The Grapevine MagazineMay 2005 Issue No 200 |
Concert |
In the first half the choristers (7 young men), forming half of the adult members of the choir, on their tour of the south of England, performed music from plainsong to Palestrina. The last item before the interval was a mock weather forecast set to a psalm tune, which had everybody rocking with laughter! The second half was a joyful, and often funny, selection from the Beatles to folk songs old and new, with a truly fresh treatment. There was even a superb solo rendition of "Oh! Danny boy" from one of the tenors.
The concert raised around £1,900 - shared between Lewknor Church and POWER International - the charity for disabled people in the developing world that was started in Henley in 1994, whose chief executive is Sarah Hodge from Church Lane.
Our thanks are not only to Sarah for arranging this superb concert, but also to all the others involved in the organization of this most entertaining evening, including Frank Hodge, Robin and Caroline Notley, John and Fran Holloway, and we must not forget Charlotte Rose whose floral arrangements in the church were absolutely outstanding!
We hope to repeat the event next year, when the choristers are on their next tour!
Objections were made by the board of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, The Chiltern Society, The Council for the Protection for Rural England, English Nature, The Ridgeway National Trail Office, the Friends of the Ridgeway and the Open Spaces society which gives some indication of the seriousness with which this unauthorized use is viewed by people who are concerned with conserving and enhancing this beautiful part of the countryside.
A report in the Henley Standard indicates that the owner of the field, Clinton Puttenham, is intending to appeal against the SODC decision but the parish council has not had confirmation of this. In any event SODC will need to take enforcement action against Mr. Puttenham in order to ensure that the field is no longer used as a bike track and is returned to an agricultural state. The parish council is urging SODC to take swift and firm action to resolve the situation.
A Celebration of Baptism
Friday, 24 June to Sunday, 26 June 2005.The events of the weekend are coming together nicely and the programme will begin on the Friday afternoon when the Bishop of Dorchester will formally open the display of christening gowns and memorabilia in the exhibition entitled "Christenings Past and Present". Lewknor Primary School will be hosting this event and there will be more details of the children's contribution to the exhibition in the June edition of Grapevine.
The Exhibition will be open to the general public on Saturday from 10.00am to 5.00pm in St.Margaret's Church which will be decorated with flowers based on the christening theme.
On Saturday evening, the concert " Favourite Poems and Songs on a Midsummer Evening" will start at 6.30pm finishing at about 8.00pm. The Festival choir will be singing conducted by Sarah Hodge and accompanied by Keith Cullup who will also be a soloist. (See further details in this edition of Grapevine).
On Sunday morning there will be a special Morning Service at 10.15am to which we are inviting as many families as we can contact who have either been christened themselves or have had children christened at St.Margaret's Church in the past. We hope that this will be a very happy occasion when families can meet up with friends who may have moved away from the village.
Finally, I would like to thank every one who has offered to loan christening gowns (there will be a handmade dresses and a cape made originally for a christening in the Falkland Islands in early 1900 and a robe made and worn recently from Malta among the many on show).
Also, a thank you to all the people on Christine Smith's Festival rota for arranging flowers for the church by the Friday and the many people who have made useful suggestions and have offered to help.
If there is anyone who would like to help and/or has anything which they would like to loan for the display (this will be the last call so I can prepare the catalogue for the exhibition) please contact me as follows:
Elan Preston-Whyte
"Knysna"
Hill Road,
Lewknor
Favourite Poems and Songs on a Midsummer Evening
The suggestions for poems to be read at the concert at St. Margaret's Church on 25 June are pouring in. Amongst them are ones that will particularly appeal to children such as Stanley Holloway's "The Lion and Uncle Albert". Justin Ritchie has recommended " John Gilpin's Ride" by William Cowper which I vaguely remembered from school but which rereading it now is great fun. There are the classics " The Brook" by Alfred Lord Tennyson and " Ode to a Nightingale" by John Keats suggested by Neil Allen and Ian Orr-Ewing respectively. A poem from more recent times but which celebrates a sight which has disappeared is W.H. Auden's "The Night Mail" describing the steam train express travelling from London to Scotland.Christine Smith has reminded me that Dylan Thomas' wrote "Fern Hill" as well as his more famous "Under Milk Wood" and a poem called "Pre-Existence" beginning I laid me down upon the shore and dreamed a little space-" written by Barry Cornwall is a favourite of Tony Smith.
The simplest poem but one which everyone who hears it remembers, is Leo Mark's poem which he wrote for his fiancée who died in a plane crash. He later allowed it to be used by Violet Szabo to code messages she sent whilst working with the French Resistance in World War II. This was put forward for inclusion by Jackie Graham. It is called " A code poem for The French Resistance".
The life that I have is all that I haveSarah Hodge, the choir mistress of the Festival Choir, and I will be finalising the programme for the concert soon so if you have a special poem you would like to be considered for inclusion then please send it to me Elan Preston-Whyte, "Knysna", Hill Road, Lewknor. Telephone number. 350382.
The concert will start at 6.30pm so that children can come with parents. The tickets will be reasonably priced at £5.00 for adults and £3.00 for children (15 years and under) and senior citizens. The proceeds from the concert will be divided between the Church Restoration Fund and Power International providing a future for disabled people in the developing world.
Our group was almost equally divided into liking and not liking the book. Its unique premise was that time travel was possible but the fortunate (or unfortunate) time traveller would turn up naked and possession- less in a different time zone. This made for some rather awkward encounters but the inventiveness of the author and the gradual build-up to a disturbing ending managed to get most of us reading to the last page.
This month we have chosen to read "The Fox in the Cupboard " by Jane Shilling a relatively unknown author. It is often difficult to choose a book which has universal appeal even though we are spoilt for choice with the numbers of novels old and new available but there is great pleasure when something, which at first glance looks unpromising, turns out to be "a very good read".
Elan Preston-WhyteSo, what does this mean to us gardeners - beginners or experts? Well, of course, we should first and foremost be taking advantage of Oxfordshire local authorities' latest compost bin offer! Two different sizes of bin are available once again, for the fifth year running at the same price - £10.00 for a small one, suitable for singles and couples, or £15.00 for a larger bin, perfect for families. For an additional £5.00 the bin can even be delivered straight to your home. Alternatively you could collect one from one of the participating garden centres - four across the county, so there's bound to be one near you or where you work. Why not take advantage of the scheme this year, and arrange for your group to have a talk on effective composting by Oxfordshire County Council's Waste Reduction Officer. Oxfordshire's local authorities estimate that approximately 45% of residents are already home composting, but every year we have new recruits and more than seventy schools across the county have also begun composting.
Composting is an excellent way of disposing of your organic rubbish; in fact, 60% of the average kitchen bin can actually be recycled into a useful resource. Why is this important? Well, first of all reducing rubbish means less unsightly, smelly rubbish bags outside your house; but more importantly reducing rubbish is good for the environment. By composting our kitchen and garden waste, we are diverting waste from the landfills which take up valuable space - besides which, decomposition by this means is a very slow process. Rubbish decaying in landfill also gives off harmful chemicals that are now recognised to contribute to global warming and, on a larger scale, climate change.
Most people know that much of their garden waste can go into the compost bin, but did you know cardboard, paper, tissues, cotton, tea bags, coffee grounds and filters can also go in. So can egg cartons, washing machine lint, pasta, rice and bread. Once you start adding materials into your compost bin, it is important to get a good mix of different ingredients. You must start to think like a worm, as worms are the heroes of our compost bins. They wriggle and eat their way through the delicious offerings we throw into our bins, and turn them into lovely, nutrient rich soil improver, a veritable treat for our gardens. All this wriggly action will also dramatically speed up the composting process, providing you with a high quality product for use on your garden in less time.
So, all you need to do now is to call 0870 8443006 to arrange delivery of your compost bin. If you need any more help, have any queries about home or school composting, or would like to arrange a talk, contact:-
Katie Zabel, Oxfordshire County Council's Waste Reduction Officer, on 01865 815908 or 07776 455803.
The church has a number of mowers for use if you do not want to use your own and there is always petrol available to keep them running.
If you are able to give some time to help keep the churchyard looking tidy then please contact Robin or Caroline on 354237.
Many thanks, Robin Notley, 13 High Street, Lewknor
Thank you to Ali Griffiths for organising the ever popular Easter Egg Hunt. The day was a great success and enjoyed by both parents and children alike. It is hoped to make the Easter Egg Hunt an annual event - giving local families the opportunity to catch up and welcome new faces to the village. The event raised £240.
Thank you also to Gerry Coles for organising the successful Jumble Sale, which raised £265 for Pre-school funds. Lewknor Pre-school is also very grateful to those who kindly donated home-made cakes and jumble and helped with setting up and on the day. The hard work that is involved in planning and organising these events is invaluable to the Pre-school.
The children are delighted to be back to start a busy new term.
Stephanie LondonDescribed as a mini WOMAD style day of FREE fun for all the family will bring together local artists and musicians together with local craft and food stalls.
For more information visit:
www.come-together.org.uk or phone Jo on 01491 571078.So come along and bring your treasures, ceramics, books, toys, silver, pictures etc. (but no jewelry this time, sorry). You never know what might be in your attic!
For more information, please contact Home-Start Southern Oxfordshire on 01235 511152
In aid of Home-Start Southern Oxfordshire, supporting local families. Reg. Charity No. 1006230