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mag

azin

eSept2011

Your FREE copy, 30p where sold

OUT

LOO

KThe Sodbury Vale Benefice

Chipping Sodbury, Old Sodbury, Horton & Little Sodbury

Nora @ ninetySt John's Chipping Sodbury wasfilled with friends, family and well-wishers on the very day NoraHodgkinson celebrated her 90thbirthday - 7th August. We all wishyou continued health andhappiness as you head for yourcentenary.

And Nora says:

“Thank you to everybody for yourcards and good wishes on theoccasion of my "big" birthday.

Having said, "No presents,please" I am thrilled that we are

able to send £340 to theChildren's Society, which is

increased with Gift Aid. So, thankyou, thank you.”

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ContactsRector The Rev. Canon JaneKenchington, 01454 313159email jane@kenchington.plus.com

Assistant Curate The Rev. Val Bexon,01453 521417email:valeriebexon@onetel.com

Regular Weekly EventsSunday 9.00am Breakfast Club Church Centre Chipping Sodbury11.00am Brunch Bunch, Church Centre Chipping SodburyMonday 8.45am Morning Prayer, St John’s Chipping Sodbury7.30pm Bell Ringers’ practice Church Tower Chipping SodburyWednesday 8.30am Morning Prayer, St John’s Chipping SodburyThursday 8.45am Morning Prayer, St John’s Chipping Sodbury7.00pm Choir Practice, St John’s Chipping SodburyFriday 10.00am Tubbie Tots Church Centre Chipping Sodbury7.00pm Youth Club (age 11-18) Baptist Church Centre

ChurchwardensChipping SodburyPaul Jones-Williams1 Meadow Mead, Yate01454 324970Keith Stanley132 Harescombe, Yate01454 319467

Old SodburyVal Walker16A Melrose Avenue, Yate01454 318286Tony Dixon16 Chatterton Road, Yate, BS37 4BJ01454 321 528

Little SodburyNigel RawlinsLittle Sodbury House, Little Sodbury,BS37 6QA01454 312 269Nancy NagleWinchcombe Cottage,Little Sodbury End01454 319798

HortonTina Hildick-SmithKirrin House, King Lane, Horton01454 320380

Church OfficeOpen during term timeMonday, Tuesday & Thursday mornings9.00 - 12.0001454 325160Emailsodburyvalebenefice@gmail.com

Web Sitewww.sodburyvalechurches.wordpress.com

AdvertisingSylvia FranklinSt. John’s Church Centre07788 111 726

October DeadlinePlease can you have all editorial to

Michelle by September 15th.

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Dear Friends,

September already! The school holidays have ended, children are starting new schools andautumn is in the air. Towards the end of the month we begin to celebrate harvest with theround of services and harvest suppers - all good stuff!

We've been reminded in recent weeks that not all the people of the world will be enjoyinggood harvests this year. The famine in the Horn of Africa is leaving frighteningly high numbersof people desperate for food, with many people dying. Other parts of the world are enduringdroughts and failed harvests.

We, in this country, are fortunate. We are so fortunate that for many of us, most of thetime, we take it all for granted. We are used to having clean running water, food in the shopsand fruitful harvests of crops. At harvest time, we are reminded that everything comes fromGod and belongs to God. We are stewards of all that God gives us, not owners. It's ourresponsibility to share what God gives us.

We have committed ourselves to sending food to the Sisters of the Church in Bristol fortheir work with the people of St Paul's. We are seriously considering joining in with churchesin Chipping Sodbury and Yate to establish a Food Bank in Yate for those who fall on hardtimes. (You will find more about that initiative elsewhere in this month's magazine.) Theseare good things to be involved with. But they require us to think of buying that "extra tin"when we're out shopping and thinking beyond our immediate needs.

Why should we bother? Because God is a generous God who loves all that he has madeand calls us to share that love and generosity with others. If we are disciples of Christ, weare called to reflect that generosity of God in our own lives. And this extends beyond theharvest festivals to how we live all through the year.

A good exercise for each of us would be to take a hard look at ourselves and ask, "Howgenerous am I? How generous am I with the money God has given me? How generous amI with the life God has given me in terms of the time I give to others? How generous am Iwith the material goods God has given me?"

God loves a cheerful giver (2Corinthians 9:7)

With love and prayers,

Jane Jane Kenchington

Rev. Canon Jane, Kenchington, 01454 313159, email:jane@kenchington.plus.com

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Message from ournew Dean

We all like to receive invitations. Aninvitation can make us feel known,wanted and loved. At the moment I amreceiving more invitations than I canrespond to, as I begin ministry as theDean of Gloucester. I don't think peopleknow me yet but it's nice to think theymight want to get to know the Dean.

Going to church, or coming back tochurch, is so much easier if we areinvited. Back to Church Sunday, 25September, is a great day to invitesomeone you know to come with you tochurch. It will help them feel known,wanted and loved. It's so much easier togo with someone else, to beaccompanied and to feel you are notalone. This month, resolve to invitesomeone to go back to church, or ask afriend to come with you; go on, inviteyourself, for God knows you, wants youto come and loves you.

If we are offering invitations to comeBack to Church, then those of us whocome regularly, need to ensure church isinviting. We need the eyes of thenewcomer so that we can be sure thatour welcome is genuine and meaningful.

Why not invite someone you know fromanother church to visit for worship, andask them to reflect back on how it feelsand how you might become as invitingas possible? Make Back to ChurchSunday this year an invitation thatanyone can respond to.

Stephen Lake, Dean of Gloucesterwww.backtochurch.co.uk

Street PastorsMore volunteers are needed to join ourenergetic band of Street Pastors to helpkeep our town centre a pleasant place tobe on Friday and Saturday nights. If youcan help, or know someone who could,please contact Val on 01453 521417.

'FREE' lecture onbanking

The St Matthias Lecture 2011, "TheHBOS story and the lessons learned -putting faith and ethics into practice inthe world today". Paul Moore, formerhead of Group Regulatory Risk atHBOS, will speak and take questions.Chapel Lecture Theatre, UWE StMatthias Campus, Monday 17th October7.30pm. This event is free and is open toboth UWE staff and students and thecommunity: Tickets fromthelivingcentre@uwe.ac.uk. This event isa collaboration between The LivingCentre at UWE and the Diocese ofClifton Justice and Peace Commission.

Val's backFollowing twomonths of ministryplacement andholiday Val is nowback in full strideas this pictureshows. Afterspending time at StStephen's in Bristol and Holy TrinityTewkesbury she managed to grab a dayoff to walk with Bishop Michael on hisrecent pilgrimage.The 100 mile walk weaving through allDeaneries in the Diocese was completedby a core of 16 people with many morejoining along the way. The pilgrimagetook 7 days and visited 38 churches +one military chapel, worshipped at 35services, offered prayers on the way atmany other churches, did 7 earlymorning Bible studies and enjoyed thehospitality of parishioners throughout theDiocese.There were two people visiting from ourlink Diocese in El Camino Real,California and one from Vasteras inSweden and it rained, and it rained andthen they had showers and then theyhad sunshine - and a few more blisters

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Back to Church Sundaysin the Benefice

You may recall that I mentioned the"Back to Church" initiative in the letter Iwrote in the August edition of "Outlook".This is a national initiative and gives usthe opportunity to personally invitepeople to come to church with us on aparticular Sunday. Research has shownthat there are many people in ourcommunities who used to worship intheir local church and have just got outof the habit of doing so. A warminvitation from you might be all that'sneeded to help them join in with theirlocal church again. So please think andpray about who you might invite andthen dare to speak to the person/peopleconcerned. The worst they can say is"No, thank you."We felt that inviting people to our harvestservices would create a good opportunityand since all the churches are

celebrating harvest thanksgiving ondifferent Sunday, we'll have several"Back to Church" Sundays in theBenefice.

So the "Back to Church" Sundays are asfollows:

Sunday 18 September 11.30amat St Adeline's, Little SodburySunday 25 September 9.30amat St John's, Chipping SodburySunday 2 October8am and 9.30am at St John's, ChippingSodbury11.15am at St John's, Old SodburySunday 9 October 11.15amat St James', Horton

Invitation cards are available at the backof each of the churches. Please take oneand invite someone.

Jane Kenchington

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HOLIDAY HOME

Can I have some moreplease?

The garden of thevicarage was filledwith parishionersfrom throughoutthe Benefice onJuly 31st whenlunch was servedin true 'family'style. These children were obviouslyenjoying their lunch and appeared to beasking for 'more'.

Church Tower TripsAs part of Heritage Open Days, thechurch tower at St John's Parish churchChipping Sodbury will be open onSeptember 10th to all who wish to climbthe 139 steps to the top - for themagnificent view - FREE of charge.

This offers a unique opportunity toexplore the tower and to have a birds-eye view of the surrounding area from104ft above the town. This only happensonce a year so don't miss this greatopportunity.

St John the Baptist historic church datesback to the 13th Century although thebell tower wasn't constructed until the15th Century. This now houses 8 bellshung at 72ft, the newest two beinginstalled to celebrate the Millennium in2000.

The tower will be open for guided toursfrom 2pm - 4.30pm and there will behomemade cakes and refreshmentsavailable at ground level.

Crafts for KenyaWell done toall thechildren whoraised over£70 duringlent bycollecting 40tiny items.This has beenturned into a huge box of stickers, glitter,tissue paper and other artistic things. Allthe craft items will go to the TurningPoint Trust with Jon and Jo, when theyvisit the UK again over the summer, tobe used in working with local children inKibera. www.tptrust.org

Lip-reading classesYou are invited to come to lip-readingclasses to learn how to cope with yourhearing loss on Mondays 10 -12 startingon September 12th. The tutor is MaryHall - 07790 283939 - and they are heldat Old Grammar Rooms, ChippingSodbury and cost £21 for 6 weeks.lipreadingmary@yahoo.com

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email:info@funerals.uk.net www.funerals.uk.net

Private Chapels of Rest at Coalpit Heath & Yate

Local Family Cremationand Funeral Directors

118-120 Station Road,YateTel: (01454) 320005 24hr Service

Tel: (01454) 778838 24hr Service192 Badminton Road. Coalpit Heath

F. WOODRUFF

Crib Crew

For a week in August Val lead a creativecrew to develop a nativity scene basedon the Kibera experience. All sorts ofre-cycled material, loads of ingenuity andsome latent Blue Peter skills were putinto action. Watch out as the dreambecomes a reality!

Jam makers beware!Val is seeking clean jam jars for hernativity crib workshops, so there couldbe a shortage for jam makers in thecoming months. However, she is willingto accept all sorts of clean glass jarssuch as empty pickle, mayonnaise andprobably Brylcream jars, if they still exist.

Also being sought are washed (is thistautology?) plastic shampoo bottles andothers of this type - especially if theyhave some 'shape'.

Fabric, leather and camel hair sampleswould also be appreciated, especially ifthey might have been around over 2,000years ago.

Mini Gorilla at Large inOld Sodbury!

Old Sodbury School's gorilla, part ofBristol Zoo's 175th Anniversarycelebrations, is currently moving aroundthe village. It will be at St John's OldSodbury on Tuesday 30th of August, andwill be there until the school re-opens atthe beginning of Sept.

29 High Street,Chipping Sodbury

Tel: 01454 325124 Fax 01454 326611

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To make a reservation or for more details simply email enquiries@modahouse.co.ukor telephone 01454 312135

1 High Street, Chipping Sodbury, South Glos. BS37 6BA. www.modahouse.co.uk

Marriages:22 July 2011 at St John's, Old Sodbury:Elizabeth (Beth) Lawson & Paul Isaacs

30 July 2011 at St James' Horton:Charlotte Lowe and Leon Isaac

Funerals:

6 July 2011 at WesterleighCrematorium: Wilhelmina (Vilma) MariaAndrews19 July 2011 at WesterleighCrematorium: Kenneth James Evans1 August 2011 at St John's, ChippingSodbury followed by burial at ChippingSodbury: Eileen Mary Harris4 August 2011 at St John's ChippingSodbury, followed by burial at OldSodbury: Annette June Elizabeth Gilpin

3 August 2011: Interment of ashes at StJohn's, Old Sodbury: Roland and PhyllisSmith

St. John's Church Chipping SodburyMOTHERS' UNION are holding theiropening service (probably Evensong) onMonday September 12th at 7-30pm in StJohn's and we invite you all to join us,when our speaker will be the Rev. ValAbbott. Light refreshments will be servedafter the service.

PS. You don't have to be a member toattend, and we would like to see asmany friends as possible from the otherChurches of the Benefice. By joining usfor our service you might learn moreabout the work of the Mothers' Union

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Wotton-under-Edge

The RoweVeterinary Hospital

Bradley GreenWotton-under-Edge

GloucestershireTel: 01453 843295

Yate

Yate Veterinary Surgery9 Station Road

YateBristol

Tel: 01454 318016Thornbury

Thornbury VeterinarySurgery

3 Pullins GreenThornbury

BristolB35 2AX

Tel: 01454 425478Bradley Stoke

The RoweVeterinary Hospital

Bradley HouseFerndene

Bradley StokeBristol

Tel: 01454 275000

Much adoOur clergy'duo' areconstantlydoing 'muchaboutsomething' buton FridayAugust 5th

they revelled in doing nothing withWilliam Shakespeare. Much of it in factbrilliantly performed by the SodburyPlayers when they offered 'Much adoabout Nothing' in the picturesque settingof Camers at Old Sodbury.

As a result of the two performances,both 'sell-outs', over £900 was donatedto the Friends of Old Sodbury Churchand a futher £360 raised for Help forHeroes.

Mums & Dads go FREE!Duggie DugDug, the manwith very manyhelping 'hands'is performing onSunday 25thSeptember atCastle School, Park Road, Thornbury.

The puppet show with music, tricks andthrills is from 4pm - 5.30pm and ticketscost £4 for primary school age children -with younger siblings, mums and dadsFREE!.

A great show for all the family. The eventis organised by St Mary's, St Paul's andSt Arilda's churches in Thornbury.Please contact the church office 01454281900 or Jo on 01454 853213 forinformation and tickets.

The Barber Shop

Roger Franklin07855 887671

83 Broad StreetChipping Sodbury

BristolBS37 6AD

Opening HoursMonday-Friday: 9:30 am-5:00pmSaturday: 9:00am-3:00pm

Paul Franklin07772 789210

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Coffee morningThe Friends of Old Sodbury Church areholding a coffee morning at ChallacombeHouse, Perrin Pit Road, FramptonCotterell on Saturday 3rd September10.30 - 12.30pm.Apart from coffee there will be a greatselection of gifts, cards, plants andpreserves on sale - very good for earlyChristmas shopping.Please contact Ann Ward 01454 317050or Joyce Cairns 01454 314249 for moreinformation.

What do we know?There are known knowns. These arethings we know that we know. There areknown unknowns, things that we knowwe don't know. But there are alsounknown unknowns, things we don'tknow we don't know.Donald Rumsfeld

Lynn Edwards MA, MCIEH, MCIH

Domestic Energy AssessorTel: 07973 166 692or 01454 323 340

Email: office@lenergy-assessor.co.uk

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Changed Service Patternacross the Benefice

Following discussions in all the PCCs,the pattern of services across theBenefice will be changed a little from thebeginning of September. The reasonbehind the changes is to establishregular types of service across the wholeBenefice so that if there isn't a servicethat you prefer in your own church, thereis always the option to go to one of theother churches in the Benefice.The changes have enabled us to have:

� A Common Worship eucharist everySunday somewhere in the Benefice;

� A Book of Common Prayer eucharistevery Sunday somewhere in theBenefice;

� An all-age type service every Sundaysomewhere in the Benefice.

In these days of larger grouping ofchurches, it is impossible to offer thewidest possible variety of services inevery church - we just don't have thestaffing for it. Looking at the pattern, Ithink we do pretty well for varietyconsidering the staffing constraints and Ihope you will agree. I am particularlygrateful to the churches in Old Sodburyand Little Sodbury who bore the changesthat we have made to create the newpattern of services.

So please consult the pew leaflet or themagazine or the website to make sureyou arrive at the right church for theservice you were hoping to attend!

New Service change at St James',HortonAfter discussion at the Horton APCM andat the last Horton PCC meeting, it hasbeen decided to introduce a CommonWorship Morning Prayer Service on the3rd Sunday of the month, replacing theBook of Common Prayer Mattins service.Some people felt that it would be a betterbalance to have two BCP and two CWservices per month and we have madethis change for an experimental 12month period. Whilst we respect thatsome people are wedded to the servicesfrom the Book of Common Prayer, wealso want to introduce some slightlymore contemporary worship texts thatmight be attractive to other people whowish to attend worship.The other additional exciting thing that isgoing to happen is that Horton School isgoing to take part in four services thatoccur on the 3rd Sunday over theforthcoming year. This is a big stepforward and we're delighted that theschool is keen to engage with thechurch.

Jane

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For a lovely selection ofcards for

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Tel 01454 273999

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SodburyCards

GLOUCESTERSHIREHISTORIC CHURCHES

TRUSTRIDE AND STRIDE on SEPTEMBER 10th

A DAY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOROUR CHURCH

Ride and Stride, run by theGloucestershire Historic Churches Trust,is a great way to support this church andchurches across the county when theymost need help. It's an annualsponsored walk, bike or horse ride whichhappens on the second Saturday ofSeptember. That makes September10th a date for the diary in 2011.

Walkers and riders turn out to follow theirchosen route between churches whichopen for the day. Many of them serverefreshments as well as checking you inand providing a friendly welcome,directions and moral support. Whetheryou prefer a solitary expedition, or to gowith family or a group of friends, youknow that you're joining thousands ofpeople countrywide to raise money foran important cause. As Ian Hislop hassaid, "In the old days the churches usedto worry about saving us. Now we haveto worry about saving them".

What's in it for you, this church and thecounty's churches?� A perfect motivation to get out,

explore and enjoy yourself;� The satisfaction of raising money

and taking part in a nationwideinitiative;

� 50% of the money you raise goes tothe church of your choice;

� The chance to see inside somehistoric gems which cannot alwaysbe open for visits;

� The chance for the church younominate to apply for a grant;

Even if you are unable to ride or stride,you can ask people to sponsor you toman your church or to carry out specifictasks while you are there.

Further information, together withsponsorship forms, is available from yourLocal Organiser on the contact detailsbelow.

For information about the Trust's workand how to support it please look at thewebsite: www.ghct.org.ukThe Local Organiser for your church isJackie Isaac, 01454 318079County Ride and Stride Organiser canbe contacted onrideandstride@ghct.org.uk

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MSc(Eng), CEng, MICE, ACILAMSc(Eng), CEng, MICE, ACILAChartered Civil EngineerChartered Civil Engineer

& Chartered Loss Adjuster& Chartered Loss Adjuster

DomesticDomestic StructuralStructural EngineerEngineer

� Steelwork & timber design.� Structural surveys.� Subsidence specialist.� Foundation problems.� Project management.The Vicarage, Horse Shoe Lane,

Chipping Sodbury, Bristol BS37 6ET

Telephone: 01454 324888E-mail: richard@kenchington.plus.com

Richard KenchingtonRichard Kenchington The camels are coming.Actually it isprobably onlyone camel,accompaniedby a donkeyand somegoats, but theywill be awelcome sight when they paradethrough Chipping Sodbury on theevening of December 2nd. They willhave travelled from the west (not theeast) - from the Forest of Dean in fact -to take an active and moving part in theNativity Festival being held at St John's.This will be a spectacular event soplease tell all your friends, family andespecially children as this doesn'thappen very often in Chipping Sodbury.

THE CHILDREN'SSOCIETY BOX's

Just to give you some prior notice, I willbe visiting you during the month ofOctober to collect your boxes in order tocarry out this years 'count'. New boxholders are always welcome; please giveme a ring if you would like me to delivera box to you. Thank you to everyone foryour support. Hilary Hurley 01454311515

Mrs. E.J. GauntlettM.Ch.S.

HPC REGISTEREDCHIROPODIST / PODIATRIST

6 Beaufort Mews7 Horse Street

Chipping SodburySouth Glos.BS37 6DA

Telephone: (01454) 319083

Tuesday, Wednesday,& Saturday Mornings

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Sodbury Vale Benefice Calendar September 2011

16

1pm-4pm1pm-4pm

Schedules available from TIC/ChurchSchedules available from TIC/Church

SaturdaySaturday10th September 201110th September 2011

SStt JJoohhnn’’ss CChhuurrcchhSSuummmmeerr SShhooww

Wickwar RoadWickwar RoadChipping SodburyChipping Sodbury