All are welcome to our Harvest Supper on Saturday October 5th from 6pm-9.30pm.
Tickets are available at each of the churches
Adults £10, children (under 16) £5
There will be entertainment and a raffle.
If you can offer to be part of the entertainment, please let Kris know: warden.stgeorges@badshotleaandhale.org
We’re delighted to report that our new Clothing Giveaway, which takes place every Monday morning at St Mark’s, has got off to an excellent start. Every Monday we open the doors to the church at 9am for people who would like to select some clothes for them and/or their families, totally free of charge. We also serve coffee, tea, squash, cake or similar in a café in the Community Centre part of the church, again free of charge.
The Clothing Giveaway is not just for people who are struggling financially, but for anyone, regardless of economic status. We want to encourage people not to spend so much on new clothes but instead to fill their wardrobes with good-quality second-hand clothing. We are also trying to encourage recycling so that old clothes do not end up in landfill (at the moment around 350,000 tonnes, that’s around £140 million worth of used but still wearable clothing, goes to landfill in the UK every year).
We take donations of old, goodquality clothes, shoes and baby equipment and are always happy to welcome volunteers to sort out the clothes. We usually sort on a Sunday afternoon. The Clothing Giveaway is being run in conjunction with the Hale Community Centre and is open at St Mark’s on Monday mornings 9-11am. Please look out your old, goodquality clothes and shoes for children and adults. You can bring them to church (in bags/boxes please) or bring them to St Mark’s on a Monday morning, or let Stella Wiseman know if you need them to be picked up: revd.stella@badshotleaandhale.org or calling 07842761919.
In response to the deepening divisions in the world and fear of conflicts escalating, there will be an interfaith gathering for women to pray for peace in Gostrey Meadow, initiated by the parish and the Ahmadiyyah Muslim Women’s Association, on Sunday, September 22nd at 2.30pm.
We invite all women, whatever your faith, to join us to pray for peace and greater understanding between nations, cultures and communities. Apologies that this is just for women, but this is in order to respect the Ahmadiyyah women’s culture. Please let us know if you have any questions and if you plan to come, by phone to 07842761919 or by email to revd.stella@badshotleaandhale.org.
Celebrate harvest with us in all three churches on September 22nd. At St John’s the service is at 9.30am, St George’s 10am and St Mark’s 11am.
St Mark’s we will include our normal Apple Day celebrations in the service and eat apple pie and other apple snacks after the service.
We are collecting tins and packets for Farnham Foodbank. The Foodbank especially wants tinned soup, instant mash, tinned rice pudding and custard, tinned potatoes, UHT juice.
It’s autumn , but while you might imagine that scarecrows can have a rest once the harvest is in, not so. Not only do they have to look after the newly planted winter wheat and other crops which are grown at this time of year, they may be called on to take part in a scarecrow drive or two?
A scarecrow drive? What’s that? It’s a seasonal beetle drive, where, instead of rolling a dice to collect parts of a beetle, you roll one to collect parts of a scarecrow. And we are holding one at St George’s on Saturday, September 21st from 5.30-8pm.
It’s a sociable evening suitable for all ages, and we’re throwing in a supper too for those who would like one. You need to pre-order and pay for it and the costs are: fish £10; chicken £9; sausage £6, veggie burger £7; all with chips. You need to let Kris Lawrence know by September 18th if you want to order the food. Click here to tell her. If you want to bring your own food, please do, but please still let Kris know if you are coming so that we know numbers.
There will also be a raffle and entertainment. Please let Kris know if you would like to take part in the entertainment.
St Mark’s will be buzzing next Saturday (21st) when we hold our Autumn Craft Market, starting at 10am and running until 2pm.
Come and browse the stalls for pottery, toys, handknits, cards, jewellery, candles, needlecraft and all manner of gifts. There is live music and a café to meet you friends and eat homemade rolls and cakes.
What’s more, you can see the beautiful Kitty Milroy murals, painted in the early 20th century and restored in 2021. These have been recognised as nationally important in the development of mural art and an exceptional example of the Arts and Crafts Movement.
It’s free to enter and always a lovely atmosphere.
Every year on the second Saturday of September—this year September 14th—the Surrey Churches Preservation Trust runs ‘Ride and Stride’. People are encouraged to travel between churches in the area and be sponsored to do so. You can walk, cycle, use a mobility scooter, drive, ride a horse, roller-skate, dance, play the fiddle, whatever is your preferred mode of transport.
This is a great way to raise money for our churches because half the money goes to the churches which participate and the other half to the trust which exists to stimulate interest in Surrey churches and to make grants for their repair and conservation.
Why not have a go? You can download a C1 sponsorship form from the trust as well as a list of Surrey churches.
We’re holding a scarecrow drive on Saturday, September 21st at St George’s, beginning at 5.30pm.
A what? Well, you’ve probably heard of a beetle drive, or even a snowman drive as we’ve held a few of those over the years. If not, or you need a reminder, at a beetle drive players sit round a table and compete to draw a complete beetle by rolling dice. Roll six to draw a body (which must be drawn first), five to add the head, three or four to add legs, two for antennae and one for a nose. In this case we will be rolling the dice to create a scarecrow.
The first player to complete their beetle yells ‘Beetle!’ (or ‘Scarecrow!’) and wins the round, earning points. The game typically includes multiple rounds, with players moving to different tables after each round, and the player with the most points at the end of the evening is crowed the winner.
The scarecrow drive will take place from 5.30pm to 8pm to enable younger children to take part. Tickets are £5 adults, £2.50 children. Bring your own food and drinks, or pre-order and pay for fish £10; chicken £9; sausage £6, veggie burger £7; all with chips. Please pre-book so we know numbers. Let Kris Lawrence know (warden.stgeorges@badshotleaandhale.org) by September 18th.
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For those of you keeping track of our recruitment activities, you will know that the closing date for second round of advertising for the post of Rector of Badshot Lea and Hale was in early August. I am disappointed to report that we had no applications, although I have to admit that I am not totally surprised as most parishes take a year to 18 months to fill a vacancy because of the shortage of available clergy.
We will embark on the third round of advertising soon with a view to interviewing in early January and having someone in post just after Easter 2025. Especially with this type of role, it is about finding the right person at the right time in their ministry and we continue to pray that God will send us the right person at the right time.
I am pleased to report that the team managing the parish during the vacancy has settled into a sound routine and are ready for a long vacancy should that be the case.Â
That is not to say that we have not had our challenges, including Rev’d John Evans being unwell for so long. He is now on the road to recovery and leading our services again. We have also realised that Rev’d David Camp needs the support of an incumbent to complete the remaining two years of his training. While we will be sad that we will not see as much of him from September, we are fully supportive of his move to Frensham as the right decision to help him along his ministry journey.Â
The news that the tower at St John’s is in a worse state than we thought adds another challenge to just doing the normal. Click here for details of fundraising.
My thanks to those across the parish who are pulling together to help us deliver business as usual to the best of our ability. If anyone feels that they can help contribute please contact either Stella or me.
Dave Walter
PCC lay vice-chair
We are heading for autumn which means it is Creationtide and time for our September magazine.
It’s a bumper month with lots going on: Creationtide, Harvest, a Scarecrow Drive, the Autumn Craft Market, a concert and cream tea in memory of Frances Whewell, a brand new clothing bank and café, an interfaith prayer event and the first of our Pet Services, as well as all the normal groups, events and services.
Inside you will also find news and reflections on what has been going on recently.
So sit down, relax and happy reading.
The Parish of Badshot Lea and Hale 