bunbury to pay tribute to nation’s · a leaflet or phone jane for further details. shoeboxes will...

NOVEMBER2011

Bunburyto paytribute tonation’sfallen

Let us endeavour so to live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry – Mark Twain

nfor the parishes of BUNBURY & TILSTONE FEARNALL

Li k

STUCK IN: Children and adults joined in ‘pray and play’ at StBoniface last month. Full story and pictures on Pages 8 and 9

VETERANS who fought forKing and Country during theSecond World War will joinBunbury’s RemembranceSunday parade on 13 No-vember.John Walker and Bill Corns,

both of whom served in theArmy, are expected to swellthe ranks as the Royal BritishLegion, Scouts, Guides,Cubs and Brownies marchfrom the Nag’s Head to StBoniface Church for the an-nual service of remembranceat 10.45am.Leading the parade will be

British Legion presidentGeorge Potter, who served inthe Merchant Navy.

During the service, namesof locals who died during theFirst World War and the1939-1945 battle will be readout. Wreaths will also be laid by

various groups including theRoyal British Legion, the

Scouts and serving council-lors.The Last Post and Reveille

will be played by Ted Fowleson the bugle.

“The day means differentthings to different people,”said Mr Potter.

“Relatives of fallen soldiers,even from the First World War,come especially to hear theirnames while others rememberpast friends.“Above all the nation comes

together.”It will be vicar Rick Gates’ last

Remembrance Sunday serv-ice before he retires on 31 De-cember. After the service, theparade will march back to theNag’s Head.

ST BONIFACE Church wasoverrun with new and familiarfaces last month – as itopened its doors to a newidea.In all more than 60 people

played, prayed and ate to-gether as part of MessyChurch.Joy Parker said all of the ac-

tivities had a God-centredtheme. “Even the beer tast-ing,” she said.Turn to Page 8

Time toget in amess ...

2

Who we are

St Boniface

St Jude’s

Calveley

The Link

Alternatively, please callreaders Peter & Kath Collingeon 01829 260077

Churchwardens Neil Dewson-Smyth 261680Walter Done 01244 332563

Youth workerKim Beswick 07847608365

SecretaryColin Stanyer 07791 869674

OrganistAndrew Dean 261222

Treasurer John Mason 733971

FlowersMargaret Bourne 260944

ChurchwardensNeil Dewson-Smyth 261680Walter Done 01244 332563

SecretaryYvonne Wood 01270 528442

OrganistJohn Batchelor 261056

We are always happy to getcalls/emails about The Link.Please contact us if you wouldlike to advertise yourbusiness, or if you want tosend us your news, views andpicturesAdvertisingNick [email protected] Mason t: 01829 [email protected]

You can also read The Linkonline by logging on towww.stbonifacebunbury.org.uk

ChurchwardensBrigid Sayce 260865Elizabeth Marren 01270 528556

SecretaryAnn Posnett 261154

OrganistAnn Badrock 260343

RICKGATES

t: 01829 260991m: 07715 178750e: [email protected]

VicarSt BonifaceSt Jude’sCalveley

WE welcome Finley ThomasPeacock, son of Robert andJoanne Peacock of Calveley,who was baptised at StBoniface on 2 October.

Congratulations to HayleyJohnson and Adam Hulme,who were married at StBoniface Church on 17September.

Many happy returns to ChrisJones & Robert Tomlins,who celebrated significantbirthdays (a total of 90 yearsbetween them) this month.

Early Birds Pre-school ishosting a Fizz Fashion Showat 7.30pm on 29 November atTarporley CommunityCentre. Tickets, which are £5and include a welcome drinkon arrival, are available fromBecky Posnett on 01829260251.

Early Birds Pre-school iscollecting for "Bags2School".Bags2School are a companyspecialising in the recycling ofsecond-hand clothing,bedding, soft toys, pairedshoes, belts and handbags.Bags to fill are available fromEarly Birds. Alternatively, fill abin bag with any of the aboveitems and drop off at EarlyBirds, Bunbury Village Hall. All

collected bags are weighedand a price paid per ton to thepre-school. The more theycollect, the more money ismade for the pre-school.Should your items requirecollection, please call BeckyPosnett on 01829 260251. Allbags need to be at Early Birdsby 23 November.

Andrew Dean would like tothank everyone who helpedwith the Oktoberfest on 8October, and all those whosupported by coming to thisgreat evening. A total of £550was raised for the sportsdepartment at Tarporley HighSchool. We hope to see afew of the lederhosen anddirndls around the village.

It is Operation ChristmasChild shoebox time again.Leaflets will be available fromBunbury School, St Bonifaceand St Jude's churches andfrom Jane Overy (tel. 01829260294). Last year nearly1.12 million shoeboxespacked with gifts of toys,educational items, hygieneitems, sweets, hats,sunglasses etc went tochildren in Africa, Central Asiaand Eastern Europe. Pick upa leaflet or phone Jane forfurther details. Shoeboxes willneed to be completed by 14November.

St Luke’s Hospice is holdingits popular annual SantaDash at Oulton Park RacingCircuit on Sunday 11December, beginning at noon.This is a sponsored 5K dash,stroll or bike ride around theinternational circuit. The eventis very popular with families.Adults are encouraged todress up in Santa suits andchildren enjoy dressing infancy dress. Spectators canenjoy the event and also takean opportunity to shop at thedozens of festive food stands.There will also be a sale ofquality Christmas trees which

are cut and transported fromScotland especially to supportthe hospice. Log on towww.stlukes-hospice.co.uk ortelephone 01606 555688 formore details. Supporters of StLuke’s Cheshire Hospice canpurchase their charityChristmas cards fromwww.stlukeshospiceshop.co.uk

The choir practice sessionsfor the Carol Service at StBoniface Church will takeplace on 3 and 10 Decemberfrom 10.30am until noon. TheCarol Service will be onSunday 18 December.

BY the time you read this,Christmas really will be justaround the corner. The nextLink will be our bumperDecember/January editionand, as in previous years, weare giving readers theopportunity to publish theirChristmas greetings in theLink instead of buyingChristmas cards for theneighbours. And all we ask forin return is a small charitabledonation. This year, ourchosen charity is Chester Aidto the Homeless. If you areinterested, please send yourChristmas greeting – alongwith a cheque (made payableto Bunbury PCC) for at least£10 - to Nick Sanders,Woodstock, Hill Close,Bunbury, CW6 9QJ, before 20November. Alternatively, youcan go online. Simply log ontowww.justgiving.com/Bunbury-Link, press the ‘Donate Now’button and write yourChristmas message.

The copy deadline for theDecember/January doubleissue of the Link is Friday 11November, and the magazinewill be available fordistribution on Friday 25November.

We pray for the families ofThomas Kay, HenryHaynes, KennethMusgrove and KathleenWright and anyone whohas lost a loved onerecently.

Saturday 26 November2pm: St Jude’s ChristmasFair, church hall.

Tuesday 29 November7.30pm: Fizz FashionShow, TarporleyCommunity Centre.

Sunday 4 December4pm: Christingle service,St Boniface Church.

PRAYERS

Dates for

YOUR DIARY

Villagers put faith insearch for a new vicar

As Rick plans to leave Bunbury to reflect, PCC looks to the future

If you had a motto, what wouldit be?She who dares wins, or whatgoes around comes around.

It’s a celebrity beer call. Whomwould you like to invite?Edward Cullen from Twilight,Errol Douglas, the most soulfulhairstylist ever, and my friendDebs Shields, because shewould never forgive me if I lefther out, knowing that EdwardCullen was there.

What would you call yourautobiography?It’s all about ME.

What was your first job?I used to work at Fine Fare forthose who are old enough toremember Fine Fare.

What would you change aboutBunbury, if you could?Provide the older children andteenagers with more activitiesand things to do in the village sothat Mum and Dad don’t have tooperate a taxi service.

What is your biggest regret?I regret not going for my auditionat Manchester Polytechnic in1989. The nerves got the betterof me. I always wanted to be inCorrie, and I am very envious asmy friend Claire Calbraith wentand is now in Downton Abbey. Ialways now say to people of any

Suzanne Badder runs The Salon in Bunbury.She opened her business above Tilly’s coffeeshop in March 2008 and has not looked backsince. Today she journeys from her home inMeadowbank near Whitegate almost every dayto Bunbury where she works alongside anotherexperienced stylist, a physiotherapist, achiropodist and a beautician. If you’ve not visitedThe Salon, you might have seen Suzanne infancy dress on Village Day �. Here she tells the Link what makes her tick ...

Badder

3

THE TWOMINUTE INTERVIEW

www.stbonifacebunbury.org.uk

THE search for a new vicar for StBoniface Church is on.It is hoped Rick Gates’ replace-

ment will be chosen within a fewmonths of him retiring on 31 De-cember.“The process can take a long

time,” said treasurer JohnMason. “But we are ahead of thegame because Rick gave us along notice period.”Although the vacancy has yet tobe advertised, it is now wellknown that the position will soonbecome available.“We expect there will be quite a

lot of interest in the position bothfrom within and outside of thediocese,” said John. “Who

wouldn't want to be vicar here?”Rick, 65, announced his retire-ment in the August/Septemberedition of the Link.

He said, he wanted to ‘reflect,regroup and hopefully renew’.If a woman is appointed vicar of

St Boniface, it will be a first forBunbury. But many will knowthat women clergy are nostranger to the church.The Rev’d Jane Stephenson,

who now preaches at Tilston,served as Rick’s curate for manymonths and the Rev’d AlexSanders has occasionally stoodin for Rick.The diocese formally asked the

two parish church councils – in

Bunbury and Tilstone Fearnall –to meet about a month ago to puttogether a description of bothparishes and the job on offer.Each council now has to choosetwo representatives who will beinvolved – along with the Bishop- in choosing the new vicar. A patron of the benefice – in

Bunbury’s case it will be the Hab-erdashers – will also be involvedin selecting the best man – orwoman – for the job.Rick is barred by law from hav-

ing a say in finding a successor.If they cannot agree on an ap-

pointment within nine months,then the Archbishop will beasked to choose.

age to follow their dreams or theywill regret it in the future.

If you were granted one wish,what would it be?For my dad to be well again andall my friends and family to behappy. Oops is that two wishes?

What is the one thing thatpeople would be surprised tolearn about you?I was part of a convoy carryingaid to Bosnia during the 1991-1993 war. I drove a seven-tonlorry with my dad (I was 19). We

carried medical aid andnecessities to hospitals andrefugee camps.We used to travel with the

International Rotarians fromCardiff after raising funds all yearround. In all I I went five times. Itwas a very harrowingexperience, but those trips havemade me the kind of person I amtoday.

What would you like to achievemost over the next 12 months?To continue to be what I am goodat - hairdressing and listening.

What is your favourite placeand why? Treaddur Bay, Anglesey. Apeaceful place with fabulousviews, and many childhoodmemories.

How would you spendyour ideal weekend?My weekend starts on a Saturdayevening when I enjoy a bottle ofwine and sit in front of the TVwith my feet up. Sunday isperfect with a roast followed by alovely walk down the lanes whereI live with my 3 dogs. It’s bliss.

Suzanne

LEAVING BUNBURY: The PCC iscurrently seeking a replacementfor vicar Rick Gates who is retiringon 31 December

Bonfire Bakes

FATIMA CRUTTOCK’S COOKERY SLOT

WHAT YOU NEED

HOW TO MAKE ITHEAT oven to 220C/gas 7. Oil and season the potatoes,then bake for one hour until aknife slides in easily and theskins are crispy. Alternatively, microwave the

potatoes until nearly cooked,and then bake then for about20 minutes. Cool for 10minutes.Halve the potatoeslengthways and scoop out thecooked potato into a bowl,leaving a thin layer behind sothat the skins still hold theirshape. Mash the potato with thebutter, mustard and seasoningand then stir in the springonions, 200g of the cheese

and the drained kidneybeans.Pile the mixture back into thepotato skins and scatter withthe remaining cheese. The potatoes can be made tothis stage a day ahead andthen kept chilled.

Bake for a further 30 to 40minutes until bubbling andgolden.

Serve with the sausagesand perhaps a green ortomato salad.

6 large baking potatoes85g butter1 tbsp English mustard6 large spring onions, finely chopped200g mature cheddar, with about 100g extra forsprinkling2 x 300g cans of red kidney beans

4 www.stbonifacebunbury.org.uk

THE GRUMPYGARGOYLE

We really enjoy Bonfire Nightin the Cruttock household.The major takes pride in thesize of his sparklers andalways puts on a good dis-play for the neighbours.Traditionally we have hadsausages with jacketpotatoes around the bonfire,but this recipe puts an extratwist into the potatoes. Youcan make them a day or twoahead, and chill them untilthe big night which can savesome time.

Greg Williams, landlord, The Dysart Arms

Don’t forget to say Grace

Thank Thee Lord for thyprotection o'er us,And tantalising tastes soonplaced before us,Fine are, the best Thy goodearth can provide,to keep us nourished, contentand filled inside.

And so dear Lord, pure anddivinewho changed the water intowine,bless us now, 'ere we shalllack,as this night we seek tochange it back.Amen

THERE aren’tmany thingsbetter in lifethan sittingdown withgood friendsand enjoying

a bottle of wine ortwo over a nice supper.

On Bonfire Night, though,with Fatima's delicious Bon-fire Bakes, a conventionalbottle of wine may not be themost practical of approaches. Instead get yourself a nice lit-tle hip flask and fill it with port

which is always a winner withanything cheesy.

A basic ruby port will be justfine, but for optimum value get

an LBV which stands for latebottle vintage and in layman’sterms means the best grapes ofa particular vintage. Tawny port too is lovely, slightlydrier and marginally more ex-pensive, owing to the fact that it

requires more ageing beforerelease. If you are more of the white

grape persuasion then do notfear as white port, or one of alarge number of puddingwines, will also aid festivitiesadmirably.If none of the above tickles

your fancy, just have a pint ofreal ale like Snowdonia ale,the flagship beer of the superbPurple Moose brewery in Port-madoc which I have on verygood advice is Fatima'sfavourite tipple.

Get yourselfa nice, littlehip flask ...

THERE are changes afoot atLink Towers.One of the editors is leaving

and a new vicar is soonawaited. I am also moving on. The freedom of expression en-joyed over the past few months,after I have been silent for solong, has been wonderful.Thank you for your positivefeedback. I have so much grumpiness leftin me that it is hard to know howto finish, but I will make it topi-cal.Christmas.Except Christmas isn’t topical,

because I am writing this in Oc-tober. And that is the point.A close chum of mine receivedher first corporate Christmascard at work a couple of weeksago. What does this companyhope to gain? Certainly, it hasbeen noticed, but for all thewrong reasons.It isn’t being organised; it’s justa bit sad, in all senses of theword.On the one hand, it is arguablethat Jesus’ birth should be cel-ebrated throughout the year,but the commercial bringing for-ward of Christmas is not moti-vated by religious altruism.

Instead, further panic is in-stilled in an already con-sumerism-focused westernworld, where pennies arestretching and Christian churchattendance is dwindling.Christmas brings a warm glow

to many, but unhappiness andpanic to others.I wish you the warm and glow-

ing kind and hope that in all theconsumer madness you pauseand reflect a few times to con-sider what it’s really all about.I am sad to be signing off, but

looking forward to the changesthe New Year will bring. Nexttime you pass St BonifaceChurch, look up and give me awink and a smile. Who knows,you may even make an old gar-goyle less grumpy.

5www.stbonifacebunbury.org.uk

Where hasall thetime gone?SITTING in my study the otherafternoon, with the sun streamingthrough the window, I took down abook off one of my bookshelves. Itwas Marie de Hennezel's book'The warmth of the heart preventsyour body from rusting - ageingwithout growing old.’ As I openedit, I found a photograph betweenpages 8 and 9. I had clearly usedthe photograph as a bookmarkwhen I first tried to read this book.

It was taken one evening inNovember, 13 years ago, ofDorothy Vickers and your thennew vicar at the doors to StBoniface. A greeting and abeginning. Dorothy looks no oldernow, 13 years on, but your vicar ismuch greyer and thinner.

Thinkingabout it, as Ihave had timeto reflectrecently, Irealise that it ishow we growold, not why we grow old, thatmatters. At some point in time weshall all be aware that like anyjourney we have suddenly arrived,but will not have appreciated howquickly we have travelled. Ofcourse, when you think of it,ageing and travel have the samecompanion – time. But strangely many of us would

give our time away moregenerously than our fleetingpossessions. I have come torealise that you should treat timeas a precious friend rather than anenemy. As the dawn of myretirement approaches, I look backto realise I have given my timewith generosity, often not thinkingabout, or valuing, this mostprecious commodity. But soon I will have the time for

change. It will be my season, asGod planned for me from thebeginning. I had been waiting forthe time to read de Hennezel'sbook for over two years. Placedthere it waited patiently for me. I hadn't realised how quickly 13

years would go. I hadn't realisedhow patiently a book could wait forme. It has taken all this time forme to understand what God hasalways known He would teach me,in His own time. Ecclesiastes Chapter 3: There is

a time for everything and a seasonfor every activity under the sun.

RICKGATES

your vicar

Trustees arrange meeting for potential voluteers

Help needed torun ancient millVOLUNTEERS are beingsought to help maintain and runBunbury’s ancient watermill.

Apart from help with mainte-nance, the trustees are lookingfor a bank of kind souls whowould be keen to learn aboutone of Britain’s oldest occupa-tions so that they can conducttours of the mill – and also helpto teach children visiting themill.The trustees are also hoping tointroduce supervised activitiesto encourage people to studythe flora and fauna around themill which closed in March2010.

“Without these valued sup-porters, the mill will struggle tobe a viable operation that cangrow and develop into a re-source to be treasured by ourcommunity,” said Tom Gilchrist,one of the trustees.A meeting has been arranged

for potential volunteers. It will

be held in the old classroom atthe mill at 7.30pm on Tuesday8 November. “A lot of people have been

very generous in offering boththe help and the money thathave allowed the project toproceed so we also would liketo thank them and explain to

them what is happening,” saidTom. If you are interested in helpingbring back the mill into opera-tion but cannot attend the meet-ing, please [email protected] or telephone Ernest Croley on01829 260344.

Quickestway to raiseconcernsVILLAGERS concerned aboutspeeding traffic in Bunburyare being given a voice.

Cheshire West and ChesterCouncil wants them to contactBunbury Parish Council di-rectly if they feel the villagewould benefit from 20mphspeed limits.

“The impetus for any reduc-tion in speed would have tocome from the community,”said press officer Ian Callister.His advice follows the coun-

cil’s decision to vote in favourof introducing 20mph speedlimits on residential roads ifthere is a need – and the com-munity wants them.

Cathedral Expresssteams inLOVERS of the steam train arein for a rather special treat on3 December when the Cathe-drals Express passes throughBunbury on its way to Chesterfor the Christmas markets.

It is due to pass BunburyLocks at about 12.20pm and isexpected to return around5.10pm.

Pulling it will be the 70000Britannia - the first of 55 Stan-dard class 7 engines to be builtin Crewe by British Railways.The 60-year-old locomotive,

which is capable of speeds ofup to 100mph, was built for ex-press passenger services be-tween London and Norwich.

Cardsfor goodcausesA SHOP selling charityChristmas cards will be openagain in the run-up to Christ-mas.

Last year the Cards forGood Causes shop in Tar-porley raised thousands byselling cards on behalf of 30different charities.

Local volunteers will openthe shop at Tarporley Baptistand Methodist Church onTuesday 1 November at10am.It will then be open Monday

to Saturday from 10am to4pm until Saturday 3 Decem-ber. At least 75p of every £1goes directly to the charity.

BRIGHT FUTURE: Volunteers are now being sought to help maintainand run Bunbury’s ancient watermill

Eric Wallington: Thought for the month

Jo Mason tells how she struggled to believe after husband’s diagnosis

My ownbattleto keepthe faith UNCERTAIN TIMES: Jo Mason

www.stbonifacebunbury.org.uk

Churchservices

8am: Holy Communion, StBoniface Church9.30am: Holy Communion,St Jude’s Church10am: Family worship, StBoniface Church11am: Holy Communion,Calveley Church.

9.30am: RemembranceService, St Jude’s Church10.45am: RemembranceService, St Boniface Church4.30pm: Evensong, StBoniface Church

10am: Holy Communion, StBoniface Church


Sunday 6 November

Sunday 13 November




Wednesday 16 November



Sunday 27 November

8am: Holy Communion, StBoniface Church9.30am: Family worship,St Jude’s Church10am: Family worship, StBoniface Church11am: Family worship,Calveley Church4.30pm: Evensong withBishop Peter, CalveleyChurch

Sunday 20 November

9.30am: Holy Communion,St Jude’s Church10am: Family Communion, StBoniface Church



FAITH is not about certainty. That’s what my husband John

wrote in this column last month. Somehow he was able to use

that uncertainty to grow closer toGod. My reaction to John’s cancer di-agnosis was rather different.I needed certainty, and if I couldnot have certainty about the fu-ture for one of the people whomeant most to me in life, Ineeded to be in control of othersignificant aspects of life. So began my personal chal-

lenge with my faith. As I’m Jewish but worship in

church rather than travelling tomy nearest Reform synagoguein Manchester, my relationshipwith God is a little complicatedanyway.It’s always been defined in part

as my cultural identity, just sortof there in the background: un-questioned, unfathomable, un-defined. Now, with life imploding, I could-n’t rely on something or some-one I hadn’t figured out.I often felt that there was no

room for God in my head sud-denly – it was too full of complex

6

Reader EmeritusA GUIDE wasshowing somevisitors aroundBateman’s, thehouse whereRudyard Kipling

lived, when he suddenly wentsilent because, to his chagrin,he’d forgotten the name of theother house where the novelisthad lived previously. Later one ofthe guests saw the name under apicture of the house concernedand tactfully drew the guide’sattention to it. ‘Ah well, you knowwhat they say,’ sighed the guide.‘There are only two

disadvantages to growing old –one’s loss of memory and Icannot remember what the otherone is.’ Most people, I suppose,don’t fully appreciate what auseful thing memory is until itbegins to fail them and I includemyself in that category. There areshort-term memories and long-term memories. The former isinvolved with what you’ve justdone. Like where you left yourreading glasses and this clearlyis the first to fail as we get older.Long-term memories, like whatyou did when you were younger,sometimes become more vivid as

we grow older. We all, I suppose,no matter how young or old, hopeand believe that we shall, afterdeath, live on in the memories ofthose who know us. ArchbishopRowan Williams once describedthe church as the ‘forgottenpeople whom God remembers’.Everything we are and do is, Ibelieve, stored in the memory ofGod – except, of course, thosesins which we have confessedand which God has promised toforgive and forget. So veryproperly we can all be describedas living on in the memory ofGod.

emotions and consumed with theeffort of keeping going. I felt pow-erless already; I didn’t want Godreminding me how insignificant wewere.

‘A couple that prays togetherstays together. As a married cou-ple, John and I had usually prayedtogether last thing at night, but Ibegan to struggle to find the wordsand the conviction. That nightly ritual gave us comfortduring the early months followingdiagnosis, however, and, as time

went on, somewhere in all of this Ifelt the most profound – almosttangible – sensation of being car-ried. It reminded me of the MaryStephenson poem, Footprints inthe Sand.

Looking back, I feel that some-how during that time I walkedaway from - but have since startedtaking faltering, but more deliber-ate, footsteps back to - God. My faith is still undefined and un-

fathomable, but it is no longer un-questioned.

PRAYER FOR THE MONTH: Pat Edgley, Reader

BRING melaughter, sangMorecambeand Wise allthose yearsago.Did you hear ‘I

was asked for eight charactersfor my password, so I said‘Snow White and the SevenDwarfs?’ ” Daft isn’t it?We often take ourselves tooseriously. Yes, we may have alot to worry about and greatsadness in our lives. But there is often a funnyside, a sense of the ridiculous

and that’s what keeps our spir-its up. Laughter can defuse anembarrassing or difficult situa-tion.As I looked for a prayer thismonth, I found mainly nega-tive thoughts, doom andgloom and introspection, whatwe might call ‘naval gazing’.So let’s redress the balanceand give thanks to God forputting humour into the worldand nudging us to laugh atourselves.Thank you Lord for yourprecious gift of laughter.Give us a sense of humour,

And also things to laughabout.Give us the grace to take ajoke against ourselves,And to see the funny side ofthe things we do.Les us not take ourselvesso seriously.Save us from annoyance,bad temper and resentful-ness against our friends.Help us to laugh even in theface of trouble.And to remember that yourfoolishnessIs wiser than our wisdomFor Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Eric Morecambe was a wise man

Storyteller unearths some fascinating facts

Guten abend is had by all at the Oktoberfest


Oktoberfest, Bunbury Village Hall

Tales of theunexpected

THE BISHOP of Chesterwill attend a special serviceat Calveley Church thismonth.The Right Rev’d Dr Peter

Forster will join the choralevensong at 4.30pm onSunday 20 November tohelp celebrate thecentenary of the reorderingof the church by the deKnoop family.The family enlarged andrefurbished it in 1911,making use of an old coachhouse to provide a largeroom – now the vestry – tobe used by the choir andmembers of the clergy.It was at that time that themain body of the church –thought to have once beena threshing barn – was alsorenovated.The plaster was removed

from the ceiling to exposethe beams, a dado of oakpanelling was addedthroughout, and the piecede resistance was a richlywrought oak screenmarking the entrance to thechancel. The organ wasalso rebuilt and the stainedglass windows wereinstalled by Messrs. Powellof Whitefriars in London.Calveley was so proud of

its newly refurbished churchthat tickets were sold for thegrand re-opening on 10November 1911. Theservice on Sunday 20November to celebrate thecentenary of these grandachievements is free to all.

BishopPeter’sdate inCalveley

IT seems there is a lot more toBunbury than one first imagines.

And who better to reveal someof its fascinating secrets thanmaster storyteller Johnny Gillett.

He has been researching thelife of John P Mellor, a successfultrader who bought Mayfield onthe corner of Whitchurch Roadand Peckforton Road in BunburyHeath.Mellor’s plan was to develop thehouse with a view to moving inwith his staff – a maid, one cook,one coachman, one groom and awoman named Elizabeth.“All we know is that Elizabeth

was 38, black and unmarried,”said Johnny. She was also employed as his

housekeeper which was ex-

SOMETIMES, Bunbury seessome unusual sights.If you were in the village on

the evening of 8 October, youmay have been forgiven inthinking that you had strayedinto downtown Munich as thesounds of oompah music andGerman song strayed from thevillage hall. In fact, this was the Bayern-Bunbury Oktoberfest, featuringthe magnificent KlausEncounters Oompah Band.

More than 100 guests filled thevillage hall, many of themdressed in lederhosen or dirndlto be entertained by the band(featuring Herr Dean and HerrCrotty), to sing 'Ein Prosit', todrink a (small) amount ofspecially imported Bavarianbeer, and to enjoy the excellentmeal of wurst, kartoffeln,sauerkraut and rot kohl, expertlyprepared by Herr and Frau vonWaddington. There were partygames too - the sight of Baron

von Peyton trying to inflate aballoon using a pump on whichhe was sitting was one whichhas scarred many.It was indeed an excellent, and

unusual, night and many thanksare due to all those involved inthe event, including Graf undGrafin Mulcahy, Herzog undHerzogin Everton und OberstMunro for their help. The event raised £550 forTarporley High School’s sportsdepartment.

tremely rare. “It was virtually un-heard of for a black woman tohold such a high position in a Vic-torian household,” said Johnny.“It was certainly not the work of aslave.”Johnny has just finished another

month telling stories of the BlackHistory of Cheshire. Last month was officially Black

History Month in Britain andsought to redress the balancewhere the heroes of our sharedBritish history have often beenshown as white.“People of African origin have

been living in these islands, andhad positions of leadership sinceRoman times,” said Johnny. “Butsadly most of our Cheshire storiesof the black community are not

happy ones, with slavery beingvery much linked to the salttrade.” However, one of Johnny’sfavourite stories surrounds theAfrican prince, Warabo, who isburied at St Laurence’s Church,Frodsham. He was the son of the King of

Opobo (now part of Nigeria), KingJaja, who began life as a slave tohis own chief. However, Jaja proved himself to

be clever and resourceful, andeventually became the king of hisown people. Under his leadership, his people

prospered, trading in palm oil,which was used in soap manufac-turing.

Jaja dealt directly with Liverpooland knew of schooling in the area.

Therefore, he sent his young sonto attend the Manor HouseSchool in Frodsham. Sadly, Prince Warabo, who was

well loved by the local people andwas an avid cricketer, died ofpneumonia, after insisting onplaying his favourite sport in therain. The whole village was upsetby the loss and insisted thatWarabo was buried amongstthem in a very modest grave.

Jaja was very soon deposed bythe British in their takeover ofWest Africa and exiled to CapeVerde, never to return to Opoboalive.

8

PICTURE SPECIAL Messy Church, St Boniface

WHY JOIN?

News from Calveley

CALVELEY had a mostsuccessful service incelebration of theharvest festival. The singing was led bySt Boniface Churchchoir.The church was onceagain beautifullydecorated by a teamunder Jenny Brooks. Itreally did look veryattractive.We have some work to

be done following theQuinquennial inspection,but nothing which lookstoo expensive.We look forward to The

Friends of CalveleyChurch gettingunderway again insupport of these andother schemes.Our next big event is achoral evensong at4.30pm on Sunday 20November at CalveleyChurch to celebrate thecentenary of thereordering of our smallchurch by the de Knoopfamily in 1911.We would love to see

you there.

John Ellis

From Page OneDavid Cox, from the Yew Tree Inn

in Bunbury, provided the beer tohelp reflect God’s bounteous har-vest. Chris Jones organised several en-

ergetic games, including a humansnakes and ladders game basedon the Creation story from Gene-sis.

Members of the congregationsplatted the rat to save the harvest,visualised their prayers in ‘praydough’, bobbed for apples andmade beaded friendship bracelets.

“There was something to suiteveryone,” said Joy.

Sue Melia assisted the grapetreaders to show the fruits of theirlabours in a footprint frieze andbanner. The frieze, which hadbeen laid down the aisle, was usedduring the worship, when everyonewas encouraged to add a pebble toit with a silent prayer. During the service youth worker

and birthday girl Kim Beswick tolda story and led the singing.After the service, the catering teamdished up a lovely spread which in-cluded a birthday cake that hadbeen made especially for Kim.As the event came to a close, oneof the youngest children was over-heard to ask her mum: ‘When ischurch going to be messy again?’The answer is 15 January.

Goodtimes atCalveley

News from St Jude’s

Bob Gardner

IT’S November already.It's hard to believe that the

year that we hailed as the‘New Year’ is looking decid-edly tatty. As some poet or other said:

it's a time of 'mists and mel-low fruitfulness'. But all it means is that we areall a year older.It has certainly been a fruitfulyear.Never have we had such a

crop of apples, enough togladden Mr W Tell's heart, butwould, no doubt, worry hisson.That said, Bonfire Night is

something to look forward toowhen Mr Fawkes goes on thefire. Hero or villain - depending onyour point of view - he mustbe the biggest mug in history.When they said: 'it's all right

mate, they’ll never catch you',they did and it wasn't his ideain the first place.Operation Christmas Child ishere again when we areasked to fill a shoebox with aselection of small gifts suit-able for a boy or girl. This is the same as in previ-

ous years. However there willbe more information inchurch.St Jude's Christmas fayre

this year will be held on Sat-urday 26 November at 2pm.Come and start your Christ-

mas shopping with us. Whoknows - you might meet Fa-ther Christmas.

Our friend and PCC secre-tary Ann Posnet has not beentoo well of late. All at churchsend their best wishes for aspeedy recovery. Please re-member Ann in your prayers.On 27 September the funeralof Harry Mitchell took place atSt Jude’s. May Harry rest inpeace and rise in glory.

Wherehas theyear gone?

HAVING FUN: A host of activitieswere organised as part of MessyChurch to bring the people closer toGod ... and organisers said itappeared to have worked wonders

10

FFAMILY MAN: Henry with David Simpson, Thelma, Ken, Lynette Simpson, Garvin, GemmaHaynes, Josh and Gabrielle Cowley

As a boy, he often went fishing with actor Henry Fonda

Henry’slegacylives on

FAMILY and friends gath-ered at St Boniface Churchon Friday 7 October to givethanks for the life of Thomas(Tom) Kay, a Bunbury manwho was loved and admiredby all who knew him.

His sons, Simon andJames, paid a moving trib-ute to their much-loved fa-ther, a man who ‘never gaveup, never took no for an an-swer and who stood up forwhat he believed in’. A wonderful role model for

his sons, Tom relished achallenge, whether it waslandscaping his own gardenor crafting the furniture fortheir home.

Tom loved the water andhe leaves his family withmany memories of happytimes, particularly thosespent on holidays by thesea. He will be much missed by

all who knew him and ourthoughts go out to his familyat this time.

HENRY Haynes was a characterwho packed so much into his life.He was born on Christmas Eve1924 in London, and was the old-est of four children. The family grew up in London,

Henry only moving first toGarstang and then to Tarporleyto be closer to his daughter,Lynette, and her family whenthey settled here.In the late ‘20s and early ‘30s,

Henry’s father established acatering agency supplying helpto the film industry, which led tothe Haynes children often ap-pearing as film extras. Henry was to be seen in films

such as "The Life of Don Juan"with Douglas Fairbanks, "Drakeof England" with MathiesonLang, "Things to Come" withRaymond Massey, "Fire overEngland" with Flora Robson and"Wings of the Morning" withHenry Fonda.

Henry struck up a friendshipwith ‘Hank’ Fonda as the two en-joyed fishing together.

Henry left school at 14 in early1939.

One of his first jobs was at theAscot Gas Water Heater makingmunitions.

At 18, Henry was called up forNational Service in the RoyalNavy, and in 1942 served as anEngine Room Artificer stationedat the naval dockyard in Alexan-dria, Egypt.

After returning to the UK, hewas demobbed in 1946. Henry met his wife-to-be Eileen,

who had come over from Ireland,in Neasden.

They married in 1952 and setup home in Harlesden, London,where their children, Lynette,Maureen and Kevin, were born.

The family later moved to Har-row where Gemma was born athome, delivered by Henry him-self. Henry worked in engineer-

ing all his life as a machinist,skilled toolmaker and later be-came a company director in ThePower Tool Company. A notable achievement was the

development of the ‘Moskito’speedboat, a forerunner of themodern jet-ski.

Henry made the news testingthis boat on the Thames.

As reported in the EveningStandard, he was stopped by theriver police for speeding.

Sadly Eileen died in 1975 leav-ing Henry and the family devas-

tated. Four years later, however,Henry was delighted to becomea grandfather for the first timeand eventually had eight grand-children and two great grandchil-dren.

He fulfilled his role as grand-dad, not only in the usual wayssuch as babysitting and attend-ing school events but by makingfancy dress costumes andschool projects, all designed andbuilt with engineering precision. Henry was most happy on fam-

ily holidays spent caravanning inSussex and Ireland and in a cot-tage on the beach at Rock inCornwall, and enjoyed fishingand gardening, which became apart-time job after he retired.

Henry loved having his familyaround him particularly at Christ-mas when he organised theevent with characteristic preci-sion. This usually began about Sep-

tember over a drink in the RisingSun.

Henry will be missed by all thefamily but leaves many specialmemories for them to treasure.

Son’stributeto Dad


Family tributeto a finemother-in-law

A TREE in the grounds of St BonifaceChurch will once again be lit up in the run-up to Christmas.Villagers are invited to dedicate a white lightin memory of a loved one or to mark animportant event such as a birthday, awedding or a special anniversary.In return, all the church asks for - nicely, of

course - is a £5 donation to help raise fundsfor its upkeep.“The Tree of Lights has become something

of a tradition in Bunbury now,” said treasurerJohn Mason.

The Christmas lights are switched onduring the evening of the Christingleservice.If you would like to sponsor a light, please

fill in this form.

I would like a light on the tree to celebrate:

Please give details ...................................................................................................

I would like to donate (£5 minimum) .......

� I would like to Gift Aid my donation toBunbury PCC (registered charity no. 1133106).

To be able to gift aid your donation you must pay anamount of income tax and/or capital gains tax in the taxyear that is at least equal to the amount of tax that willbe reclaimed on your gift (25p per £1 donated). If youpay income tax at a higher rate, you must include allyour Gift Aid donations on your self assessment tax re-turn if you want to receive the additional tax relief.

Title: ...... Initials: ...........

Surname: .......................

Home address: ..................................................... Postcode......................................

Signature: ��Date: �� Tick box for an entry in the Book ofLights.

Please send this form with your cheque,payable to Bunbury PCC, to: Jill Robey, 1Manor Cottage, School Lane, Bunbury,CW6 9NR. For further details please callJill on 01829 260081

Your chanceto say itin lights ...A GREAT grandmother, who spent her life

helping others, has been laid to rest at Au-dlem Cemetery.Kathleen Vera Wright, who was 86, was

given a fine send-off at Lightwood GreenMethodist Chapel near Audlem.During the service, which was conducted

by Pastor Ron Page, her eldest daughterMary’s husband paid tribute to his mother-in-law. “You will all have heard various comediansmake jokes about the dreaded Mother-in-law,” John Thomasson told mourners. “Butmy Mother-in law was the dearest kindestperson you could ever wish to meet.”Kathleen Johnson was born on 5 February1925 to George and Cecilia Johnson atWell House Farm, Marchamley, near Hod-net. She was one of eight children havingthree brothers and four sisters, and theirbirths were spread over about 20 years, inan era where in large families the eldestchildren helped to rear the youngest .

She attended Marchamley PrimarySchool, until the family moved to CooleLane Farm, Audlem, where she used towalk to Sound Primary School every day.After leaving school Kath went to work forArthur and Mildred Huntbach at KinseyHeath. When elder sister Madge got married,

Kath returned home to help her mother andfather.

Kath met her future husband, ArchieWright, when he was visiting his brotherwho farmed next door to her parents atCoole Lane.They were married in 1949 and started lifetogether on the family farm at Rope Bank,Audlem, where Kath looked after Archieand father-in-law Thomas.Their first daughter Mary was born in 1951followed by Jane in 1953.The following year they bought WoodworthGreen Farm, Bunbury, and in 1959 daugh-ter Gill was born. Kath spent many happy years at Wood-

worth Green farm helping Archie and look-ing after the family and tending to herpoultry. “When they first moved there, there was

no mains electric,” said John.“Mary remembers her mother having to

light Tilley lamps every night for the house,shippons and poultry sheds.”As Mary, Jane and Gill developed into at-

tractive young women, Kath had to copewith a string of male admirers. “I remember when Mary eventually built upthe courage to invite me in to meet her par-ents,” said John.“I was given the customary cup of tea,

cheese and tomato sandwiches followedby her super sponge cake and apple pie.” At that time John did not like cheese.“I dare not refuse the supper for fear of of-fending Kath,” said John. “But after fiveyears of courtship, I got quite fond ofcheese.”John was the first to attempt to woo and

marry their eldest daughter Mary, followedby Roger who married Jane and then Neilwho married Gill.“Neil, Roger and I could not have had a

better mother-in-Law,” said John.In time along came the grandchildren

Joanne, Robert, Stevie, Maria, Mark andTom.In 1992 Kath and Archie retired to their

bungalow in Bunbury Lane, Bunbury,where Kath nursed Archie until his death in1999. After Archie’s death Kath enjoyed her firstfreedom from family commitments, andwas able to pursue her interests in thechapel and Bunbury fellowship. She wasalso a member of the Wednesday club andthe WRVS.“I think she did baking for most of the olderpeople in Bunbury,” said John.“And any visitor was made very welcome,

as long as they would join her for tea andcakes.”In 2009 Kath joined Gill and Neil at Wool-

fall, Hankelow, to enjoy her final years.Among the regular visitors was greatgrandson Bertie.Sadly due to ill health, Kath’s planned staywith Gill was cut short and she moved to StCatherine’s to receive special nursing.Whilst in St Catherine’s her second great

grandson Alex was born and she was asproud of him as all the rest of the grandchil-dren.“We will all remember Kath for her kind-

ness and hard work,” said John.“She would always put others’ needs be-

fore her own. You would never hear hermoan or complain, even at the end whenher ailments were terribly distressing.”“If only the world was made up of all peo-

ple like her.”

12

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14 www.stbonifacebunbury.org.uk

Quiz NightIn aid of the MuscularDystrophy Campaign

Bunbury Village Hall Friday November 11Bar and doors open at 7.30pm

for prompt 8pm start

£3 per head (pay at door)Please come and support

this worthy causeOrganised by theGood Companions

I felt I had to write afterreading the GrumpyGargoyle’s column in lastmonth’s Link.The other day I was on myway to work when I passed a


Letters...

Christianityis built onworking together

Parents shouldlead by example

‘IT is the weak man who urgescompromise - never thestrong man.’I wasn’t sure that your choiceof quote (see above) shouldhave been on a Christianpublication such as the parishLink. Too many people have theview that religious folk arefundamentalist die-hards whoare unwilling to listen toothers’ experiences, toowilling to marginalize thosewho do not conform.However, Christianity is builton reaching out and workingtogether. In the book of Isaiah, Godsays “Come now, let usreason together” and Jesustells us in Matthew’s Gospel tomove on from “an eye for aneye, a tooth for a tooth” to“love your enemy and pray forthose who persecute you.” Jesus replaces anuncompromising cry forperceived justice with thereminder that those who hurtus are human too – in need oflove and our prayers.Perhaps we could adaptHubbard’s quote to say: “It isthe wise man who urgescompromise – never thefoolish man.” Sadly Hubbard cannot tell uswhat he meant. He diedaboard the Lusitania when itwas torpedoed through thecommands of someuncompromising, strong men.JOHNNY GILLETTBunbury

mother walking her twochildren to Bunbury PrimarySchool.Nothing wrong with that onthe face of it. The problem was that theywere walking past theVicarage – where the road isvery narrow anyway – withtheir backs to the traffic. Not only that but the motherwas walking in front of herchildren which meant, if theyhad got knocked down, shewould not have evenwitnessed it.I probably would not havewritten to the Link, had theGrumpy Gargoyle notmentioned it. But these kind ofthings have worried me for along time.Please parents, lead byexample. P WATKINSBunbury

BOSSY BELLHELLO.Allow let me introducemyself. My name is Bossy Bell, anear relation of GrumpyGargoyle.

I reside high up on theroof of St Jude's Church.I know my voice is all onone note - just dong, dong,with no ding - but I seeeverything from myposition and a dong cansay a lot.I want to see children'sfeet hopping and skippingup the path to church onSunday mornings like Iused to not all that longago. Why cannot we make ourchurch enjoyable for the

younger people around?The messy Sunday inGrumpy Gargoyle's churchsounded fun. We are the lucky ones

with a church hall so themess doesn't have to be allin church. We have a costly new

music system for what wewere told was for youngpeople’s services butwhere are the ones whowanted it? Children stillneed parents to organisethings.

A stupid saying 'See youlater' is used everywhere atthe moment. But when islater? Please let us seenow, not later. Dong to you all.

The wayWe wereA VILLAGER sent usthese two images ofBunbury from yearsgone by. I expect peoplewho have lived here foryears will recognise theplaces and perhapssome of the faces aswell. If you have any oldpictures of Bunbury, theLink team would love tohear from you.

bunbury to pay tribute to nation’s · a leaflet or phone jane for further details. shoeboxes will...

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