NEWSLETTER

Be still and know that I am God Psalm 46, verse 10

May 2018

Chapel Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 1PR

Church Office Telephone: 01625 532600

E-Mail Address: wilmslow.urc.office@gmail.com

Web Site: www.wilmslowurc.org.uk

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Wilmslow United Reformed Church

A warm welcome is given to all those who worship with us and are friends of this community. If you normally worship

elsewhere, please give our greetings to your home Church.

Services during May 2018

Sunday May 6th 10.30am Morning Worship led by our Minister

Revd Dr Kirsty Thorpe and our Minister in Training John Grundy

4.00pm Messy Church

Sunday May 13th 10.30am Morning Worship led by our Minister

and our Minister in Training

Sunday May 20th Pentecost A farewell service for John Grundy

10.30am Morning Worship with Communion led by our Minister and our Minister in Training

Trinity Sunday May 27th

10.30am Morning Worship led by Eric Chilton

Sunday June 3rd 10.30 am Morning Worship led by our Minister

for enquiries contact Kirsty on 415281 or smithorpe@tiscali.co.uk

If you have special requirements for Communion e.g. gluten free bread please contact Sandra Dalton

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Bible Readings - Sundays in May 2018

On the first Sunday in May we explore the invitation to love and the responsibilities of true friendship as we read of Jesus’ command to his disciples to love one another as he has loved them. The greatest expression of love is to lay down your life for your friends.

Sunday 13th May is the beginning of Christian Aid week and the Gospel reading focuses on God’s protection as Jesus prays for his disciples before his arrest. He asks that the disciples may be one as he is one with the Father and sanctified in the truth. We pray for all who will be witnessing to God as they knock on doors and talk to people about the work of Christian Aid.

Both the readings on Pentecost Sunday celebrate the work of the Holy Spirit in sharing God’s word with the world. The Spirit, illustrated by fire and wind, crosses boundaries of culture and language to bring people God’s reassurance and ongoing guidance. This can encourage us as we continue our mission within the local community here in Wilmslow.

The final Sunday in May is Trinity Sunday when we explore how we experience God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus tells Nicodemus that for someone to enter the kingdom of God, it is necessary for them to be born of water and the Spirit.

We can read these passages and reflect on what they mean for us, as we try to show the love of God to those we meet, day by day.

May 6th John 15: 9-17 Acts 10: 44-48

May 13th John 17: 6-19 Acts 1: 15-17, 21-26

May 20th John 15: 26-27; 16: 4b-15 Acts 2: 1-21

May 27th John 3: 1-17 Isaiah 6: 1-8

Fiona Wood

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Dear Friends,

The past few months have been very difficult for some major British charities which work in the world’s poorest communities. It all began with accusations that Oxfam employees had visited prostitutes in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The charity denied a cover up had taken place but the Charity Commission began an investigation and other complaints about sexual harassment among charity workers came to light. Some Oxfam supporters stopped their financial support. Other development and emergency relief charities were accused of condoning abuse and it was suggested that ‘predatory men’ see aid work as an easy way in to abuse others.

Back in February, when all these stories began, I wondered how the staff at Christian Aid were feeling. Haiti is the focus country for this year’s Christian Aid week appeal - a choice which was probably made sometime last year, well before the aid scandal burst into the headlines. Christian Aid week is a very important, high profile fundraising event for the British churches’ charity, and without it the charity’s finances would be seriously depleted. The last thing anybody needs is for something to deter church collectors and willing donors from supporting this major, annual house to house collection.

Haiti is somewhere Martin and I visited in 2011 at the request of Christian Aid to see for ourselves how rebuilding after the earthquake was progressing. That means I know something about the problems Haiti was facing, even before the devastation wreaked by Hurricane Matthew in 2016. If ever there was a country where things go wrong, and nothing is easy, then it’s Haiti. The 2010 earthquake, which killed over 200,000 people, left many homeless and internally displaced people. Large numbers of them were drawn to refugee camps in Port au Prince, the capital, hearing the rumour that all camp residents would be rehoused. During our visit we heard how well-intentioned international aid charities, with no background in Haiti, were working in the camps and repeating one another’s mistakes with depressing frequency. The camps showed little sign of emptying, or of conditions improving, for the thousands of people still living there.

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Happily, Christian Aid has been spending its time and our money on other things in Haiti over recent years. One major focus has been to ‘build back better’ as new homes have been offered to those uprooted by the earthquake. Martin and I saw some of these sturdy, though basic, houses during our visit and saw the joy on people’s faces when moving into such relative luxury. When Hurricane Matthew hit Haiti one beneficiary, Vilia, who now lives in a new Christian Aid built home was able to offer refuge to her neighbours as their homes were demolished by high winds and rain. Incredibly, Vilia gave no less than 54 people shelter on the night of the storm. Marcelin, another Haitian whose story features in Christian Aid Week, was not so lucky. Having lost his home and livestock in the hurricane he and his three teenage girls now live in a concrete shower block. He worries about them and can no longer pay their school fees. They worry about his health as he tries to keep providing for the family.

The list of challenges facing Haiti is long – everything from cholera to deforestation, from malnutrition to a lack of accountable leaders. The Haitian people, though are some of the most friendly and resourceful people you’ll ever meet. Let’s find a way to improve their future this Christian Aid Week, and to reassure people that Christian Aid’s work is well worth supporting. Thank you in advance.

Kirsty Thorpe

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Wilmslow Historical Society APRIL 1918

SEVEN MORE LOCAL MEN LOSE THEIR LIVES AS THE KAISER'S SPRING OFFENSIVE CONTINUES

April was marked by a resumption of the German offensive and reorganization by the Allies. Faced with defeat they had hurriedly called for a crisis conference on 26th March. At the bidding of Lloyd George and General John Pershing, Haig finally agreed to bypass the pessimistic Pétain and serve under General Ferdinand Foch as "Generalissimo". (He was later given the title of Commander in Chief of Allied Forces.) Foch's appointment came just in time and French reserves were directed to help the British. Also Pershing now agreed to help out - thousands of Americans were pouring into France every week, but he had been reluctant until now to let them fight, relatively untrained in a piecemeal way with a non-unified Allied force.

The German assault petered out as they approached Amiens over the wilderness of the old Somme battlefields. John Keegan writes "the Somme may not have won the war for the British in 1916 but the obstacle zone it left helped in 1918 to ensure they did not lose it". On 4th April a British/Australian counter-attack convinced Ludendorff "Operation Michael" had run its course.

On 9th April Ludendorff now inaugurated a subordinate scheme, "Operation George",

against the British in the battle of Lys in Flanders. He was determined to take the supply lines and ridges near Ypres and push us back to the Channel ports just 60 miles away, thus taking us out of the war. Initially they were successful and advanced 10 miles - heartbreakingly we lost Passchendaele Ridge on the 16th. However, our front line here was the strongest on the Western Front. We knew every nook and cranny. By 29th April the offensive had petered out - German casualties were twice those of the Allies. Stout organized defence was our watchword characterized perhaps best on the 12th by Haig's eloquent "Backs to the

General Ferdinand Foch

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Wall" order. It read "With our backs to the wall and believing in the justice of our cause, each one of us must fight to the end. ..... Every position must be held to the last man. There must be no retirement."

The month was characterized by a number of other "firsts". Numerically we began to gain ascendancy in the air. On the 1st, the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service were disbanded and the RAF was formed. On the 24th at Viller Bretonneux the first tank versus tank battle took place - a resounding British victory.

One of the most noted events in April was the death in action on the 21st of the "Red Baron", Manfred von Richthofen at Vaux-sur-Somme; leader of the Flying Circus and with 80 victories in aerial combat, the highest ranking ace of the war, he was possibly hit by a bullet from the ground fired by an Australian machine gunner.

As fatalities mounted on both sides, Wilmslow was to lose 7 young men this month.

On the 12th Private George Harold Cooper, 1st/8th battalion Manchesters (302248) died aged 20. He is buried at St Sever Cemetery Extension, Rouen and commemorated in St Bart's, in a family grave in the churchyard and on the civic memorial. He had lived at Chancel Lane, the son of George and Elizabeth Cooper.

St Chad's and Handforth memorials mark the passing of Private Joseph Beard, aged 25, on the 17th. Serving with the 9th Cheshires (50359) he is interred at Mendinghem Military Cemetery, Poperinge, 10 miles north west of Ypres. He was a milk driver lodging at Outwood Farm, Handforth in 1911.

Lance Corporal George Greenall (1895 - 1918) of the 11th Cheshires (16985) won a Military Medal for his bravery at the battle of Lys, but died on the 20th. His step-parents, Herbert and Eliza Lamb, lived in Lady Field Terrace, but by 1915 George was married to Edith Annie and lived at 11 Elizabeth Street, West Gorton. He had been a shop assistant and

The Red Baron

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is remembered on the memorials in Wilmslow and Tyne Cot (no known grave).

The Military Medal for bravery in battle also went to Private Arthur Wrench (1895 - 1918) on the 26th. Killed in action on the Lys he initially joined the Royal Horse Artillery but was transferred to the 10th Cheshires (16026). Having no known grave his name appears at Tyne Cot, on the civic memorial and inside St Bart's. He was the son of William and Harriet, one of 3 brothers to perish on the Western Front (Ernest and Fred). He had been a farm labourer and was married to Charlotte, living near Crewe.

St John's Lindow and Wilmslow memorial record the passing of Private Frank Arnold Hardy (1885 - 1918) on the 30th. He had lived with his wife, Beatrice, at 6 Lindow Terrace, Row of Trees and worked in the retail trade. Serving with the 9th Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, he is buried at Rue-Petillon Military Cemetery, Fleurbaix.

The 30th also marked the death of Sapper Daniel Edwards, who died of his wounds aged 34. His grave can be found at St Sever Cemetery Extension, Rouen near that of G H Cooper. St Bart's family grave and memorial as well as the nearby civic memorial depict his name. His brother Rupert was to die on 30th September. A former member of the Cheshires he transferred to the Royal Engineers 256th Tunnelling Company. His family lived in South Oak Lane where he had been a domestic gardener.

The third Wilmslow man to fall on the last day of the month was Lt Roland Henry Brewerton (1891 - 1918) of the 8th King's Liverpool regiment. He was the son of Constance and William (a renowned organist and music teacher) from Albert Road and in 1911 Roland was a music teacher himself, living in Whitchurch, Shropshire. He appears on St Bart's and the civic memorial, as well as at Tyne Cot (no known grave).

Jon Armstrong and Alan Cooper

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Newsletter Report from the Elders’ Meeting in April

A full agenda began with discussion on car parking issues for the church and its neighbours. There are hopes that the public buildings in our part of town can cooperate in future on parking management. More discussion will take place at the May Elders’ meeting.

Church Safeguarding Coordinator, Valerie Searby, presented updates in the 2018 policy. We need good recruiting practices for volunteers in all church activities. The list of people now registered with DBS (Disclosure and Barring System) is almost complete. We plan to offer training in Internet safety. Valerie urged us all to raise awareness about safeguarding so that our church buildings and activities may be safe and secure places for all.

Wilmslow Youth (WY) hopes to become a charity, maintaining links with us and Life Church. This would enable them to apply for wider funding and establish their work in new ways. A resource journal designed by Matt and Gemma for young people is under development, while a youth counselling service in the undercroft and a Youth Alpha course are also in the pipeline. The Elders were impressed by WY’s flow of original and exciting ideas.

Property team reported on the almost complete refurbishment ‘snagging list’. A premises group set up by the Elders is considering all we need to run our buildings in the future.

Kirsty and Michael Williams had attended the March Synod meeting. Little discussion had taken place about Missional Partnerships as this appears to be the accepted way forward. Most time was given to a revised Synod Manse Policy. This is being studied in detail by Elders, Finance and Property teams and a report will come to Church meeting. Synod’s purpose remains the same: to get all manses into the Synod Manse Scheme. One positive statement is that ‘Ministers currently living in a manse will continue to do so if the manse is transferred into the scheme – they will not be expected to move’.

Other items included John’s Induction and Ordination on Saturday 4 August at 2pm at St Andrews URC, Brockley, SE London, the crèche,

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Wilmslow in Bloom and the launch of our buildings as a Cheshire East Connected Community Centre on Friday 18h May from 4-6pm.

Please note date of next Church Meeting is Sunday 15th July at 12 noon.

Liz McGuire

Showing respect with information

There have been plenty of scare stories around recently showing the value of personal information in our world and the importance of handling people’s data with respect. This month the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force. It replaces the existing law on data protection and gives individuals new rights and safeguards in the way organisations keep information about them.

The churches are covered by this new law and the Elders will be in charge of seeing we respond correctly. To start with, we need to compile a full list of all the personal information (such as addresses, phone numbers, emails) held by Wilmslow URC and by those running church groups and activities. Some information, which we should not be holding onto, will need to be disposed of properly. Other things can be kept as part of our historical records or for important future reference such as safeguarding issues.

The important thing to remember is that the church only holds people’s personal information in strict confidentiality and with their consent. We will need to adopt a Privacy Statement and to make sure that all members and adherents are given the opportunity to sign a consent form allowing us to hold data about them in future. We will discuss how to limit the information in the ‘Church Family List’ to those within the congregation and how to collect and dispose safely of old copies.

One thing that will change a lot is the way we share sensitive personal information – for instance when people are unwell. In future this sort of news will only be shared when the person concerned has given us their explicit agreement for that to happen. This is going to make a big difference to our ‘Personally Speaking’ newsletter column. We don’t want to lose touch with one another’s lives but we will need a

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different way of keeping in touch. You may not realise that the website edition of the newsletter omits Personally Speaking already to protect personal privacy.

Doug, Hilary and I have talked about the sharing of personal news in the printed newsletter at length and we now propose a new model of Personally Speaking. In future we would like people to submit information about themselves which they are happy to share. This can include birthdays (not just the ‘big’ ones), anniversaries, changes of job, awards, sporting achievements, holiday stories, charitable activities, journeys undertaken and personal challenges met.

Such information can be emailed to the newsletter – wilmslowurc.newsletter@yahoo.co.uk – on the clear understanding it’s likely to be printed, subject to editing if necessary. In this way we can observe both the spirit and the letter of the GDPR guidelines. Let’s see how this approach works for a few months as we explore new ways of being God’s family in this place.

Kirsty Thorpe

St Andrew’s URC, Brockley

with St Michael’s URC, New Cross

Invite you to the Ordination and Induction of

John Grundy

on Saturday 4th August 2018 at 2pm

at St Andrew’s United Reformed Church

Brockley Road, Brockley, London, SE4 2SA

Followed by light refreshments

Service led by the Moderator of Southern Synod:

Rev Nicola Furley-Smith, Preacher: Rev Dr Rosalind Selby

Principal of Northern College

If you would like to attend the service or be part of the 24 hrs of prayer before hand please contact John Grundy directly at johnrg75@gmail.com

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News From Llanfair, Penrhys

Holy Week was busy at Llanfair, beginning with Sunday School and Family Worship on Palm Sunday afternoon. On Holy Monday, we were delighted to welcome the children and staff of Penrhys Primary School for our Easter Service. The younger children proudly wore their home-made Easter bonnets. We sang, prayed and listened to our minister, Peter Noble, sharing the Easter message. Rebecca and Miara spoke about how Palm Sunday is celebrated in Mizoram, N.E. India and Madagscar. It was a very special, uplifting occasion for everyone.

We had a morning service on Holy Tuesday, led by Peter and on Holy Wednesday, led by our friend Eileen Gardiner, who is the Methodist representative on Llanfair’s Sponsoring Body. On Maundy Thursday morning, we enjoyed a cuppa and chat at the Penrhys Primary School Easter Coffee morning. Then in the afternoon, a group of us visited Millview Nursing Home, just a mile away from Penrhys. As a church, it is important that we outreach to the residents and staff of Millview, sharing the real meaning of Easter in song, reading the Bible, prayer and conversation. Later, we had a Light Tea with Communion in the Nurture Room (the upper room) to remember Jesus’s Last Supper with his disciples – a simple, very moving experience. After that, we went to watch and support the Penrhys children who took part in a dance performance with other groups at the local college, Coleg Morgannwg.

On Good Friday afternoon, we took part in a Pilgrimage (in the rain!) from the Amphitheatre to Mary’s Statue up to Llanfair. Easter Sunday morning started at 8 o’clock with a walk up the hill behind Penrhys to Bristol Tump (where we could see as far as the Bristol Channel as the weather was bright and sunny) where we had prayers and returned to Llanfair for a tasty breakfast, prepared by Rebecca – a lovely treat. In the afternoon, we had a special Easter Day service, followed by refreshments.

It was also a practical week with a group of enthusiastic volunteers giving the café a ‘makeover’, using lovely bright colours – orange and yellow. It looks lovely and fresh for the new term.

Sharon Rees

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Apologies and Thanks

Apologies (for not mentioning last month) and thanks must go to all the contributors who made the Quilt and Art exhibition such a fantastic success (raising £1000 for the Undercroft). These include members of the Quilting Group, the Friday Art Group, and all those who made and sold their wares in the Undercroft on the day. Not forgetting the members of the congregation who helped serve soup, set up, dismantle and run the event and everyone else who supported the event by coming or generously giving their time. Thank you to one and all.

The day after the exhibition my mum (Sylvia) and I went (wearing our new hats, bought at the exhibition, and full of chocolate cake also purchased there – it was Mothers Day after all!) to

a quilting exhibition at the Whitworth Art Gallery. It was very interesting to see a very different quilt made in Mharashtra (a state in Western India: the capital city is Mumbai). It is called a Godhari Quilt and it is a traditional quilt made by rural women from recycled fabrics.

The design is Panchamahabhuta and reflects the five elements of nature. According to the information in the gallery, the term Panchamahabhuta ‘comes from ancient Indian philosophy which described all creation, both living and non-living, as composites of five fundamental elements, the panchamahabhuta: space/sound; air/touch; fire/sight; water/taste; and earth/scent. Each element in the quilt is signified by a colour.’ I was struck by the randomness of the pattern and size of the pieces of cloth compared to the quilts I had seen at the exhibition. Thanks again for a very special weekend.

Juliet Harris

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On Saturday 19th May Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle will celebrate their marriage at a ceremony in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor. Some members of our congregation at WURC would love to join in the celebrations, and so the opportunity has been taken to hold a fund-raising event as we do just that. The event will take place in our lovely new Undercroft, where the proceedings will be available to watch on the big screen between 10.30am and 2pm, allowing us to watch the build up to the main event, the ceremony itself, and the departure of the happy couple and their guests from the chapel. Tickets are now available from Marshal, Wendy, Sonia and Carole, and cost £10 each. The cost of the ticket includes tea, coffee or soft drink (available from 10.30am), lunch (served from 12 midday), and a glass of ‘something fizzy’ with which to toast the happy couple. Smart dress (lovely wedding hats ladies?) is optional, but would really contribute to the whole celebratory atmosphere. All proceeds from the event will be in aid of church funds. Please bring along family and friends if you would like to join us. Fifty places are available for this event so please purchase your tickets as soon as possible to secure your place.

We look forward to seeing you there,

Carole, Marshal, Sonia and Wendy

Royal Wedding on the Big Screen 19th May

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Christian Aid Week 13th to 19th May

As you read this, we will be in the run up to Christian Aid Week. The board is up in the Church vestibule, and it will be filling up fast – hopefully!

If you have not yet signed up, please consider doing so. Perhaps you could ask a friend to help with delivering and collecting the envelopes?

Every collector really counts. Please be involved by collecting, giving, or praying.

Read Marcelin's story at: https://www.christianaid.org.uk/christian-aid-week/marcelins-story

Dorothy Duguid and Carolynne Powell

Lent Lunches - total raised

This year’s Churches Together in Wilmslow Lent Lunches have already raised a very good sum to get our annual collection off the ground for Christian Aid week. Over five weeks of homemade soup, bread, cheese and fruit lunches the grand total was £1,200.

Local organiser Cathy Fozard said this is by far the best amount raised in recent years during Lent. No doubt the warm welcome and easy parking at Dean Row Chapel had something to do with this.

Kirsty Thorpe

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Ministerial Review

It is now time for the annual Ministerial Review. Questionnaires will be available next Sunday, 6th May, from Liz McGuire. This is your opportunity to comment on the nature of ministry within and by this church and responses from as many members as possible are requested.

Please help with this Work of Ministry.

Liz McGuire

Book Club

At the next meeting (May 14th) we will discuss ‘The Wonder’ by Emma Donoghue. Most of Donoghue’s books are historical novels based on true cases, but this novel is based on her fasination for the Fasting Girl phenomenon. An English nurse goes to a small Irish village to observe what appears to be a miracle, a girl said to have survived without food for months. Tourists and

journalists also arrive. It is a tale of two strangers who transform each others lives.

At the following meeting on Monday July 9th we will discuss ‘The Zanzibar Wife’ by Deborah Rodriguez who also wrote the international bestseller ‘The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul’. ‘The Zanibar Wife’ is set in the ancient land of Oman, land of frankincense, windswept deserts and turquoise seas. Into this nation come three remarkable women, each facing a crossroad in their life.

The Zanzibar Wife is a story of clashing cultures of secrets and of the revelations of the author.

Pat Crewe

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Ten-Pin Bowling

The trophy winners at the Easter bowling were-

Junior trophy - Emma Jackson

Senior trophy - James Jackson

The little Donkey - Sophie Moss

Thank you to everyone who joined the bowling group, a fun time was had by all.

Cliff and Pat Crewe

Laurence Singers Concert at WURC - Sat 9th June 7.30pm

Please see on next page the brightly coloured flier advertising the next concert by my choir the Laurence Singers. Whilst you might say it is a classical programme containing two fairly well known and well-loved pieces –Monteverdi’s ‘Beatus Vir’ and Hubert Parry’s ‘Blest Pair of Sirens’ the final item, Bob Chilcott’s ‘A Little Jazz Mass’ is hardly so.

The programme is completed by Pergolesi’s ‘Stabat Mater’. The theme of this work is the Crucifixion and the reaction to it by Mary the mother of Jesus. Though this is a serious theme there are several bouncy choruses and some exquisite solos and duets for soprano and alto soloists. The organist is our very own Richard Brocklehurst.

The concert hopes to draw out how choral music has changed over the five centuries between the 17th and the 21st Centuries. Although the programme is more serious than our usual ones, ‘Beatus Vir’ is bright and upbeat; ‘Blest Pair of Sirens’ is stirring in the way only the same writer of ‘Jerusalem’ could be, whilst many will remember our rendition of ‘A Little Jazz Mass’ from the Jazz music concert a little time ago. Do come – tickets are £9 (£8 concessions) and include a glass of wine or soft drink. They are available from me and there will be a raffle too.

Cliff Crewe

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Lunchtime Recital Thursday 24th May 2018

Our lunchtime recital series has been running for four years, our first recital being back in March 2014. In November of that year we had a visit from the Sterling Trio – piano, flute and clarinet and it proved very popular. Then the pianist was a young lady called Lauren Hibberd whom some will recall is the wonderful accompanist for my choir, the Laurence Singers. Since then Lauren’s married name is Turner and she’s just given birth to her second child so, in Lauren’s absence, the Sterling Trio welcomes a guest harpist, Elizabeth Bass (a very appropriate name for a stringed instrument player!).

The Sterling Trio presents our next recital on Thursday May 24th at 12 noon. Each player is an outstanding soloist in their own right but this combination of harp, flute and clarinet is quite beautiful and will provide an excellent hour of music. Elizabeth has won awards nationally and internationally, Tom, the clarinettist, plays with the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra whilst Sarah, the flautist is very busy with solo and ensemble work as well as teaching. She is very involved too with music in education and the wider community.

Their programme covers a wide range of music with pieces by Donizetti, Bax, Howard Blake (composer of the ‘Snowman’), Paul Reade – the Suite from the Victorian Kitchen Garden (which sounds very attractive) and two others.

Complimentary coffee is served from 11.30am. Ticket priced £5 are available from Cliff Crewe, Andrew Allen or the Church Office. Please do come and support our lunchtime series.

Cliff Crewe

Image from The Stirling Trio website

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The Halle Opus One Concert Series 2018-19

The 2017 -18 series of Halle Concerts has yet to finish (last concert Sunday 20th May) but already our attention is being drawn to next year’s

programme starting in September. There are nine concerts in the series and each one is performed three times in Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall, normally on Wednesday afternoons at 2.15pm, then on Thursday and Sunday evenings at 7.30pm at approximately monthly intervals.

A group from this Church goes on a Sunday evening. If you are interested in joining us, or wish to go on another day, and would like to take advantage of the group purchase scheme please ask Richard Banwell for more details of the concert programmes, dates and costs. Tel 522656. There’s a range of ticket prices, depending on the location of the seats, reasonable local car parking and possible transport sharing options.

The scheme requires concert goers to book for all nine concerts, but it is possible to pass tickets to family and friends – or exchange them for another date. In order to gain good discounts on our tickets we are required to commit for the series of nine concerts in early June.

Richard Banwell

Barnby Choir’s Summer Concert

The Barnby Choir’s summer concert will be in church at 7.30pm on Saturday 19th May. A fitting end to the day of the Royal Wedding!

The programme will include Eric Whitacre’s Lux Aurumque, Goodall’s 23rd Psalm, best known as the theme to The Vicar of Dibley, Schubert’s 23rd Psalm and other pieces of European Sacred Music.

Tickets available on the door or in advance from Anne Macdonald on 07810 517464 at £12 or £10 (Concessions).

Anne Macdonald

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Photos of the beautiful Easter Cross, the donkey

and the glorious spring flowers outside the

Church. Thank you to all those who brought and

organised the flowers on the cross inside church,

at Easter and on every other week of the year and

thanks to the gardeners. The flowers are always

wonderful and they are always appreciated and

admired. Thanks also to Ken Wallace and Wendy

Williams for the photos.

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A Family Day Out

We went to the ‘Blackcountry Living Museum’ during the Easter holidays. It was well worth a visit if you happen to be near Dudley. The TV series Peaky Blinders is filmed here. We saw this wonderful church caravan which pulled up at the side of the canal to minister to the families transporting goods down the canal.

http://www.bclm.co.uk/

Juliet Harris

Wilmslow Methodist Church - Film Nights 7.30 pm

MAY 13th – Wonder Based on a children’s novel about a child living with physical deformity and the challenge of the playground. JUNE 10th – The Diving Bell and the Butterfly Based on the memoirs of Jean Dominique Bauby, a Parisian Editor who suffers from ‘Locked-in Syndrome’ at the age of 43. 5* reviews

*** Films are followed by a short time of discussion *** Invite a friend. All are welcome!

Liz Mair

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Church Diary

May 2018

May 3rd 2.00pm Thursday Tots

May 8th 7.30pm Elders Meeting

May 9th 11.45am Mid – Week Reflections – Room A

May 10th 2.00pm Thursday Tots

May 13th – 19th Christian Aid Week

May 14th 2.00pm Admin. Team – Vestibule

May 14th 2.00pm Book Club – Room A

May 17th 2.00pm Thursday Tots

May 18th 2-4pm Connected Communities Centre launch

May 19th 10:30-2pm Royal Wedding celebrations

May 21st 2.00pm Monday Fellowship – Wiltshire Farm Foods

May 21st 7.30pm Outreach Team

May 22nd 7.30pm Property Team

May 24th 2.00pm Thursday Tots

May 24th 7.30pm Finance Team

June 2018

June 2nd 10.00am Elders Training

June 3rd 2.00pm Messy Church

June 4th 2.00pm Monday Fellowship – AGM followed by

Have Guitar Will Travel, Neil Smith

Copy for the June 2018 edition of the Newsletter should be emailed to

Juliet Harris (editor) and Trudy Shepherd (sub editor) at

wilmslowurc.newsletter@yahoo.co.uk

before Saturday 12th May

The Newsletter will be available on Sun 27th May 2018