Jeremy Hunt, MP, at 12pm, and Waverley and Farnham Councillor Sally Dickson will draw the raffle at 3.30pm.

Come and browse the stalls – everything from face creams to a bottle tombola, play games, eat, drink and be merry while listening to music by local musicians including two-thirds of Cajun Boogaloo; the Farnborough U3A Ukulele band; Wendy Edwards; Mary Klymenko; Frances Whewell; and Terry Owens, Football Club Ambassador for Aldershot Town and well known for keeping people going with his singing.

Buy a lucky programme and be in with a chance of winning a £50 voucher for Heaven’s Kitchen restaurant; buy a raffle ticket and you could win £100, or a host of other prizes including a £50 voucher for Daniele’s Sicilian Restaurant; browse gifts on the stalls; eat delicious cake or a burger; have a drink, and know that you are helping to raise money to support the church’s work in the community, including the setting up of a new youth hub at St John’s.

Join us from 12pm, Saturday, September 4.

Events, Giving and Fundraising, News Releases, Social Events, St John's Church

Autumn Fayre – we need your help!

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The Hale Autumn Fayre will be taking place at St John’s on Saturday, September 4, 12-3pm, and we need your help.

We already have lots of stalls planned, plus a bar, a barbecue and tea stall, and generous donors have given raffle prizes but we need more people to help with running the stalls and donating prizes.

We particularly need items for a bottle tombola – they don’t have just to be drinks but could, for instance, be shampoo or bubble bath – and the regular tombola. We need more raffle prizes and cakes. We also need more people to help on stalls, sell raffle tickets, and generally join in.

If you can help, please get in touch. Contact Stella Wiseman on 07842 761919 or admin@badshotleaandhale.org. You can also bring your donations to the back of St John’s Church or put them in The Ark (the old vestry).

Thanks! Let’s make it a great day!

Picture by Harry Grout on Unsplash.