from the editor - St John's Felbridge

FROM THE EDITOR
VICAR: The Rev Stephen Bowen
The Vicarage, Felbridge,
West Sussex RH19 2QT
Tel: 01342 321524
Fax: 0870 9156268
stjohnschurchoffice@googlemail.com
Vicar’s day off: Thursday
ASSOCIATE MINISTER:
Michael Peach
5 Burns Way, East Grinstead,
West Sussex RH19 1SA
Tel: 01342 312406
michaelstevenpeach@googlemail.com
Michael’s day off: Friday
Cover photo:
Harvest Time
by Gordon Wilkinson
This is, sadly, my last magazine—at
least for a while. At the end of
September, I’m heading back to
university, to a land of astrophysics
and Athanasius on street corners, and
common sense levels equal only to
leaving the protective cover on a
potato peeler and bemoaning loudly
that it doesn’t work properly.
I’m looking forward to going back,
but I’ve loved my time at St John’s
this year and I’m sad to be leaving,
especially with lots of things going
on over the next few weeks; how
dare you all organise lovely events
when I’m not going to be here?!
So from my slightly lastminute.com
editing, I hand you back to Lindsey’s
much more organised expertise. I
certainly look forward to the update
landing in my pigeon hole in a
month’s time.
Er… See you at Christmas, if I’m
allowed to mention the word in
October!
Louise Russell
NOVEMBER: Articles for the November Issue to be handed in by Sunday 17th
October. Publication Sunday 31st October.
Please e-mail your articles to parishmagstjohns@gmail.com, put them in the
editor’s pigeon hole in the church entrance, or post them to Lindsey Saunders, The
Bungalow, Saint Hill Farm, Saint Hill Green, East Grinstead, RH19 4NG.
1

STEPHEN WRITES…
DEAR FRIENDS,
There is a very powerful description
of the ‘last times’ in Paul’s second
letter to Timothy. It says that this is
what the world will be like: “People
will be lovers of themselves, lovers of
money, boastful, proud, abusive,
disobedient to their parents,
ungrateful, unholy, without love,
unforgiving, slanderous, without selfcontrol,
brutal, not lovers of the
good…”
If you were feeling in a pessimistic
mood you could say that pretty much
sums up our world!
There’s certainly a lot of ‘me-first’
around, and money is a very powerful
force in many people’s lives… And
there isn’t the respect for parents that
there used to be…
And what about ‘ungrateful’? You are
not going to be grateful if you feel the
world and other people owe you
something. You are not going to be
grateful to ‘God’ if you don’t believe
there is a God to be grateful to.
There’s not much point in being
grateful to an impersonal life-force
that doesn’t know whether you are
being grateful or not!
There is so much that we owe him—
life itself, for example! All the good
things we enjoy in life, the provision
for our needs—food, water, a roof
over our heads and clothes on our
backs.
We are conscious that not everybody
in the world enjoys these things in
such a generous measure as we do.
We don’t know why that should be,
and we endeavour to do what we can
to redress the balance and share things
out more fairly, but it does not make
us less grateful for all that we have. It
makes us all the more grateful that we
have been given so much and have
entrusted with sufficient resources to
be able to help others who do not
have what we have.
Our annual Harvest Thanksgiving
does not have quite the same meaning
that it had for our forbears who
depended directly for the winter ahead
on getting the harvest in—but it is a
good focus for expressing our
gratitude to God for his generous
provision for us.
Yours sincerely,
But for anyone who does believe in
God, surely being grateful is a pretty
basic response.
2

IN THE GARDEN
THERE ALWAYS
comes that one morning
when you get up and there is a definite
feel of autumn: a chill in the air, an
atmosphere, a smell, a mistiness and
you know it’s time to start putting the
garden to bed for the winter. Now is
the time to think about getting tender
plants and cuttings into the greenhouse
before the first frosts and to mend
fences before the October gales and
also to think about changes for next
year.
Our big change is to give up the
allotment that we have had for 20
years. We need to cut down our work
load and concentrate on the garden.
We were producing far too much for
two and the family don’t eat beetroot,
marrow, broad beans, rhubarb and
gooseberries as we do. Therefore, we
have dug up a flower bed right at the
bottom of the garden and Derek has
created a vegetable patch in a raised
bed. It is all dug over and composted
ready and waiting for next spring.
We had a great fruit harvest with a
bumper crop of eating and cooking
apples and a lovely lot of Victoria
plums and damsons with no maggots
this year. This was probably due to the
fact that in the spirit of ‘belt and
braces’ we hung up not one but two
pheromone traps.
In the flower beds there were, and still
are, lots of winners especially the
Sidalceas, Penstemons, Japanese
anemones, the fuchsia Southern Belle
and the Anthemis E.C.Buxton. The
newly-planted Thalictrum Hewitts
Double was so pretty and abundant and
grew to about 6ft. Not quite as good as
the specimen in Wakehurst which is
about 9ft, but perhaps next year… And
we still have all that gorgeous autumn
colour.
Isn’t it amazing how things just
‘arrive’ in the garden? We had a good
clump of Nigella this year which we
certainly didn’t plant and although we
lost the Cerinthes in the hard winter
several seedlings established
themselves in the pavement cracks
outside! Some while ago an Abutilon
arrived out of nowhere and this year a
lovely strong seedling of white
Buddleia, which we intend to plant in
the front garden in place of the very
old gnarled blue one. It’s good to make
changes and create new displays.
I admire the work of Claude Monet,
both his paintings and his garden at
Giverny, but I love that he referred to
his garden as his ‘most beautiful work
of art’.
Maureen Reynolds
3

REGULAR EVENTS
Through the week at St. John’s
Sundays
8am
10am
6pm
Tuesdays
12.45pm
2pm
Holy Communion (2nd & 4th Sundays in the month)
Morning Service
Family Service (1st Sunday in the month)
Evening Service
Raise the Roof (3rd Sunday in the month)
Food for Thought, Zion Church
WI first Tuesday of the month in the Village Hall
Wednesdays
2pm Watercolour on Wednesdays
Thursdays
10.30am WIGS at the Old Pheasantry, Woodcock Hill (home of June Clark)
6-7.30pm JAFFA club in the Church hall on the first Thursday of each month
7.30-9pm JAFFA Plus in the Church hall on the first Thursday of each month
Saturdays
8am Prayer Breakfast on first Saturday morning in the Church Hall
4

JAFFA UPDATE - EXCITING NEWS
Jaffa Club started 4 years ago. Jaffa Club (Jesus a friend for
all) is for children in school years 3-6. We meet once a
month, on the first Thursday of the month in the Church
hall from 6.00 -7.30pm. We aim to learn about Jesus in a
fun, active way and have lots of games and activities.
Of course at snack time we eat Jaffa cakes, and
oranges!
Last month Jaffa Club expanded, in that a Jaffa Plus group
started for children who are now too old for Jaffa Club!
Jaffa Plus is for young people in school years 7-9 (aged
11-14). It also meets on the first Thursday in the
month, straight after Jaffa, from 7.30-9.00pm. At
7.30 there is hot chocolate, followed by exciting games
and activities, fun craft projects (those planned so far
include clay modelling and T-shirt decoration!), and looking
at what Jesus said and did in the Bible.
At the moment we are looking at John’s gospel in
Jaffa Plus. John said that he had written his account of
Jesus’ life, ‘that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life
in his name.’ We are exploring the evidence that John
gives for this amazing claim!
If you would like to come to Jaffa Club or Jaffa Plus please contact:
Diane Francis Diane_Francis@tiscali.co.uk
Michael Peach (Associate Minister) michaelstevenpeach@gmail.com
5

WHAT’S HAPPENING
3rd October 10am Harvest Family Service with John Archer (see p9)
Harvest
6pm Holy Communion with Stephen Bowen
10th October
17th October
24th October
31st October
8am Holy Communion with Michael Preach
10am Morning Prayer with Stephen Bowen
6pm Songs of Praise with Michael Peach
10am Holy Communion Don Ely
6pm Raise the Roof (see p17)
8am Holy Communion with Jack Baker
10am Morning Prayer with Andy Brown
6pm Evening Prayer with Stephen Bowen
8am Holy Communion with Stephen Bowen
10am Morning Prayer with Michael Peach
6pm Evening Prayer with Philip Johanson (see p22)
Forthcoming Events
Sat 2nd October Prayer Breakfast, 8am
Harvest Supper, 6pm (see p9)
Sat 9th October Men’s Breakfast, 8.30am
Sun 10th October Songs of Praise evening service, 6pm
Sat 6th November Prayer Breakfast, 8am
Sun 7th November Hospitality Sunday (see p20)
6

FAMILY LIFE
Tasty, healthy lunchboxes that your child will enjoy eating
– maybe!
YOU’D THINK that by now I’d be an
expert on making quick and interesting,
child-friendly lunchboxes, wouldn’t
you! But the truth is I’m getting worse
at it, not better! When Rowan (who has
now just started secondary school) first
started primary school I would lovingly
ensure that his lunchbox was varied and
healthy throughout the week. Now,
with two school age children and a
husband all trying to get ready to leave
the house by 8 o’clock, the lunchboxes
have become somewhat more rushed
and samey—same old, cheese, ham or
tuna sandwiches!
Except that now Benjamin refuses to
take tuna sandwiches to school, because
one of the other boys in his class finds
them disgusting. He won’t take in
whole sausages as they look like poo!
He moans if I put too much food in,
because he doesn’t have time to play
football, yet comes out of school
ravenous and grumpy!
What can I do to ensure my children eat
filling, healthy food that doesn’t take
too long to stuff in their mouths? On a
recent trip to the library I discovered a
book by Gill Holcombe that held the
answers I’d been looking for.
Here are some of the ideas I’ve begun
to put into practice:
Alternatives to sandwiches: Pitta
breads don’t go as soggy as
sandwiches, so are great for putting
lettuce and cucumber into. Rowan and
Benjamin love theirs with sundried
tomatoes, olives and some feta cheese.
(I can usually get away with putting a
bit of lettuce or spinach in as well!)
Pizza
Pots of potato salad or pasta salad with
chopped sausages or chicken
drumsticks, but that would be no good
for those football fanatics!
Sandwich fillings: I’ve started using the
leftovers from the previous night’s
dinner—chicken or sausages work well
and can be livened up with some
chutney or mustard.
Vegetables: Sticks of cucumber, pepper
or carrot are easy to eat and nutritious
too.
Fruit: grapes, strawberries, small
bananas or dried apricots.
Treats: I usually try to put in a treat
every day—this might be a cheese
stick, pepperami or a frozen frube, a
piece of cake or occasionally a few
crisps.
Lindsey Saunders
7

FELBRIDGE WILDLIFE
Shrewd Observations
A COMMON SHREW lay under our
garden hosepipe, untamed, positively
wild, but dead.
Not quite Europe's smallest mammal,
that is the pygmy shrew, but ours was
still less than three inches long. A
shrew lives most of its life
underground, seeking earthworms,
woodlice and similar creatures and it
can starve to death if deprived of food
for about three hours. Shrews will fight
viciously to defend their territory and
depend on a remarkable sense of smell
and long whiskers to find their way
about.
This month some strange birds may
turn up, passing through on migration
or dispersing from families raised in
the Summer. A buzzard flew over the
churchyard heading for the woods and
fields toward Chartham Park, but this
is a species now established as a local
resident in Sussex.
October sees much funny fungus.
Some spectacular ones resemble a
brown sponge, others tinged purple or
red. The edible cep, Boletus edulis,
stays brown when cut; the poisonous
Satan's boletus bleeds green and blue.
Some are delicious, some look bizarre,
a few can kill you. Many contribute to
the rot and decay of fruit, of dead
wood, and of dead bodies, so that the
cycle of life from death may be played
out—and to save us from being up to
our necks in dead branches!
8
Writing of which, we have sadly lost a
gnarled old apple tree, planted perhaps
a hundred years ago when The Limes
was part of an orchard. It was a
Charles Ross, providing not only
delicious fruit but a haven and
restaurant in which most of our
bird-feeders hung for the past 47
years.
Ravaged by canker without and rot
within, covered by lichens, its final
indignity was to have grown upon it a
yellow colony of the Dog Vomit
Slime Mould, which looks exactly as
the name suggests. Not quite a fungus,
a slime mould is a simple sporeproducing
organism that engulfs food
particles as an amoeba does,
reminiscent of Gilbert's Pooh Bah who
traced his ancestry back to ‘a
protoplasmic, primordial atomic
globule.’
So Charles Ross has become a
pushover and a hazard to any passing
grandchild. The nuthatches and
woodpeckers will not be enjoyed from
the kitchen window and its last logs
will perfume our hearth as they warm
our hearts.
A replacement has been chosen. From
Wych Cross Nursery will come
another apple. The variety will be
Charles Ross. Ecclesiastes 3 reminds
us all there is ‘a time to plant and a
time to uproot.’
Peter Bateman

St. Catherine's Hospice
Fancy chopping a tree down?!
We will be holding what now seems to be our ‘Annual’ Tree of Light
Service on Sunday 12th December at 6pm.I will be liaising with the
Hospice and the Mission Team to arrange the service nearer the time.
However, I have been thinking about the actual tree, which is of
course, very important. For the last two years we have been very
fortunate in being given a tree by Di Giles and last year, Lis Woolley.
They both just happened to be having large conifers taken down and
we were able to use the tops of these trees for our Tree of Light.
With this thought in mind, I have been wondering if anyone at St
John's might be thinking about tree surgery this year!! If so, please let
me know as it would be really good if we could recycle another tree
for the service.
Also, thank you to all who made donations to the Hospice in memory
of Peter Thayne via the gift aid envelopes. These were collected up
and I took them all over to the Hospice the following week. The
Hospice will be writing to Anne to let her know the amount.
Jenny Young ( 01342 324849)
St John’s Harvest Supper
Saturday 2nd October, Village Hall
Tearfund’s Ian Roberts will lead us in some Scottish country dancing
and there will be activities for all ages - more details to follow.
Please call Brenda on 311516 with offers of help.
John Archer, also from Tearfund, will be speaking at the
10am Harvest Service on Sunday 3rd October.
Please put these dates in your diary and plan to come along.
9

CURRENT ISSUES: MIDDLE EAST
Is compromise possible?
THIS MONTH saw the start of new
peace talks between Palestinian
Authority President Mahmoud Abbas
and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu. The discussions followed
meetings with President Barack
Obama and dinner at the White House
with the King of Jordan and Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak. A second
round of talks start on 14th September
in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.
Everyone agrees that we need peace in
the Middle East, but 20 years of failed
negotiations give little hope.
Agreeing on the final borders for a
Palestinian state, the status of
Jerusalem and the “right of return” for
Palestinian refugees are key issues.
President Abbas and Prime Minister
Netanyahu have pledged to complete
negotiations on the key issues within a
year. President Obama said that the
goal should be a permanent settlement
that ends the Israeli occupation of
territory captured in 1967 and an
independent, democratic Palestinian
state existing peacefully alongside
Israel.
In the short term, there has to be
agreement on building by Jewish
settlers in the West Bank. Hamas,
which recently killed four settlers in
the West Bank and controls the Gaza
Strip, is determined to sabotage the
dialogue and has been excluded from
the talks. The hope is that President
10
Abbas can secure an agreement that is
so attractive to the Palestinian people
that Hamas would be unable to
oppose it.
Mr Netanyahu said: “True peace, a
lasting peace, will be achieved only
with mutual and painful concessions
from both sides”. Some observers
believe that he wants a peace
agreement as a historic legacy of
his government.
Jerusalem itself is a key issue: it is
claimed by the Israelis and
Palestinians as their capital. Tensions
still run high: when Brenda and I
were there a few years ago, we were
abruptly stopped by police with AK47
rifles as we tried to visit the Western
Wall, or Wailing Wall, so-called
because for centuries Jews have
gathered there to lament the loss of
King Herod’s Second Temple.
As we drove to Beer-Sheva, capital of
the Negev, we followed the route of
‘The Separation Wall’, which is still
under construction and expected to
reach over 400 miles—four times as
long as the Berlin Wall. This remains
a stark visible barrier to a peaceful
settlement in the region.
We need to pray again for peace and
compromise in the Middle East and a
successful conclusion to these
difficult year-long talks.
Gordon Wilkinson

The Dream
The other night, I had a dream, and in that dream I was a
very rich and powerful man.
I had the same wife and children but now we were dressed
in the finest clothes, had a large selection of the world’s
finest cars to drive around in, and private planes and
yachts to take us wherever we wanted to go, whenever we
wanted to go.
We were surrounded by the richest of things that the world could provide
and lived in a huge house on the Californian coast.
As befitted my position and the level of risk to my family, the house was
surrounded by high fences with electric security gates. Armed guards
patrolled the grounds and accompanied us wherever we went.
I was very busy, working very long hours every day, making important
decisions involving many people’s lives, and earning for me incredible
amounts of money.
Then one day the thing I most dreaded happened.
On a routine shopping trip to Beverly Hills, my family were kidnapped at
gun-point by armed thugs, who murdered their guards.
The police were very kind and helpful but told me that we had probably been
carefully targeted and watched for many weeks as the thugs made their
plans.
The kidnappers demanded a huge ransom and the police took control of
skilful negotiations.
But something went terribly wrong and my family were all found, brutally
murdered.
I left the police station in a daze.
Insisting on walking alone, I wandered for hours until I saw a light in a little
church and taking shelter there I sat alone and wept.
At first in anger, I cried out to God and asked Him, “Why?”
At length I told Him how dear to me had been my lovely family and how I
wished I had spent every available precious minute with them.
I told Him how, instead of all this crippling wealth, I prayed that I could wake
up and find that I was just an ordinary man with an ordinary life and I still had
my lovely family with me to hold, just be with and love.
At last, exhausted from my tears and prayers, I woke up.......................
(All characters fictitious? Save He Who Saves!)
John Dabell
11

WHY BELIEVE?
St John’s members tell us what it’s like to follow Jesus. This
month, we hear from Michael Peach...
I WAS born and grew up in Derby in
the Midlands, so Felbridge feels very far
south to me! As a child my Mum, who
is a Christian, took me along to a local
church each week. Shortly before I was
five, I distinctly remember running
around after the service one Sunday,
falling over and hitting my head on a
pew. I needed a few stitches and I
gained a small scar on my forehead, but
fortunately I was not put off going along
to church!
As I reached secondary school age, I
started to have lots of questions about
Christianity, creation and the Bible. I
remember God speaking to me through
the verse, ‘By faith we understand that
the universe was formed at God's
command’ (Hebrews 11:3), which
helped me to accept God’s creation of
the world, even if I could not know
exactly how he had done it.
There was an active youth group at our
church and the influence of the youth
leaders during this period was very
important – one man called Jon was one
of my youth leaders for seven
continuous years! He and the other
leaders faithfully answered my
questions about different things week by
week, and modelled godly living to me.
While I had never rejected Christ, it was
during this time that I actively owned a
personal trust in the Lord Jesus’ death
to save me from my sin, death and
hell. I also started to understand more
of what it means to live with Jesus as
Lord. God sustained me through some
hard times at secondary school caused
by a mixture of the usual teenage
angst and feeling very isolated as a
Christian.
Going off to university was another
period when I grew as a follower of
Jesus. I remember sitting in sermons
and the joy of realising that the
preacher was simply helping me to
understand and apply the Bible text
that Sunday – and it was not just
coming from his head! I have tried to
follow this simple model of explaining
and applying a given Bible text now
that I have been allowed the privilege
of sharing and teaching God’s Word
in his church.
Reflecting back, I think over the years
God has made me increasingly aware
of his greatness, of the ever
threatening danger of sin in my life, of
the wonder of Jesus’ saving death, and
of how much more I still need to grow
as I seek to follow Christ.
12

A Riding, Striding Day Out
On September 11th, Daphne, Brian and I joined seven
members of Moat URC Church on a sponsored ‘Ride and
Stride’ to visit local churches, organised on behalf of the
Surrey Churches Preservation Trust.
We walked to six churches in East Grinstead then took the
270 bus to Lindfield, visiting two churches there. After a coffee break, we
took the 270 again to Haywards Heath where we visited six churches and
had our lunch. Replenished, we continued to Crawley on the 271. We
found the Crawley parish church, one in Southgate, another in Tilgate and
the final one in Furnace Green en route to Three Bridges. Tired and wet,
we then caught the 291 home.
The outing took all day and we enjoyed the fellowship of friends despite
the rain. The few churches which were open we found very interesting,
especially the wood carvings in St Richard’s, and we were told something
of the history of St Wilfred’s by the Rector and one of his congregation.
This event is normally a very good fundraiser for local churches as half of
the sponsored money goes to our church and half to the Trust.
Thank you to the five members of St. Johns who
sponsored us. We hope to get £25 for our fundraising
project this year ‐ maybe more another year!
Janet Starr
SCREWTAPE LETTERS AT CHEQUER MEAD
On Monday 18th October, the Saltmine Theatre Company are
producing The Screwtape Letters, adapted from the book by
C.S. Lewis, at the Chequer Mead Arts Centre at 7.30 p.m.
Tickets are £11 (Concessions £9)
If it's as good as their past adaptations it will be a brilliant, amusing and
devilishly thought-provoking evening.
Box office 302000
Joan Bateman
13

The Adam Dabell
Annual Memorial Football Match
Thursday 7 th October 2010
East Grinstead Town F. C. Ground, East Court (Blackwell
Farm Rd / Holtye Rd)
Sackville vs Imberhorne ‘Old Boys’
Gates open at 6.30pm (kick-off at 7.00pm)
Sackville vs Imberhorne 6 th Forms
For the Adam Dabell Memorial Cup and Trophy
Kick-off at 7.35pm
Hot food and drinks will be available and the
bar will be open.
Please join Adam’s family and friends to cheer on
the teams and to make this ‘7th Memorial
Match’ a celebration of Adam’s life.
Police Station Survey
As part of a drive to make savings and re-invest in up to 200 additional front-line
officers, Surrey Police is conducting a review of all its current buildings, and
looking to move teams out of certain expensive and largely under-used police
stations.
In Tandridge District we are looking for your ideas about where you prefer to see,
meet, and speak to your local officers and where they might work from in Oxted,
Lingfield and Caterham.
Rest assured your local team will continue to patrol your community and no
stations will close until a suitable alternative has been found. Any changes will
also not affect emergency response times or custody provision. Consultation about
the proposed changes in Tandridge runs until 16th November.
Please visit www.surrey.police.uk for more information, to see a full list of consultation
events, or to fill in a survey online.
14

TEARFUND NEWS
Tearfund Supporter Group Meeting
Are you wondering how Tearfund is helping after the floods in Pakistan?
Are you interested in hearing John Archer tell us about Tearfund’s Church
Resources for Christmas?
Are you a keen supporter of Tearfund or interested in finding out more about
this charity that we support at St. John’s?
Would you like to see the new range of ‘Created’ fairly-traded craft goods?
If you answered ‘YES’ to any of the above we have a meeting just right for you:
The Tearfund Supporter Group Meeting
Wednesday 13 th October,
from 7.30pm to 9.30pm at
The Jubilee Centre, Charlwoods Road,
East Grinstead, RH19 2HL.
Do come along and join us. We will be starting at 7.30pm with refreshments and
time to view and buy the fairly-traded ‘Created’ craft goods. At 8pm John Archer
will give us an update on the work of Tearfund.
For more information: contact Brenda or Gordon Wilkinson on 01342 311516.
This year
we will
not be
buying
a large
stock of
Tearfund's craft goods and
organising sales. Instead, now that
we have established the quality of
the goods, we would like to
encourage you to collect a
catalogue from the back of church,
show it to your friends, family and
work colleagues and put together
an order. We will do the rest.
Created values
Paying a fair price for skill
and effort
Open and honest trading relationships
Good working conditions
Safeguarding the health and education
of children
Protecting the environment
Work that offers dignity and respect
Bringing spiritual and material
transformation through trade
Demonstrating the love that
Jesus has shown to
the world
15

CHURCH CENTRE PROJECT
Progress Report: September 2010
Summary
Phase 1 is due to be completed during the October half term week.
Phases 2 slipped behind programme, but Phase 3 currently on programme.
Spend for Phases 1 & 3 is currently at or below budget; Phase 2 estimate is
over budget.
Progress
Phase 1 (Hall windows and redecorate)
Final documentation prepared for the submission of the petition for a faculty to
the Diocesan Chancellor for his consideration.
Tandridge District Council issued a Certificate of Lawfulness.
PCC approved the placing of the order and payment of the deposit to the windows
contractor.
Order placed with Macphersons Glass
Phase 2 (Playground)
Diocesan rector responsible for graveyards commented on our proposals.
PCC considered the revised sketch plans and requested a report on other options
for creating a play area and a cost reduction exercise on the current proposals.
Phase 3 (North-west development)
Structural Engineer and Mechanical & Electrical Engineer appointed for preparation
of documents for Building Regulations approval and Diocesan approval.
PCC confirmed their previous approval of £40,000 expenditure on design fees.
Other Projects
No further information on car park surfacing received.
Forecast
Phase 1 (Hall windows and redecorate)
The granting of the faculty is expected very soon after mid September.
Window installation is planned for the school autumn half-term holidays.
Hall will be out of use from 18 th October to 5 th November.
16

Phase 2 (Playground)
Review of options and costs to be submitted to the PCC for approval in November.
Phase 3 (North-west development)
The Architect to receive further quotations for the bat survey.
Architect to finalise with Surrey Highways the impact of the new building on
the grass verge along The Glebe.
Submission of documents for Building Regulations approval planned for mid
October.
Building Regulations approval expected end of November.
Other Projects
Details of car park surfacing awaited.
Temporary repairs to car park to be considered.
Repairs to bell supports to be co-ordinated with re-pointing of masonry.
John Grainger (Chair CCPT) 15 th September 2010
THE WORSHIP SERVICE
Raise the Roof is a fun, action-packed
service, presenting Jesus’ message through
music, dance drama and dancing. The next
service is on:
Sunday 17th October
Rehearsal 4.15pm Scrummy tea 5.30pm
Service 6-6.40pm
If you’d like to join in playing an instrument, acting, dancing or singing -
young or old, beginner or pro - contact Kris Defriend on 01342 312788 or
k.defriend@sky.com.
17

VILLAGE MATTERS
Felbridge W.I.
We were very pleased to welcome five
visitors to our meeting, some of whom
have shown positive interest in coming
again, and we look forward to seeing
them all again in October.
Our publicised speaker on the Rocky
Mountains was, unfortunately, taken ill
the day before, and so at very short
notice Mrs Weekes came to entertain
us—and that she certainly did. She
brought 34 hats each from a different
country and by listening to the
appropriate music and watching her
mime the local dances, we had to guess
which country they belonged to. As we
were all given one of the hats to wear
whilst this was going on, this caused a
lot of laughter. We are very grateful to
Mrs Weekes for a very happy
afternoon.
Our next meeting is the annual meeting
for selecting the committee, which is a
very important part of running the W.I.
This will be followed by some light
entertainment provided by some of the
very brave members!
We meet the first Tuesday in the month
at Felbridge Village Hall, 1.30-3.30pm.
For more information telephone EG
322302.
The Felbridge Horticultural Society
The Late Summer Show in August
attracted over 200 entries, with a wide
choice of classes. Eleven cups were
given out to the various winners and
Ann Deane was presented with the
silver plate as overall winner.
Our next meeting will be on the 21 st
October at the Village Hall at 8.15pm
with an illustrated talk by Vanessa
Jones on Organic Vegetables.
Items from Ken Harwood
The swans on Hedgecourt Lake have
faced great problems: all the cygnets,
except one which was taken to the
Swan Sanctuary, have been killed, and
one of the swans was found drowned
after being attacked by two others.
Let’s hope that next year will be
better.
A repair on Copthorne Road when a
water mains burst has left an ominous
hump in the road which will be very
carefully monitored when the cold
weather arrives.
Daffodil bulbs have been bought with
a grant from the Parish Council. These
will be planted in the near future to
add to those planted last year and
which made such a wonderful show
this spring.
Haydon (Ginger) Wickington has
planted a selection of wild flowers on
his land near Hedgecourt Lake which
have made a wonderful show and will
also help to sustain the birdlife this
winter.
A housing developer from Worthing
has approached residents near Searle’s
Field and there is a rumour that 60
houses are planned with 50% social
housing. There is no confirmation of
this, however.
Daphne Ayerst
18

Throughout this year, we have included
an advertisement on our inner cover
page for Footsteps chiropody services.
The clinic, run by Sarah Townson
(daughter of Vic and Linda Barker) is
actually called Footprints.
She named the practice after the well
known Christian poem:
FOOTPRINTS
One night I dreamed I was walking along the
beach with the Lord. Scenes from my life flashed
across the sky. In each, I noticed footprints in the
sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints;
other times there was only one.
During the lowest times of my life I could see only one set of
footprints, so I said, “Lord, you promised me that you would
walk with me always. Why, when I have needed you most, would
you leave me?”
The Lord replied, “My precious child, I love you and would
never leave you. The times when you have seen only one set of
footprints, it was then that I carried you.”
Sarah studied podiatry (chiropody) at the University of
Brighton and graduated in 1997. After working as a clinical
lecturer, independent chiropody clinics and the NHS, she
started her own practice in 2001. Sarah now runs a purpose-built chiropody clinic at
the Jubilee Community Centre and can be contacted on 01342 319118. For more
details, go to www.footprintseg.co.uk where you will see that she provides this
service, “for heavenly soles”.
FELBRIDGE WI NEEDS
YOU!
So why don’t you come along on
the 1st Tuesday of every month.
Meetings start at 1.30pm at
Felbridge Village Hall
Speakers, Competitions, Outings,
Raffles and much more
PARISH COUNCIL
MEETING
On 7th October at
7.30pm
In the Village Hall
19

HOSPITALITY SUNDAY
7th November
One of the things that happened in the early Christian church
was that the Christians went to each others’ houses to share
food together. And the church grew.
Of course our life has changed a lot from the early church, but
our mission is still the same: to preach the Good News, and it is
a lot easier to do this if we feel uplifted and encouraged.
What better way to do this than over a meal together.
You don’t need to be able to cook to join in, so don’t worry.
We hope that some people will volunteer to act as hosts and
others will volunteer to be guests.
Speak to Chris or Lindsey, or email us at
mountainash4@googlemail.com to let us know that you’d like
to participate.
20

CHURCH FAMILY NEWS
Church Family Directory corrections
For details of corrections to the Family Directory, please read the print
edition or contact the Church Office on stjohnschurchoffice@gmail.com.
Thank you
We thank all the members of the church family for the beautiful wicker tub
of plants we received following the death of my mother, Luna Whiting. We
have placed it in the shelter of our front porch where the flowers will
greet us (and our visitors) for many months to come. A particular thank you
to all those who have been praying for us and the family at this sad time,
and especially for those who came and supported us at the funeral of
John's mum.
John & Carole Grainger
My family and I would like to say a big thank you for all your prayers and
cards for Peter. A big thank you also to all those who helped to make the
Thanksgiving Service and the tea so memorable. Ann Thayne and Family
Wedding Announcement
Mr & Mrs Rundle are delighted to announce the
marriage of their son Carl Rundle to Michelle Webster
on 11th September 2010.
Carl used to run the ACF in Felbridge and also did
many Remembrance services for St John's Church.
21

CHURCH ARMY: HOW IT STARTED
Church Army was founded by Prebendary Wilson Carlile in 1882, starting
his mission work by leading open-air services each week opposite
Kensington High Street station. Large numbers would congregate to hear the
Gospel.
He then engaged tradesmen and working people to lead the outdoor services,
by sharing Scripture, singing hymns and leading prayers; he found
this approach to be unusually effective.
Wilson Carlile developed the vision to train and equip ordinary men and
women to share their living experiences of Christ in a relevant and caring
way, to preach and practise the Gospel.
Church Army spread abroad, to Canada in the early 1890's, India in 1926,
Australia in 1934, and New Zealand in 1935.
Edward Wilson Carlile (grandson of Wilson Carlile) took Church Army to
Africa, and in recent years Church Army has been developing in Vanuatu,
Fiji, Denmark, USA, Jamaica and Barbados.
Philip Johanson O.B.E., the International Secretary, will be visiting us at
St John's; please come along to our evening service at 6pm and hear more
about the work of Church Army on 31st October.
Di Giles
CHURCH REGISTER
Funerals
Luna Estelle Whiting (sometimes known as Joy) died 30/8/10 aged 90 years.
Funeral at S&S crematorium 14/9/10
Peter Andrew Thayne died 16/8/10 aged 74. The funeral was held at the
Surrey and Sussex crematorium on 24/8/10 followed by a thanksgiving
service at St John’s.
22

PEST CONTROL SERVICES
Wasps, flies, fleas. All types of rodents and vermin 01342 321373
BUTCHER
ARTHUR FRY, Lingfield Road, East Grinstead 01342 323225
CHIMNEY SWEEP
MILBORROW & JOYNES, ‘The Flueologists’ 01342 717900
All Flues and Appliances Swept and Serviced. Pots, Cowls,
Caps, Birdguards. Fireplace Repairs, Stacks Repointed
FUNERAL DIRECTORS
R MEDHURST, Vine House, Hartfield 01892 770253
Caring family firm; home visits; 24 hour service. 01342 315880
Memorials arranged: Golden Charter pre-paid Funeral Plans
GARAGE & CAR REPAIRS, MOTs & COACHES 01342 325544
WOODCOCK HILL SERVICE STATION, London Road, Felbridge 01342 326213
KOINONIA COUNSELLING
Marriage problems, bereavement, depression, eating disorders etc
Jacqueline Lake (ACC Accredited) 01342 718948
TV SALES, SERVICE & INSTALLATIONS
Panasonic Specialists. Plasma, LCD, Multiroom Systems, Aerial & Satellite.
Scott Brothers, 178 London Road, East Grinstead. 01342 321117
R J LONGHURST TV-VIDEO
Repairs—Sales and Home Tuning. LCD, Plasma, CRT TVs
plus DVD, CD and microwaves
17 Hillside Close, East Grinstead RH19 2DW 01342 323022
PAINTERS & DECORATORS
D G GURR. Over 30 years experience; Professional and reliable
Specialising in wallpaper hanging. Call for free advice and estimate 01342 321051
23

USEFUL CONTACTS
Churchwardens: Anne Butler 01342 313640
e-mail: butleranne09@gmail.com
Stephen Granger 01342 312103
e-mail: stephen_granger@hotmail.com
Treasurer: Chris Saunders 01342 325662
e-mail: treasurerstjohns@gmail.com
PCC Secretary: Sheila Drury 01342 323865
e-mail: sheila.drury1@hotmail.co.uk
Magazine Editor: Lindsey Saunders 01342 325662
e-mail: parishmagstjohns@gmail.com
Cleaning Rota: Carole Grainger 01342 325482
Ministry of Flowers: Ann Morley 01342 714645
e-mail:
annmorley@aol.com
Church Hall Bookings: Sally Hobbs 01342 410929
Church Office (closed on Thursdays) 01342 321524
Village Hall Bookings: Lynda Railton 01342 322205
CHILDREN/YOUNG PEOPLE ACTIVITIES
Climbers (3-6 yrs): Michael Peach 01342 312406
e-mail: michaelstevenpeach@gmail.com
Explorers (Year 2-4): Diane Francis 01342 714575
e-mail: diane_francis@tiscali.co.uk
Light Eagles (Year 5-7): Dan and Suzy Callaway 01342 321658
e-mail: daniel.callaway@iname.com
NG (Year 8-9): Michael Peach 01342 312406
e-mail: michaelstevenpeach@gmail.com
Parish Safeguarding Officer Chris Ely 01342 311614
e-mail:
christineely2@msn.com
Rainbows, Brownies & Guides Ann Tucker 01342 317283