The Parish Magazine March 2021

The Parish Magazine - March 2021 1 

The 

Parish 

Magazine 

The John King Trophy and Gold Award 

Best Magazine of the Year 2018 

National Parish Magazine Awards 

Best Overall Magazine 2020 

Best Editor 2019 

Best Print 2018 

Best Content 2016 


Serving the communities of Charvil, Sonning & Sonning Eye since 1869 

March 2021 — Mothering Sunday and Palm Sunday 

Church of St Andrew 

Serving Sonning, Charvil & Sonning Eye 

the church of st andrew, SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF 

CHARVIL, SONNING and sonning eye SINCE THE 7 th CENTURY

2 The Parish Magazine - March 2021 

Please mention The Parish Magazine when responding to this advertisement 

Looking forward to a 

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Serving the communities of Charvil, Sonning & Sonning Eye since 1869 




The John King Trophy and Gold Award 

Best Magazine of the Year 2018 

National Parish Magazine Awards 


Best Editor 2019 

Best Print 2018 

Best Content 2016 


information — 1 

Contents March 2021 

THE associate VICAR'S LETTER, 5 

THE PARISH NOTICEBOARD 

— A letter to the nation, 7 

— On Reflection: Solomon, 9 

— From the editor's desk, 9 

— STAY, 10-11 

— Easter Lilies, 11 

— For your prayers in March, 11 

— The Persecuted Church, 13 

features 

— Marie Curie Daffodils, 15 

— Alpha is returning, 17 

— Victorian Reminiscences, 19-21 

— The Palm Sunday palm, 22-23 

around the villages 

— St Andrew's snow, 25 

— Parish snowmen, 27 

— Cricket from 1750, 28-29 

— Anniversary Elm, 31 

— Zoom in on your family, 31 

— SSES cancel events, 31 

— Doggerel book prices, 31 

— Dame Judi at the Mill, 31 

HEALTH 

— Dr Simon Ruffle writes, 33 

THE ARTS 

— The Handmaid, 35 

— World Poetry Day, 35 

the sciences 

— Learning from the young, 37 

HOME & GARDEN 

— Recipe of the Month, 37 

PUZZLE PAGE, 39 

This month's FRONT COVER 

March 2021 — Mothering Sunday and Palm Sunday 


Parish 

Magazine 

the church of st andrew, SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF 

CHARVIL, SONNING and sonning eye SINCE THE 7 th CENTURY 

This month's front cover breaks new 

ground for The Parish Magazine in the 

current format. It is the first time we 

have featured a painting on our cover. 

It is part of a pastel picture drawn by 

Jean Hutchinson of the Sonning Art 

Group which, although having to rely 

mainly on Zoom meetings, continues to 

set each other challenges. In this case it 

was 'Dreaming of Spring.' At the time 

our local rivers were torrents of flood 

water, so Jean used pastels to create 

her 'Spring Dream' of peace. 

EDITORIAL DEADLINE 

The editorial deadline for every issue 

of The Parish Magazine is 12 noon on 

the sixth day of the month prior to the 

date of publication. 

The deadline for the April 

issue of The Parish Magazine is: 

Saturday 6 March at 12 noon 

The Parish Magazine online 

This issue can also be viewed online at: 

http://www.theparishmagazine.co.uk 

Earlier issues from 1869 onwards are 

stored in a secure online archive. If you 

wish to view these archives contact the 

editor who will authorise 

access for you: 

editor@theparishmagazine.co.uk 


Services at 

St Andrew’s 

When this issue went to press a third 

national Covid-19 lockdown was still 

in force and only a weekly service was 

being streamed on Sunday mornings on 

Facebook at 9.30am. For more up-to-date 

information about services please check 

the St Andrew's website at: 

http://www.sonningparish.org.uk 

Or call the Parish Office on: 

0118 969 3298 

SUNDAY 

21 MARCH 

Every 10 years since 1801 (except 

1941) one day has been set aside for 

a census to count all the people and 

households in the UK. The census is 

organised by the Office of National 

Statistics to provide the most 

complete source of information about 

the population. In England, Wales 

and Northern Ireland the census is 

on Sunday 21 March. In Scotland, it 

has been postponed until next year 

because of Covid-19. 

It is the only survey that provides 

a detailed picture of the entire 

population and is unique because 

it covers everyone at the same time 

and asks the same core questions 

everywhere. This makes it easy to 

compare different parts of the country. 

The information gathered allows 

central and local government, 

health authorities and many other 

organisations to target their resources 

more effectively and to plan housing, 

education, health and transport 

services. For more information about 

the census: 

https://www.ons.gov.uk/census 

children's page, 41 

information 

— Church services, 3 

— From the registers, 3 

— Parish contacts, 42 

— Advertisers index, 42 

From the 

registers 

Funerals 

— Friday 29 January Roger Cowdry, 

interment of ashes in churchyard 

Sunday 28 March at 1am


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The associate vicar's letter 


Dear FriendS, 

This month brings the year anniversary of the first lockdown, and the start of 

a period of time that has changed our world and, to varying degrees, all of our 

lives. Like many of you, I have been balancing — or rather juggling — many 

things over the past 12 months, and it can be easy to feel like we’re not doing 

anything as well as we’d like. If circumstances means we have to do more of 

one thing, it can be tempting to feel we’ve neglected other things. Balancing or 

juggling — or whatever you want to call it — can be demanding, but I believe 

that out of it we can learn a lot about ourselves, our needs and our priorities. 

One thing that I have found useful is to develop a Rule of Life. A Rule of Life 

is about living a more intentional life and it is about nurturing good habits and 

committing ourselves to a number of actions that will help us grow in faith. 

One benefit for me of developing a Rule of Life has been to reflect on what I am 

doing well and what I could improve. I used a model from Winchester Diocese 

which has the headings of Loving, Living and Serving. I have looked at what 

I am already doing under their various subheadings, and then committed 

to do a couple of new things — manageable and realistic goals which rather 

than adding to my load, allow me space for self-care, prayer and nurturing 

relationships in the midst of the demands of life. 

I am not suggesting that everyone develops such a rule but, whether you 

have a faith or not, I do believe that it can be fruitful for us all to take a step 

back at times and reflect on our lives. My rule is something that I have used to 

incorporate all areas of my life, and I believe the principles can be applicable to 

all of us. 

MOTIVATING 

We are currently in the church season of Lent, a season of reflection and 

self-examination, and it is the perfect time to think about our own lives and 

reflect in a variety of ways. Firstly, reflecting on what is going well in our lives 

can give us a sense of achievement, it can give us motivation to continue, and 

it can also give us hope by reminding us that, despite the challenges, there 

are joys in the midst of it. Secondly, reflecting on what we feel we could do 

more of can also be motivating, but it is important that we don’t try too much 

too quickly. If you decide you want to become more active, then start with 

manageable and realistic steps and don’t sign up for a marathon immediately! 

Thirdly, reflecting on changes we want to make can be the hardest thing 

to do. It can be painful to acknowledge our mistakes, but Lent offers us an 

opportunity to examine ourselves honestly and ask how we can start to make 

some of the changes that we feel we want, or need, to make. 

The past year has been challenging and uncertain for many of us and 

reflecting on what is going well, and what we are grateful for, can be good for 

our general wellbeing. One useful practice, therefore, is keeping a gratitude 

diary. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy but simply writing down each day 

some things that we are grateful for. You could even incorporate this into a 

prayer if you choose. On a good day this can be easy to do. On a difficult day 

it can be harder, but I would suggest on the difficult days it is more important 

than ever to practice gratitude. 

POSITIVE CHANGES 

Finally, I want to stress the importance of supporting one another. All of the 

things I have suggested and talked about in this letter will be more manageable 

if we share our journey with others. It may be a friend, a trusted colleague 

or a family member, and I’d like to take this opportunity to remind you that 

the ministry team at St Andrew’s are here for you if you need us. The world 

can seem a tough and painful place at the moment, so we must remember the 

importance of self-care and relationships, of taking time to be grateful when we 

can, and to take small steps this Lent to make some positive changes. 

With love and prayers, as always, Kate.


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the parish noticeboard — 1 


To the nation 

26 January 2021 

To the nation 

To 

Dear 

the 

friends 

nation 


As we reach the terrible milestone of 100,000 deaths from COVID-19, we invite everyone in 


our nation to pause as we reflect on the enormity of this pandemic. 

100,000 Dear friends isn’t just an abstract figure. Each number is a person: someone we loved and someone 

who loved us. We also believe that each of these people was known to God and cherished by 

As we reach the terrible milestone of 100,000 deaths from COVID-19, we invite everyone in 

Dear God. friends 

our nation to pause as we reflect on the enormity of this pandemic. 

As We 100,000 we write reach to isn’t the you terrible just then an in abstract milestone consolation, figure. of 100,000 but Each also number deaths in encouragement, from is a person: COVID-19, someone and we ultimately invite we loved everyone in and the someone in hope of 

our Jesus who nation Christ. loved to pause The us. We God as we also who reflect believe comes on that the to us enormity each in Jesus of these of knew this people pandemic. grief was known suffering to God himself. and On cherished the cross, by 

Jesus God. shares the weight of our sadness. 

100,000 isn’t just an abstract figure. Each number is a person: someone we loved and someone 

who We We therefore loved write us. to We encourage you also then believe in everyone consolation, that each who of but is these feeling also people encouragement, scared, was known or lost to or and God isolated ultimately and cherished to cast in their by hope fears of 

God. on Jesus God. Christ. We also The know God that who poorer comes communities, to us in Jesus knew minority grief ethnic and suffering communities himself. and On those the living cross, 

with 

Jesus 

disabilities 

shares the 

have 

weight 

been 

of our 

afflicted 

sadness. 

disproportionately and cry out for the healing of these 

We write to you then in consolation, but also in encouragement, and ultimately in the hope of 

Jesus 

inequalities. We Christ. therefore The 

During 

God encourage this 

who 

pandemic, 

comes everyone to us 

we 

in who Jesus 

encourage is feeling knew grief 

everyone scared, and suffering or to lost do all or himself. 

they isolated can 

On to the cast live 

cross, their within fears the 

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Officer with and disabilities Chief Scientific have been Adviser. afflicted We disproportionately show our commitment, and cry care out and for love the healing for one of another these 

We by inequalities. ensuring therefore we encourage During do everything this everyone pandemic, we who can we is to feeling encourage stop the scared, virus everyone or spreading. lost to or do isolated all they to can cast to their live fears within the 

on God. guidelines We also and know constraints that poorer given communities, by government minority following ethnic communities the advice of and the those Chief living Medical 

with None Officer disabilities of this and Chief is have easy. Scientific been Very afflicted many Adviser. disproportionately of us We are show experiencing our commitment, and cry isolation, out for care the and loneliness, healing love for of anxiety one these another and 

inequalities. despondency by ensuring During like we do this never everything pandemic, before. we we Many can encourage to people stop everyone the have virus to spreading. lost do all their they livelihoods. can to within Our the economy 

guidelines struggles. None of and Also, this constraints is the easy. necessary Very given many by restrictions government of us are we following experiencing live with the have advice isolation, also of prevented the loneliness, Chief us Medical anxiety from being and 

Officer alongside despondency and loved Chief like Scientific ones never as they Adviser. before. died, We or Many even show people at our their commitment, have graveside. lost care their All and grief livelihoods. love profoundly for one Our another affects economy us, 

by but ensuring struggles. this pandemic we Also, do everything grief the necessary is so we hard. can restrictions to stop the we virus live spreading. with have also prevented us from being 

alongside loved ones as they died, or even at their graveside. All grief profoundly affects us, 

None Therefore, but of this this pandemic we is need easy. to grief Very support is many so each hard. of other. us are We experiencing do this by isolation, following loneliness, the guidelines. anxiety But and we also 

despondency do it by reaching like out never to each before. other Many with people care and have kindness. lost their livelihoods. Our economy 

struggles. Therefore, Also, we the need necessary to support restrictions each other. we We live do with this have by following also prevented the guidelines. us from being But we also 

alongside One do thing it by loved reaching can ones all out as do they to is each pray. died, other We or even with hope care it their is and some graveside. kindness. 

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but for NHS 

this pandemic grief is so hard. 

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the 

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day. a We blessing Whether 

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is some lifeline someone 

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to know 

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church for you 

prays the to 

call on God in prayer. Starting on 1 February we invite you to set aside time every evening Therefore, service the life given we need 

of our in to local nation 

support communities every 

each 

day. 

other. 

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write 

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NHS and social care staff. What a blessing and lifeline for our nation. We are grateful for the 

One www.ChurchofEngland.org/PrayerForTheNation. 

wisdom other. and gifts of scientists and researchers. We urge everyone to take the vaccine as soon 

thing we can all is do is expression pray. We hope love. it is some A number consolation of resources to know will that the be church made available prays at 

service given in local communities by clergy, other frontline workers and so many good 

for as www.ChurchofEngland.org/PrayerForTheNation. 

the it life is offered our to nation you. every day. Whether you’re someone of faith, or not, we invite you to 

Finally, 

call neighbours. we write 

on God in We prayer. are of grateful hope. We 

Starting for are 

on 1 the grateful 

February hope of for 

we the the 

invite vaccine. hope we 

you to It set is have 

aside a testimony because of 

time every to the service 

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to 

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particularly of and social all, gifts we care 

at have of 6pm scientists staff. hope What 

each because day. and a 

More researchers. blessing God and 

than raised ever, We Jesus lifeline 

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a time the when dead. to take We 

we This need the is the are vaccine grateful 

to love Christian each as soon for hope the 

service 

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offered will is be in 

to an 

local 

you. celebrating expression 

communities at of Easter. love. 

by We A 

clergy, 

number live in the other 

of hope resources 

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be share made 

and in available his so resurrection. many 

at 

good 

neighbours. 

www.ChurchofEngland.org/PrayerForTheNation. 

Death doesn’t We have are grateful the last word. for the In hope God’s of kingdom the vaccine. every It tear is will a testimony be wiped to away. the God-given 

wisdom Most of and all, we gifts have of hope scientists because and God researchers. raised Jesus We from urge the everyone dead. This to take is the the Christian vaccine hope as soon 

as it is offered to you. 

that Please we will be assured be celebrating of our prayers. at Easter. Please We live join in us. the hope that we will share in his resurrection. 

Most Death of doesn’t all, we have have the hope last because word. In God’s raised kingdom Jesus every from tear the will dead. be This wiped is away. the Christian hope 

that we will be celebrating at Easter. We live in the hope that we will share in his resurrection. 

Death Please doesn’t be assured have of the our last prayers. word. Please In God’s join kingdom us. every tear will be wiped away. 

Please be assured of our prayers. Please join us. 

The Most Revd & Rt Hon Justin Welby 

Archbishop of Canterbury 

The Most Revd & Rt Hon Justin Welby 


Archbishop 

Most Revd 

of Canterbury 

& Rt Hon Justin Welby 

The Most Revd & Rt Hon Stephen Cottrell 

Archbishop of York 

The Most Revd & Rt Hon Stephen Cottrell 

Archbishop 

The Most Revd 

of York 

& Rt Hon Stephen Cottrell



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On reflection . . . 

Solomon and a higher 

purpose than ourselves 

By Elizabeth Spiers 

I read that Solomon was probably having a mid-life 

crisis when he wrote Ecclesiastes. That the king who 

had everything was completely fed up with it all. He 

had more money than you can imagine — worldly fame, 

power and God-given wisdom but he also shouldered 

great responsibility for the welfare of a nation. And he 

had to keep a close eye on would-be enemies. 

Somewhere along the way, he lost sight of God and in order 

to relieve the sheer boredom and weight of it all, he tried to 

find satisfaction in a whole lot of things you might not expect 

a man so completely blessed by God to try including heavy 

drinking, massive building projects and women. 

Difficult problems often come together in life — the loss 

of a job, divorce, serious illness. I think all of us can identify 

with that. It’s stressful. And it’s very tempting to blame God 

or do what Solomon did and try and find consolation in other 

things. When it happened to me, I decided that God had failed 

in his care of me and for a long time I tried to ignore him. 

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Instead of taking it all to God, seeking his help and 

his peace, I blamed and rejected him. But in the end, it all 

became meaningless for me too. Outside of God, I found no 

point to life at all. I kept going, but without purpose. 

This may have been how Solomon felt. He had seen good 

things happen to bad people and bad things happen to good 

people. He had seen the good die young, the criminal get off 

scot-free and there just didn’t seem to be any point to it. It 

was meaningless he repeatedly said. 

But after all this, Solomon couldn’t find any point to life 

without God either. He concluded that it was better to obey 

God’s word because God will judge everything we have done, 

whether good or bad. 

God grounds us. When we live with and for him, we do 

things for reasons bigger than ourselves. We have a purpose 

higher than ourselves. And for me, like Solomon, it makes all 

the difference. 

From the desk 

of the editor 

editor@theparishmagazine.co.uk 

Making a contribution 


This month we begin a new series of short articles called 

'On Reflection' (see left) by Elizabeth Spiers. As part of my 

role as vice chairman of the Association of Church Editors 

(ACE) I produce a monthly newsletter for the members which 

enables the more experienced ACE editors to help those with 

less experience to develop their magazines, and we all share 

ideas about content. 

The 'On Reflection' series of articles arrived on my desk as 

a result of this sharing of content ideas, and I hope you will 

find them interesting and helpful. The author is not a church 

magazine editor — she started writing them to fill some 

time during the first Covid-19 lockdown and her church 

magazine began publishing them. Having read some I feel 

they are well worth sharing. I hope you agree. 

AN INVITATION 

One of the positive things of lockdown has been that 

people such as Elizabeth have had the time to explore some 

of their talents and interests that they were previously too 

busy to do. In The Parish Magazine, of course, we have already 

published the results of several local residents having the 

time to pursue their interests during lockdown whether it be 

writing poetry, helping wild life, painting, family history and 

so on. If you have something that lockdown has enabled you 

to give some time to and would like to share the results, then 

let me know, I will be pleased to help by publishing it in this 

magazine. 

Should you take up this invitation, please note that, like 

everything that appears in this magazine, I maintain the 

right to edit every contribution and I can never guarantee 

that there will be space to use it. 

I am often asked by contributors about the number of 

words an article should have. My answer is for you to write 

everything you want to say and don't worry about the length, 

I will always edit it to fit the available space! 

The most important thing to remember about any 

contribution to The Parish Magazine is the deadline which 

is the same for every issue — 12.00 noon on the sixth day 

of the month before the publication date. For example, the 

deadline for the April issue is 6 March. 

The 12.oo noon deadline is precisely what it says because 

I plan to complete the layout of each issue a couple of hours 

later. This is so a team of proof readers can start work and we 

can meet the printer's deadline. 

Good quality, high resolution images are always welcome 

as long as you have parental permission if children are 

involved. Images must meet the legal copyright regulations, 

especially if they have been downloaded from the internet. 

Finally, if you are contributing an item, it is always 

advisable to let me know in advance so that I can save space 

for you. Happy writing!



STAY 

St Andrew's Youth in Church, Cl 

For more information, or a chat, contact Westy on yo 

Dear Young People 

Why are young people killing other young people? Why 

does one young person give themselves permission to take 

the life of another? What possesses a person to look at 

another and think; “I know, I’m going to teach them a 

lesson by stabbing them!” 

I don’t have the answers to these questions but as a 

youth worker I’m not going to stop trying to help young 

people find their value & worth and stop these tragedies 

happening. 

As someone who used to run youth activities at 

Highdown School I felt I should mark my respects and 

show solidarity to Olly and his family. So my friend and 

youth work buddy spent time today lighting a candle & 

saying a prayer at the gate of Highdown School and with 

permission from the Police we were able to stand & pray 

just a few metres from where Olly was stabbed to death in 

Bugs Bottom Field in Caversham on Sunday 3rd January. 

It was one of the most sobering moments and if I am 

honest, I felt an undercurrent of fear and confusion as 

we walked around the area. We were asked questions like; 

why, what for, what was the point, why are young people 

so angry, they’re just children, why are they even carrying 

knives? 

Here’s what I know. If a person values themselves they 

will inevitably value others. The opposite is therefore also 

true. But where do we find our value? Likes, subscribers, 

followers, nudes, comments on our socials, family, 

popularity, sexuality, postcode or perhaps our faith? 

I want to propose a different and opposite way of seeing 

one another and a new way of seeing the world. 

Regardless of who the other person is... 

Love one another. 

Be kind to one another. 

Agree to disagree and stay friends. 

Say sorry when you are wrong. 

Forgive others & yourself. 

Be generous to one another. 

Give more than you receive. 

Be quick to listen, slow to speak and even slower to 

become angry. 

Never seek revenge. 

Love always spreads love and hate only spreads hate. 

If you do these things, who knows what might happen? 

I would bet money that young people would feel more 

at peace, young people would feel more able to love and 

be loved and young people would find it easier to show 

kindness than hate? 

But what do I know, ay? 

RIP Olly and the many other youths taken too early. 

STAY Prayer Walks 

You will have heard the terribly sad 

news of the death of Olly Stephens on 

Sunday 3 January in Bugs Bottom Field 

in Emmer Green, Caversham. 

With Mark Brown, the local youth 

worker who is a friend of mine, I went 

to pray and walk around the area. 

We stopped outside the Highdown 

school gate and also lit a candle. We 

also walked to within a few feet from 

where Olly died to pray and remember 

him, his family and all the local youth 

caught up in this tragic situation. The 

sea of flowers, poems and candles were 

so moving and showed us how loved 

Olly was by his school community. 

We continued to pray and walk 

for the next few weeks. After the first 

time I felt stirred to write an open 

letter to young people (left), and put 

it on Facebook. The response was 

overwhelming with over 1,000 likes, 

635 shares and 145 comments! I had no 

idea this would happen, but I had hit a 

nerve for people on the topic of knife 

crime and how we should respond. 

STAY Detached Project 

A further response to our prayer walks 

was to do some preventative work. 

Mark and I, with the help of Sherlon 

from Reach, a Reading Christian 

schools work charity, set up a detached 

youth project in the areas that Mark 

Brown and I work. This is to enable 

positive conversations with young 

people and help to prevent further


assrooms, Clubs and Communities 

uthminister@sonningparish.org.uk 

incidents occurring. Having the green 

light from the church and informing 

the local councillors and police, we are 

all set to go! We have ordered jackets 

and hoodies with 'YOUTH WORKER' 

on and equipped ourselves — and 

have spares to give out — with gloves, 

water, masks, sanitizer and well being 

cards. We will be walking around 

Emmer Green on Wednesdays from 

3.30-6.30pm and Charvil, Sonning 

& Sonning Eye on Fridays from 

3.3o-6.30pm. If you see us, say hi! 

STAY in Schools 

Our ministry in the local schools 

continues to have a positive impact 

with regular assemblies. Recent themes 

included ‘Jesus calls his first disciples’, 

‘Candlemas’ and ‘who inspires us?’ 

We have the privilege of providing 

a weekly prayer meeting for all Piggott 

staff and governors on Wednesdays 

at 1.45-2pm. One staff member wrote 

saying: 'Thanks for the prayer meeting, 

really needed that today.' 

We have continued mentoring 

over 20 students from both secondary 

schools. It’s interesting how some 

young people love home learning, 

while others are desperate to be back in 

school again! 

STAY on Sunday 

Zoom continues to enable us to meet 

as a group on Sunday mornings and we 

have continued with the Alpha youth 

videos thinking about ‘Who is the Holy 

Spirit and what does he do?’ and ‘How 

do I make the most of the rest of my 

life?’ 

STAY on Instagram 

Here’s a recent picture I designed and 

posted on our STAY 

Instagram account 

@stayonfriday to 

remind us all that 

while we might be 

in lockdown, God 

certainly isn’t! He’s 

always there to 

listen, to heal, to 

comfort and let us 

know that we are 

loved no matter what! 

Cheers, Westy! 

British Library on unsplash.com 

Donate your Easter 

Lily by Palm Sunday 

A St Andrew's tradition is to create 

a display of white lilies to decorate 

the church during Easter. Each stem 

is donated in memory of a lovedone 

whose name appears alongside 

the display. To donate an Easter 

Lily please send £5 with the name 

of the person being remembered to 

the Parish Office by Palm Sunday 28 

March. 

For your prayers 

in March 

Please pray for ... 

— For all single 

mothers and those 

expecting babies 

— For the STAY 

Detached project 

— For St Andrew's 

daughter churches 

— For Marie Curie 

nurses and all in 

their care 

— For those working 

to reduce the 

threat of Covid-19 

throughout the world



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The Persecuted Church 

For various tragic reasons Lebanon was in the news during 

last year, but their issues have been under-reported. 

During October, fires raged along the coast of Syria and 

Lebanon, yet there was scant media attention. Garda World 

reported that fires burned across Lebanon amid high 

temperatures and strong winds, and Army helicopters, and 

civil defence teams were dispatched. 

The Guardian said the fires broke out in the Mount 

Lebanon area and that state media had reported that a 

mine exploded in the Wazzani area because of the fires. 

Thankfully, no injuries were reported. However, the paper 

also reported that a fuel tank exploded inside a Beirut 

building, killing four and injuring several. 

This was on top of the blast at Beirut’s port on 4 August, 

when a massive explosion killed at least 200 people and 

injured about 5,000 others. In the aftermath, the Lebanese 

government resigned amid growing public anger. 

Lebanon also has an economic crisis. In September, VOA 

News reported how observers were saying that the country 

was in its worst financial crisis since independence in 1943. 

Public debt amounts to 150% of GDP, making it one of the 

highest in the world. 

In 2018 this magazine featured an interview with Esther 

Gayfield, an American businesswoman who worked with 

refugees in Beirut for a year. She went there again in 2020 

and told me that it felt very different. It was 'hard and 

heart-breaking to witness,' she said. 'The economic collapse 

began to take hold in late 2019, sparking the revolution 

and the resignation of the government. A new government 

was formed to help them dig out of their crisis, then came 

Covid-19, shutting down the economy and crippling society. 

'The economic cogs were barely moving again when 

the 4 August explosion effectively blew up people's hearts, 

their hopes, and their dreams. If they were losing hope 

before, the explosion shattered any remaining glimmer into 

smithereens.' 

She told me that the economic collapse and the explosion 

'helped destroy the upper middle class and the middle class.' 

The banking crisis and economic collapse meant they lost 

access to all their cash: 'They once may have had something 

saved for a rainy day. Now it is gone.' she said. 'Then they lost 

their houses in the explosion as it largely impacted the more 

middle-class and the Christian neighbourhoods.' 

In July 2020, Barnabas Fund invited donations for destitute 

Christians in Lebanon. They reported that the Lebanese 

pound had lost 80% of its value since October 2019. This drove 

up prices in a country dependent on imports. Some people, 

they also said, had given up using money and were bartering 

goods online. Electricity was being cut off for the majority of 

the day and there is growing social unrest and crime. They 

quoted a Lebanese church leader who wrote that 'We have 

many social problems and collapse of family lives … and of 

despair dominating, and that hits the faithful community'. 


News, features, and links by Colin Bailey: please read for awareness, and support by prayer, 

financial or otherwise. This month the focus is on the crises that have hit Lebanon in the last year. 

'Hearts, hopes and dreams shattered by explosion' 

HARD AND HEART-BREAKING 

FAMILY LIVES COLLAPSED 

Beirut properties destroyed by the huge explosion in August 2020 

Joseph Khoury, dreamstime.com 

Esther Gayfield points out that it is critical to continue 

to feed the hungry, especially as 'Lebanon has the number 

two worst economy in the world, just behind Venezuela, and 

they remain at a dangerous precipice that could send them 

tumbling to number one.' 

Esther firmly believes that we need to support the 

believers in their local communities. Stress and trauma of 

staying have made them 'desperate to leave.' She says that it 

is a very dangerous place for the church to be. 'Christianity 

has been at a precipice in the Middle East for years, and 

Lebanon could end up like Iraq, completely devoid of the 

Christian community that had existed since Christ's apostles 

evangelized the area.' 

Also, there are many Syrian Christian refugees in Lebanon, 

who have fled war and anti-Christian persecution in Syria. 

Very few dare, say Barnabas Fund, to live in the refugee camps 

dominated by Muslim Syrians, so they get no help from the 

UN and refugee agencies. All the available jobs are needed by 

the Lebanese host community, themselves in a terrible plight. 

Most Syrian Christians in Lebanon have not been able to get 

residency permits. 

You can donate to the Barnabas Fund project 'Middle East 

Fund to help Christians' via: 

https://tinyurl.com/y4swm6wc or 0800 587 4006 

Needless to say, the key message is 'Pray for Lebanon'. 

Sources and further reading 

Garda World on the Lebanon October fires: https://www.garda.com/crisis24/ 

news-alerts/388146/lebanon-wildfires-continue-to-burn-across-lebanonoctober-10 

The Guardian on the Lebanon October fires: https://www.theguardian. 

com/world/video/2020/oct/10/wildfires-erupt-in-mount-lebanon-area-afterheatwave-hits-country-video 

The Guardian on the October fuel tank blast: https://www.theguardian.com/ 

world/2020/oct/10/lebanon-beirut-fuel-tank-explodes-in-building-basementkilling-four 

BBC on the fire at the Port of Beirut: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/worldmiddle-east-53668493 

VOA News on Lebanon’s financial crisis: https://www.voanews.com/middleeast/lebanon-still-facing-financial-crisis-one-month-after-massive-explosion 

Barnabas Fund article, Lebanon on the Brink: Help Destitute Christians 

Today: https://barnabasfund.org/latest-needs/lebanon-on-the-brink-helpdestitute-christians-today/ 

Barnabas Fund article: Syrian Christian Refugees Need You! Help Our 

Brothers and Sisters Trying to Survive in Lebanon and Armenia: https:// 

news.barnabasfund.org/syrian-christian-refugees-need-you/



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feature — 1 

MARCH 2021 

Daffodil 

month 

is more 

important 

than ever 


Daffodils on the A4 Peter Rennie The Curies worked together Public Domain: wikimedia.org 

By March throughout the UK, daffodils will be reaching their peak in parks, gardens, woodland and for us in Charvil and 

Sonning, along the A4 central reservation, in St Andrew's churchyard and beside the River Thames. In the past, some parts 

of the UK, Devon for example, daffodils in bloom have been spotted on New Year's Day but with all flowers it depends on the 

climate. While daffodils are a popular choice for St David's Day (1 March) and Mothering Sunday (14 March), you can wear a 

daffodil every day of the month by supporting the Marie Curie Great Daffodil Appeal 2021 (1 - 31 March). 

Marie Curie nurses help more than 

40,000 terminally ill people every 

year and recently this demand has 

increased enormously because of the 

pandemic. Marie Curie nurses are 

working on the 'front line' providing 

their huge wealth of experience 

developed over 73 years. 

The Marie Curie Charity was 

founded in 1948, the same year that 

the National Health Service began. Its 

roots, however, go back to the 1930's 

when a hospital was opened for 'the 

radiological treatment of women 

suffering from cancer and allied 

diseases.' 

In 1944 an air raid destroyed 

the hospital and four years later 

five members of the hospital team 

set about rebuilding it as a separate 

concern from the National Health 

Service. They also decided to 

perpetuate the name of Marie Curie, 

the Polish-born physicist and chemist 

who was one of the most famous 

scientists of her time. 

Marie, working with her husband 

Prof Pierre Curie — who was also 

a leading scientist — became the 

first woman to be awarded the 

Nobel Prize in 1903. Together, the 

Curies investigated radioactivity and 

discovered new chemical elements 

such as polonium and radium. 

Following Pierre's death in 1906 

— he was knocked down by a carriage 

— Marie continued their work and 

received a second Nobel Prize in 1911. 

Their work led to the development 

of x-rays and, during the First World 

War, Marie drove to the front-line in 

an ambulance equipped with an x-ray 

machine. She went on to work with 

The International Red Cross training 

medical orderlies and doctors in the 

new techniques. 

Sadly, Marie died on 4 July 1934 

from leukaemia, caused by exposure 

to high-energy radiation from her 

research. 

Marie Curie nurses are continuing 

in their namesake's tradition of 

working on the front-line of the 

pandemic providing care for the 

terminally ill. The demand for their 

work has, like most charities, created a 

huge drain on their financial resources 

making this year's Great Daffodil 

Appeal more important than ever! 

Please support Marie Curie 

nurses by donating or organising 

fund raising events to help them 

help not only those dying from the 

pandemic, but those living with other 

terminal illnesses that are being 

overshadowed by Covid. Fund raising 

resources and information about 

donating can be found at: 

https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/daffodil 

Daffodils by the River Thames at Sonning Bridge 

David Woodward



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feature — 2 


'What unites us is infinitely greater than what divides us' 

Kushnirov Avraham, dreamstime.com 

About 2,000 years ago, hundreds of people gathered on a hillside beside the 

Sea of Galilee to hear Jesus explain what it means to live a Christian life. 

The beautiful Roman Catholic Church of the Beatitudes (pictured above) 

stands on the site where Jesus spoke and is a favourite attraction for 

millions of Christians on pilgrimages to the Holy Land. In those 2,000 years 

Christianity has become the world's largest religion accounting for one third 

of the world's population — the remaining two thirds of the population, 

about 5.4 billion people, is divided among hundreds of different beliefs or 

none. The message that Jesus began sharing still has a considerable way 

to go, and one of the modern world's most successful ways of doing this has 

proved to be 'Alpha', an introductory course to Christianity. 

Alpha is a series of sessions that 

run over 10 or 11 weeks and are 

designed to introduce the basics of 

Christian living to newcomers to 

the faith — just as Jesus explained 

to the hundreds of people on the 

Galilean hillside, so Alpha has, so 

far, explained Christianity to over 24 

million people around the world. 

WORLDWIDE 

Alpha was the idea of Charles 

Marnham, a curate at Holy Trinity 

Brompton (HTB) in London who 

devised a course in 1977. The course 

was developed by some of his 

following curates until 1990, when, 

Nicky Gumbel, who was also a curate 

at HTB, took it over and developed it 

for a worldwide audience. 

Alpha has always been, and it 

remains so today, about the essential 

elements of Christianity that all the 

different denominations of churches 

agree on. The Alpha website clearly 

states: 'We believe that what unites us 

is infinitely greater than what divides 

us.' 

IMPRESSIVE 

The list of the denominations 

that have adopted the Alpha 

course is impressive — it includes: 

Anglican, Presbyterian, Lutheran, 

Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, 

Eastern Orthodox and Roman 

Catholic churches — and it has been 

translated into 100 languages. 

It first came to our parish at the 

end of 1995. In our February 1996 

issue, Jo Farrington, a lay member 

of St Andrew's wrote: We are just 

finishing our first Alpha course and have 

found it challenging and inspiring. Our 

small group has been meeting weekly 

for two and a half months to listen to a 

video talk and to discuss various issues 

raised by it. The themes of the talks have 

included: who Jesus is and why he died; 

the Bible, why and how to pray; 

resisting evil; the Holy Spirit; healing, 

and guidance. Some of us have been 

Christians looking for a fresh approach 

and others, non-Christians wanting to 

find out what it is all about. 

COMING SOON 

Technology has changed our 

world considerably in the past 25 

years and today Alpha is being run 

online as well as in face-to-face 

groups. The courses have evolved to 

include those designed for young 

people, and in some cases specific 

community groups such as prisons. 

However, the concept is still 

the same, Alpha is essentially for 

those who are curious about why 

one third of the world's population 

follow the teaching that Jesus began 

on a hillside in Galilee 2,000 years 

ago. And it is still very popular with 

Christians in need of a refresher 

course! 

Whatever your position, keep a 

look out for news about forthcoming 

Alpha courses that will be running in 

this parish soon.


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feature — 6 

Victorian reminiscences from Claude's loft 

The Great Exhibition of 1851 

Pictures above: Public domain 

Even 120 years on I can boast a link to the Victorian era as my father was a 

Victorian — just! He was born a fortnight before Queen Victoria died on 21 

January 1901, writes Claude Masters from his loft. 

His mother was, of course, a true Victorian and was still wearing a long black 

mourning dress 40 years later. I can remember her looking rather severe 

despite being very kindly. 

About 25 years ago my daughter-in-law researched the family trees and I 

have a copy of her results. All are on the maternal side and all called ‘Horwood’. 

During lockdown I spent some time tidying the roof space of my home and 

sorting out a large collection of photographs which includes an album that is 

over 100 years old. In this album is one of an elderly couple (the small picture 

above right with the daffodils) who were my great great grandparents, William 

and June. They were born in 1808 and 1807 and had five boys and three girls. 

The soldier (above) is probably one of their sons and the couple with the baby 

(left) could be my great grandfather and grandmother. The two ladies (above) 

were twins, Blanche and Rose — maiden aunts of my childhood — and were my 

turn to page 21



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feature — 7 

Claude's loft 


grandfather’s sisters. They were born 

in 1868 and 1869 — the latter being 

the year that this magazine was also 

born! 

Looking through the album 

(above) I could not help wondering 

what was in the mind of the people 

being photographed. Dressing 

formally in their smartest clothes 

and going to a studio to have their 

portrait taken would have been a 

significant event. 

They would have witnessed the 

photographer making adjustments to 

his big plate camera on a tripod and 

hiding under a black sheet so that he 

could see their images on the ground 

glass plate. 

He would tell them how and 

where to pose and, when he was 

happy with the image, replace the 

ground glass with a photographic 

plate, get out from under the hood, 

tell the subjects to stay unblinking 

and as still as a statue, then take 

the lens cap off the camera lens for a 

couple of seconds to expose the plate. 

No wonder, after all that 

rigmarole, they took the whole 

business very seriously and stared 

unsmiling at the camera. 

GREAT EXHIBITION 

Apart from being my forbearers 

on the maternal side, I have no idea 

who most of those in the album 

are, or what was their station in life. 

Nobody very important that’s for sure! 

They were, however, probably 

some of the six million people that 

attended the Great Exhibition in 

1851. It was staged in a huge glass 

conservatory three times the size 

of St Paul’s cathedral which came 

The Crystal Palace destroyed by fire in 1936 

to be known as the Crystal Palace 

and which housed 5,000 exhibitors 

from all over the world, including 

some fully grown elm trees which 

otherwise would have been felled. 

To help with ventilation the 

wooden floor was not close boarded 

but slatted and it never needed to 

be swept as the long skirts of the 

Victorian ladies did that. The rubbish 

was swept up on the floor below. 

UP IN SMOKE 

The exhibition ran from 1 May 

to the middle of October and the 

money raised was sufficient to fund 

the Victoria and Albert Museum, the 

Science Museum and the Natural 

History Museum which were built 

on the site after the Crystal Palace 

was moved to Sydenham in south 

London where it had became a major 

exhibition centre until it caught fire 

on the 30 November 1936. 

It must have burned for some 

time as crowds were attracted to 

witness the event. My dad went on 

his motor bike from Reading! 

By the beginning of the 19th 

Century the British Empire was well 

established and with all its colonies 

and protectorates was the largest in 

history. It held sway over 23% of the 

world's population and had the most 

powerful navy. 

This dominance was not without 

cost as there were no less than 27 

military conflicts during Queen 

Victoria’s reign so it would not have 

been the happiest time for the young 

Wikimedia commons: Public Domain 

men of the country but, no doubt, 

they would have been proud to be 

soldiers of the Queen. 

Despite this, the 19th Century 

was a period of invention and 

development and we have the 

Victorians to thank for many of the 

things we take for granted today. 

This includes, of course, much of the 

St Andrew's Church building in 

Sonning which was completely 

rebuilt in the mid-1800's under the 

guidance of the Vicar of Sonning, 

Rev Canon Hugh Pearson (pictured 

below). He was a true Victorian 

parish priest who not only rode 

around his parish on horseback 

but founded this magazine in 1869 

primarily to record what life was 

like in the 19th Century for future 

generations to enjoy.


feature — 5 

The ancient palm for no 

The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival 

heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, 

shouting, 'Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name 

of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel' (John 12 NIV) 

It can be no coincidence that the crowds welcoming Jesus to Jerusalem 'took 

palm branches' to greet their king. The date palm is one of the most ancient 

of trees and was one of the earliest to be cultivated — archeologists have 

found many examples of its existence and, indeed, the Bible mentions them 

regularly throughout the Old and New Testaments. The palm tree has even 

been suggested as a possibility for the 'Tree of Life' in the Garden of Eden. 

Today, there are more than 2,600 species of palm tree, of which only 13 — known 

as Phoenix — produce edible fruit and qualify to be called a true date palm. Four 

of these are single trunk trees that can grow to 60 feet high and live for more than 

150 years, while the others have their ferns growing from the base of the tree. 

They grow best in sub-tropical climates such as the Middle East, Pakistan, India, 

Mexico, California, and the Canary Islands. 

The Bible tells us that date palms flourished in Israel — 'The righteous man 

will flourish like the palm' (Psalm 92:12) —and in Deuteronomy 34:3 we are told that 

Jericho was 'the city of palm trees'. 

The main route to Jerusalem by road is from Jericho and it was this way that 

Jesus travelled just before the events of Easter. His journey through Jericho is 

recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke where 

he gave sight to a blind beggar. It was when Jesus entered 

Jerusalem for the Passover festivities and the crowd fulfilled 

the prophetic words found in Leviticus 23: 40: 'you shall take for 

yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs 

of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before 

the Lord your God ...'. 

Clearly, the palm branches outside Jerusalem that John 

mentions (see above) must have been in easy reach and were 

either young single trunk trees or those with ferns at the base. 

DATES IN OUR PARISH? 

Dates are one of the seven foods that God promised the 

Israelites (Deuteronomy 8:8) would be plentiful when they 

arrived in the Promised Land — the others being, wheat, 

barley, grape, olive, pomegranate and fig. 

For the past 9 years I have been trying to grow a true 

date palm in my Charvil Bible garden. I have 13 — one 2½ 

foot pot grown tree that is about 10 years old, and the others 

were grown from date stones. Palm 'seeds' are a remarkable 

feat of nature, scientists have grown some 150 - 200 year old 

seeds. Even so, they require a great deal of patience but as the 

illustrations show I have made a start with 

some Jordanian and Californian date 

stones. You never know that in 50 

The people of Jerusalem welcome Jesus as their king 

years or so, there may be a date producing palm tree in 

Charvil. This will depend, of course, on many factors, 

including the climate change that the scientists tell us 

could bring a sub-tropical climate to Charvil. However, I 

have greater expectations for Palm Sunday which I believe will 

still be an important date on the Christian calendar — a date 

in which the ancient date palm will still have an important 

part to play in the celebrations! 

3 4 5 

1 

2 

1: Dates; 2: Date stones; 3: Winter in Charvil, 6 months after sowing J 

Charvil, 3 years after sowing Californian date seed; 5: A 10 year old p 

6: The 'Dream', a mature date palm — this one i 

Pictures: 1: Reinis Bigacs, dreamstime; 2,3,4,5 Bob Peters; 6: Saj Shafique, unsplas


w and the future 

By Bob Peters 

Palm trees outside the wall of Jerusalem 

Ilanda, Shuttlestock.com 

Zatletic, Dreamstime.com 

ordanian date seed; 4: Winter in 

ot grown date palm in Charvil; 

s in Dubai! 

h.com; Red arrow: Tartila, freeik.com 

6



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St Andrew's snow scenes 

By Peter Rennie, Sunday 24 February 2021

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I'm a little snowman short and round . . . 

The Barnes Family The Vicarage garden Greg Elphick 

Daddy Darvall The Jones Family 

Peter Bilton Sunrise of Sonning 

Matthew and Kiera The Jeffery Family Erwen 

We had hoped to include a splendid display of over 30 snowmen built on the field behind Charvil School but some 

childish vandals got there before our photographer and destroyed them all. Perhaps they have not grown out of the 

toddler phase of their lives!



Since 1750 Sonning Cricket Club's sport 

By Alastair Driver 

I recently embarked on the fascinating task of writing the history of Sonning Cricket Club (SCC) for the club’s 

website based on the excellent trio of books entitled 'A Thames Parish Magazine' by Gordon Nutbrown. These books 

contain extracts from 'The Parish Magazine' stretching back to 1869 and I thought readers would be interested to 

hear some of the highlights from the roller-coaster history of the club from c1750. 

The date SCC was founded is buried in the mists of 

time, but the first, rather inauspicious mention, is in It’s 

Not Cricket – Skulduggery, Sharp Practice and Downright 

Cheating in the Noble Game by Simon Rae. It quotes a 

Reading Mercury correspondent who, in 1767, denounced 

Sonning Cricket Club for cynically preventing Reading 

winning a game by wasting the last hour 'throwing the 

ball about, out of the way'. Thus we say our founding date 

was c1750, but hasten to add that our sportsmanship has 

improved dramatically since then! 

1869 

This is the year that The Parish Magazine was first 

published and in the September issue, Sonning cricket 

gets its first mention with two matches won by Sonning 

against Swallowfield and Tilehurst. 

1887 

In June, The Parish Magazine announced that 'agreement 

had been reached to found a cricket club in Sonning' with 

the first game being played on 7 May, although no result 

was published. We assume that the SCC mentioned in 

the Reading Mercury in 1767 and playing in 1869, must 

have previously ceased to exist or perhaps was a more 

informal gathering of cricket enthusiasts rather than a 

formal club. 

The Parish Magazine summarised the club rules, 

which included annual subscriptions of 2/6d for over 18's 

and 1/- for under 18's. All parishioners were eligible to 

become members, but non-residents could be proposed 

and seconded by Sonning parishioners. No cricket was to 

be played on Sundays or Good Fridays and no alcoholic 

drink was to be sold on the ground at any time — 

something we might struggle with these days! 

1893 

SCC achieved its first major success by winning the 

Reading & District Challenge Cup. The Parish Magazine 

(December) records that the trophy 'was accorded quite 

a joyous welcome on its arrival in the village on Friday 

evening 27 October' and that 'it was met at the lower 

gates of Holme Park by a procession of the members of 

the club and the villagers, nearly all of whom carried 

Chinese lanterns. The houses were decorated, and the 

street in many places was festooned with lanterns'. 

1919 

Until 1919, the village cricket ground was probably 

to the south of South Hill in South Meadow Cottage, a 

property adjoining the Berkshire County Sports field 

— a document dated 8 September 1919 show the land 

marked as a cricket ground. 

1921 

Not for the first, nor indeed the last time, SCC rose 

phoenix-like from the ashes, with The Parish Magazine 

reporting that 'The Working Men’s Club have cast 

their mantle over cricket in Sonning which has been in 

abeyance in the village since the beginning of the war. 

Under their auspices the 'Village Cricket Club' has been 

started again — to the satisfaction of all concerned'. It is 

likely that the re-formed club was established in what is 

now called King George’s Field. 

1923 

The oversight of SCC by the Working Men’s Club turned 

out to be fairly short-lived. A rather curt entry from 

the latter in The Parish Magazine (November) states: 'At a 

special general meeting of the Club, held on 25 October, 

the resolution was that the Club would no longer be 

responsible for running the Cricket Club'. 

1924 

The above was quickly resolved. The Parish Magazine 

(January) reported that after a public meeting in Pearson 

Hall considered resuscitating the club as a separate 

organisation, 'it was unanimously agreed to revive the 

Sonning Cricket Club with its pre-war constitution'. 

1936 

Village archives reveal that the land including the 

cricket ground, now known as King George’s Field, was 

purchased for £500 by Sonning Parish Council and 

conveyancing documents show the presence of the 

pavilion. Although made of wood and by now probably 

100 years old, it remains the core of today's pavilion. 

1938 

On 16 July the land including the cricket ground was 

declared a King George V Playing Field. This requires 

the Trustees — nowadays, the Fields in Trust charity 

— and Sonning Parish Council to ensure that the area 

is 'preserved in perpetuity for the purpose of outdoor 

games, sports and pastimes'. 

This year was also considered to be the 50th 

anniversary of the founding of the 'modern day' SCC 

and it is also coincidentally the first year for which the 

club has a team photograph. 

1946 

Having been in abeyance during WW2 and, for at least 

the fourth time, the club underwent a revival. The Parish 

Magazine (August) reports that 'some of the old players 

are back again and there is a welcome infusion of new 

blood. As a batting side the club is strong, but there is a 

definite need for a good slow bowler'. 

1959 

The Parish Magazine (March) hints at difficult times that 

'last year the club was, unfortunately, short of playing 

members and it is therefore anxiously seeking to obtain 

new members for the coming season.' 

1976 

Under the chairmanship of former Notts professional 

Peter Kay, recruited by the Sonning benefactor and 

former club president, Sidney Paddick, SCC thrived. The 

Parish Magazine (February) describes SCC as having a 

strong membership, and a second XI and a colts XI, with 

fixtures on Saturdays, Sundays and midweek. 

King George V Playing Field 

1938: The first known photograp 

2008: SCC - TVL Divn 4b Cham 

Cameron Gannon's divisional bo 

2011: Andrew Flintoff at Sonnin 

2016: (left to right) Azhar Mah 

Vaughan with Sonning CC Pres 

If you or your children a 

Sonning Crick 

https://www.s

In the first of several 'champagne years', SCC became 

the inaugural Premier Division champions of the 

Berkshire Cricket League and the 2nd XI run by club 

stalwart DG Phillips, the U17's led by Richard Anderson 

and the U15's all won their respective competitions. 

The 1st XI went on to win the Premier Division in the 

following two seasons and again in 1984, establishing 

SCC as a formidable force in Berkshire village cricket. 

Following tours to the South West in the 70's and early 

80's, this year saw the first of many memorable tours 

to Cardiff and surrounding area with regular fixtures 

against Whitchurch Heath, Penarth, Cowbridge 

and Malpas. The touring sides may not have won all 

their matches, but performed consistently well in 

the socialising! SCC had three teams in the Berkshire 

League, with the 3rd XI playing their home matches at 

the Adwest Sports Ground adjacent to Reading Rugby 

Club, Sonning Lane. 

Following slightly more challenging times in the 90's, 

SCC was once again on the rise. Under the shrewd 

captaincy of Gary Phillips and armed with former 

first-class pace bowler Ghulam Abbas and belligerent 

Cornish batsman Mark Richards, SCC put team after 

team to the sword and won the Premier Division 

once again. In the next 5 years SCC won it three more 

times and it steadily became apparent that they were 

'outgrowing' the sadly weakening Berkshire Cricket 

League. 

2001 also saw SCC’s first 15 minutes of fame on 

national television when the club was chosen to feature 

in a BBC Food and Drink programme tasting summer 

beers with Oz Clarke and Anthony Worrall-Thompson. 

It was filmed in April and had to be switched due to 

flooding at the last minute from the lawn of The Great 

House to that of The Olde Bell in Hurley. The Hurley 

Cricket Club were probably not best pleased when they 

saw SCC on prime time TV, masquerading as the 'local 

cricket club' in their village! 

Under a new chairman, Alastair Driver, this season 

saw the resurrection of a Saturday 3rd XI after a gap of 

many years, and with it the establishment of a healthy 

and mutually beneficial relationship with Reading Blue 

Coat School on whose 1st XI pitch the home games were 

played — a rare treat for visiting teams at that level! 

Having won the Premier Division of the Berkshire 

League on a record eight occasions in the previous 30 

seasons, the club took another major stride forward 

by moving the 1st and 2nd XIs into the Thames Valley 

League. Bolstered by the presence of Queensland 

quickie Cameron Gannon, the first of many overseas 

players recruited by the chairman, the 1st XI cruised to 

the TVL Div 4 title undefeated in their first season. 

It was also a milestone year with the establishment 

of multi-age group junior cricket at SCC, thanks to the 

determination and leadership of Nick and Tracy Ray. 


smanship has improved dramatically! 

h Sonning Cricket Club team 

pions with Henry Olonga and 

wling award 

g Cricket Club 

Peter Rennie 

mood, Phil Tufnell and Michael 

ident Max McNeill. 

re interested in joining 

et Club visit: 

onningcc.com 

1978 

1987 

2001 

2006 

2008 

2011 

SCC’s second 15 minutes of fame came after a memorable 

day spent with Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff filming an 

item on the science of swing bowling for The Weather 

Programme. The sight of Freddie talking to a NASA 

scientist about atmospheric moisture conditions via a 

laptop in one of our rather basic changing rooms, was 

one of several stand-out memories of that day! 

In July, SCC won its first match of what has become a 

biennial fixture against the MCC. 

SCC rapidly expanded from four to 10 sides in four 

seasons. with three league sides on a Saturday, a Sunday 

2nd XI and five junior sides: U15s, 2 x U13s, U11s & U9s. 

2012 

The weather was dreadful with 30 senior and junior 

matches cancelled, but it was another milestone year 

for SCC as it achieved England Cricket Board Clubmark 

status. This opened up significant Sport England 

funding opportunities which were quickly followed up, 

and resulted in aquiring major equipment including an 

electronic scoreboard, portable covers, practice nets and 

grounds maintenance machinery. 

The Sonning Fire Brigade Trust and the Sonning 

Scarecrows Fund were also key contributors to these 

acquisitions which helped to put SCC firmly on the map 

as a major force in Thames Valley cricket, both on and off 

the field. 

2014 

Club stalwart Jamie Travers took over as chairman from 

Alastair Driver and he, and Gary Phillips, his successor 

in 2017, supported by a thriving junior section that 

continued to ensure that the club went from strength to 

strength on and off the field. 

2019 

Gary Phillips took another major step forward for SCC 

by recruiting professional player-coach Andrew Niblett, 

who with the support of vice-chair Tim Murphy, Mary 

Keenan, John & Elinor Longridge and Michael Marsden 

created an excellent cricket development set-up for the 

juniors to enable them to move up to the senior sides and 

thus establish the self-sustaining model that all clubs 

strive for. 

2020 

Although decimated by Covid-19 restrictions on 

sporting activity, another key moment in SCC’s long 

and distinguished history was the establishment of the 

Sonning Stingers Ladies Softball Cricket team under 

the captaincy of newly appointed club secretary Sharon 

Fleming, who is ably supported by Elinor Longridge. 

2021 

SCC has a long and distinguished history with many 

ups — and a few downs— as the archives show. It has 

died and been reborn on several occasions, but there 

is no doubt that thanks to the sustained hard work 

and commitment of many individuals it is well placed 

for very successful times ahead. Fund-raising is well 

underway for a new pavilion, the playing facilities are 

being maintained to a high level, and once we emerge 

from the Covid crisis, the future of our playing sides at all 

ages and levels is looking bright.



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Anniversary 

Elm takes root 

While the pandemic prevented an 

official gathering for the planting 

of Charvil's 'Anniversary Elm' it 

is now taking root on the mound 

behind Charvil School. Here, Sarah 

Swatridge, a Charvil tree warden, 

tells us about the role of Chavil's 

tree wardens and how the new elm 

came to be planted ... 

The National Tree Warden Scheme 

was set up by The Tree Council in 

September 1990. To commemorate 

its 30 th anniversary The Tree Council 

organised for 30 disease resistant elms 

to be planted throughout the UK and 

tree wardens were invited to apply for 

an elm. Our bid proved successful and 

the ‘Anniversary Elm’ was planted by 

tree wardens on 14 January. The story, 

however began in 2017 when Charvil 

Parish Council requested volunteers 

to become tree wardens. 

Those who signed up were trained 

and since then we have surveyed 150 

new trees and re-assessed about 100 

that were recorded 10 years ago. 

Trees over 3 metres in circumference 

are considered 'veteran', although for 

some species, we look for different 

criteria, for example, hawthorns, 

fruit trees — except cherries — such 

as apples, pears and mulberries, and 

wild service trees need to be 1 metre 

in girth. For birch, field maple, rowan, 

hornbeam, holly, cherry, alder and 

hazel, we look for trees 2m in girth 

and over. 

We have also been recording 

trees which are significant in some 

way. It may be they were planted to 

commemorate a special event such 

Wild service tree images by dreamstime.com 

Stephen Loyd, lead tree warden, and the 

newly planted 'Anniversary Elm'. 

as The Queen’s Silver Jubilee or VJ 

Day. Perhaps they are a distinct part 

of Charvil’s landscape such as the 

avenue of lime trees near the school, 

or our largest oak, or perhaps the 

trees are a particularly beautiful 

addition to our environment, and 

enjoyed by many. 

OPPORTUNITES 

The survey began in Wokingham 

District 10 years ago and is coming to 

a close this month. However, there are 

many other roles for the tree wardens, 

such as caring for five white elm 

saplings in the Water Meadows and 

the new 'Anniversary Elm' in Charvil’s 

Country Park. 

We monitor the health of trees 

such as our horse chestnuts, plane 

and ash and attend quarterly tree 

warden forums and various treerelated 

talks. There are opportunities 

for further training, for example, last 

year I joined Reading Tree Wardens 

at Dinton Pastures to learn how to 

identify trees in winter. 

There are 17 civic parishes in the 

Borough of Wokingham, Charvil 

being one of the smallest, with three 

active tree wardens. Stephen Loyd 

(above) is our lead warden and we are 

under the umbrella of Wokingham 

District Veteran Tree Association: 

https://www.wdvta.org.uk/ 


Zoom in on your 

family history 

Have you been inspired to research 

your family history during lockdown 

or are you interested in getting 

started? The Berkshire Family 

History Society has a number of 

online events coming up, including 

for Beginners, that can help you do it 

at home! 

The society is running a series of 

events on Zoom, many of which are 

open to everyone, whether you are a 

member of the society or not. Here’s 

some of the events coming up: 

From 16 March: Beginners’ Family 

History Course with Chad Hanna 

and Gillian Stevens (tickets £35) with 

six sessions in March and April from 

2-3.30pm. 

This course is for those new to 

researching family history including 

where to start, how to progress and 

good research practice. You can learn 

how to work with core records of civil 

registration, censuses, parish registers 

and modern wills, and discover the 

different genealogy websites, the 

content they offer and their strengths 

and limitations. 

For more information about these 

and other events, and to book a place, 

see https://berksfhs.org 

SSES cancels events 

A talk by Simon Wenham and the 

Film Club session for March have 

been cancelled by Sonning and 

Sonning Eye Society. It is hoped that 

they will be rearranged when Covid 

restrictions are lifted. 

Doggerel price update 

Jane Gascoine's latest book, More 

Doggerel Days is now on sale in the 

Sonning Village Hamper for £6. 

Books can also be ordered direct 

from Jane who will post them to you 

for £8. Call her on 0118 969 3326. 

Dame Judi at The Mill 

Tickets for the Dame Judi Dench 

afternoon matinee at The Mill 

in July are now on sale. Social 

distancing means that only 100 seats 

are available. 

http://www.millatsonning.com



For a helpful professional service 

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including private consultation area 

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HEALTH 


Dr Simon Ruffle writes . . . 'Sola dosis facit venenum' 

Vitamins are vital micronutrients 

that are essential to maintain health. 

However you can have too much 

of a good thing — 'sola dosis facit 

venenum', the dose makes the poison. 

This was credited to Paracelsus (above) 

who was born in 1493. He was correct, 

water and oxygen are poisons if taken 

in the extreme! Let’s explore the main 

vitamins and functions. 

VITAMIN A 

Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin 

that is vital for eye sight. Our retina 

absorbs photons and this excites the 

nerves for our brain to interpret. 

Vitamin A is required to produce 

rhodopsin, the protein involved in 

absorbing light. Too much vitamin A 

damages the liver — this was reported 

when polar explorers fell ill after 

eating polar bear liver. 

VITAMIN B 

Wellomecollection.org 

There are many B vitamins but the 

best known are B6, B9 and B12. 

Pyridoxine B6: It is rare to be deficient 

as it is widely found in a balanced diet. 

It is vital for the normal functioning of 

the nervous system. As we have seen 

with Vitamin A, damaging the liver, if 

it is over consumed, too much B6 can 

cause nerve damage. 

Folic acid B9: Our brains and spinal 

cord develop from a flat sheet of cells 

called the neural plate. This plate 

forms a tube and seals between 21 to 

28 days after conception. 

Failure of this tube to form results 

in neural tube defects, the two 

common faults being anencephaly and 

spina bifida. The former is where the 

brain fails to develop and the latter 

damages the spinal column. 

Low folic acid is linked with the 

failure of the neural tube to fuse. 

Before getting pregnant, women 

should take 400mcg of folic acid for 3 

months. 

Folic acid is also required for the 

form and function of red blood cells. 

Cobalomin B12: Too little B12 leads 

to anaemia and multiple symptoms 

including depression, pins and 

needles and a sore tongue. 

B12 is not abundant in plants, but 

is in eggs, dairy and meat, and is found 

in seaweed and yeast extract. It is also 

added to breakfast cereals. 

Some people cannot absorb 

vitamin B12 and have it injected 

every 3 months but in most cases B12 

deficiency can be treated orally. It is 

difficult to overdose on oral B12 but 

too much B12 can cause nerve damage. 

VITAMIN C 

This is one of the best known vitamins. 

A deficiency causes scurvy. Gums 

bleed, teeth fall out and skin rashes 

occur. British sailors were known as 

limeys by the Americans when lime 

juice was added to the daily grog 

instead of lemon juice, but it was less 

effective at preventing scurvy. 

Vitamin C is required for producing 

haemoglobin. Taking vitamin C and 

iron can reverse some anaemias but 

not together, take one in the morning 

and the other in the evening. 

VITAMIN D 

I have written about vitamin D in The 

Parish Magazine before. We do not get 

enough vitamin D unless we work 

outdoors all year around. Vitamin D 

is crucial for the immune system and 

the maintenance of bone strength. We 

need 7000IU of vitamin D per week as 

well as spending sometime outdoors. 

VITAMIN E 

We don’t hear much about vitamin E 

because deficiency is rare in humans 

and the World Health Organisation 

doesn’t have a regime for vitamin E 

supplementations. Again it is required 

in the immune system and skin. 

Vitamin E cream is often marketed 

for use in skin products and it can be 

useful for reducing scarring. Research 

shows no decrease in all causes of 

disease and death with vitamin E. 

VITAMIN K 

Probably little known to many, this 

vitamin is usually associated with 

child birth. All babies in the UK are 

recommended to have an injection 

at birth of vitamin K as it prevents 

bleeding that can kill them. The 

injection helps the blood clot naturally 

but does not cross the placenta well so 

babies are born deficient. 

Vitamin K is also implicated 

in osteoporosis and heart disease. 

Fortunately, it is found in many 

foods, especially green vegetables. 

DIET AND NUTRITION 

Dieticians complete a 4 year degree 

course and should not be confused 

with nutritionists. Nutritionists do not 

necessarily have a degree, but a lot do. 

Nutritionists research and advise 

in optimising health and performance 

through nutrition. Dieticians are more 

embedded in the NHS in treating 

illness and frailty brought on by disease 

or malabsorption. They are also at the 

forefront in treating diabetes, obesity 

and iatrogenic malnutrition — caused 

by medicine or surgery. 

Diet and nutrition are different. UK 

medics are poorly educated in diet and 

nutrition. Although, in our defence, 

the size and scale of the subject is 

vast and best left to a specialist. So, 

GPs remain the bread and butter 

of medicine and dieticians and 

nutritionists are the very useful and 

vital vitamins.



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Planning Your 

Traditional Wedding? 

Then you might like to 

discuss the possibility of 

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If so, call the vicar, Jamie 

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care home 9 June 2018

THE ARTS 

Behold the handmaid of the Lord 

By Rev Michael Burgess 

‘Ecce Ancilla Domini’ (Behold the 

handmaid of the Lord) is the title 

of this month’s painting of the 

Annunciation by Dante Gabriel 

Rossetti. We shall hear those words in 

the Gospel for this feast on 25 March, 

when Mary responds to Gabriel’s 

message that she is to be the mother 

of our Saviour. 

It is a scene that has inspired artists 

throughout the history of Christianity. 

In many paintings Mary was often 

shown at prayer, dressed in blue, in 

a room that was filled with elaborate 

furnishings of the period, all opening 

out onto the wider world. 

Rossetti’s painting of 1850 is 

different. He was a founding member 

of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, 

and as both a poet and a painter, he 

soon became its recognised leader. 

But the work of the Brotherhood 

was not without critics. When 

Rossetti’s painting was exhibited it 

was dismissed as ‘absurd, affected, illdrawn, 

insipid, crotchety and puerile’ 

because it was such a contrast to the 

more traditional portrayals of this 

scene in Luke’s Gospel. 

BLEAK 

Here there is a claustrophobic feel 

to the painting. Mary and Gabriel 

fill the tiny, cell-like room. There is a 

window, but it does not open out to 

scenery and nature: just a solitary tree. 

Rossetti called Ecce Ancilla Domini 

his ‘white picture.’ That is the colour 

that dominates — the robes of Mary 

and the angel, the stones of the floor, 

the paint on the walls, the flowers that 

Gabriel offers. Blue, the traditional 

colour for Mary, is relegated to the 

screen behind and the sky outside. 

Other colours are provided by the 

yellow flames of Gabriel’s feet and 

the tapestry in the foreground on 

which Mary has embroidered lilies. 

These flowers, like the whiteness, are 

symbols of purity. 

The model for Mary was Christina, 

his sister, the author of In the bleak 

mid-winter, and in portraying her, 

Rossetti has captured the adolescent 

vulnerability of Mary. A small dove 

linking the two characters is a sign 

of God’s spirit coming to bring new 

Wikimedia Commons 

life to this young girl. How does she 

respond? What is the expression on 

her face? Does she see the adult world 

of responsibility and motherhood 

opening up before her? Is it anxiety 

or wonder or awe? Or are all of these 

responses captured in her expression? 

The stillness of the scene, the 

whiteness of the room — they are 

like a blank canvas on which God can 

paint his Gospel, his good news of 

life and hope. Just as it opened up 

a new world for Mary, so the Gospel 

can open up a new world for all of us. 

We may respond with anxiety and 

worry, or with wonder and awe to that 

invitation. Or those feelings may be 

transformed into trust and service like 

Mary in Luke’s Gospel: 

Here am I, the servant of the Lord: 

let it be with me according to your word. 


World Poetry Day 

21 MARCH 2021 

World Poetry Day is a UNESCO 

initiative to honour poets, revive 

oral traditions of poetry recitals, 

promote the reading, writing 

and teaching of poetry, foster the 

convergence between poetry and 

other arts such as theatre, dance, 

music and painting, and raise the 

visibility of poetry in the media. As 

poetry continues to bring people 

together across continents, we are 

all invited to join in. 

Below is a poem that reflects on the 

state of our world today, but before 

you read it, step back and look at it. 

What does it remind you of? 

TIME OUT 

By Shirley Fry 

It had to come 

This time of plague 

We were too vague 

On global warming 

Ignored the warning 

Nor did enough 

To rebuff 

The profiteers 

Too many fears. 

What’s there for me our constant plea? 

No thought of others, our sisters, brothers. 

We’re in disgrace our human race! 

What must we do when this is through? 

Be more caring 

Be more sharing 

This time of testing 

and of resting 

Reassessing 

A time to think 

Back from the brink 

A second chance 

To join the dance 

Leave selfish ways. 

These precious days 

We’ll volunteer to do our most 

For those who can’t we’ll shop and post 

Keep our distance, smile and wave 

That is the new way to behave 

Keep our chins up as we say 

'With luck we’ll live another day'. 

And when at last this trouble ends 

We’ll know the value of true friends. 

For more on 

WORLD POETRY DAY 

https://www.un.org/en/observances/ 

world-poetry-day



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the sciences 

Learning from the young 


HOME & GARDEN 

Recipe of the month 

Date and Apple Squares 

These date and apple 

squares from BBC 

Good Food are 

perfect for a Palm 

Sunday treat! 

Robert Collins, unsplash.com 

By Dr Ruth M Bancewicz, church engagement director, The Faraday 

Institute for Science and Religion in Cambridge 

We may all have rather mixed feelings on reaching 

March this year. It is lovely to see the onset of spring, 

vaccinations and better weather while, marking it with 

another lockdown will be painful for some, especially as 

many of us are likely to be experiencing restrictions or 

ongoing hardships for quite some time. We may need to 

find new ways to keep going, so here are some suggestions 

that draw on both science and Christian theology. 

Getting outside: Time outdoors in a natural environment 

is very good for you, and you can’t argue with the happy 

hormones produced by exercise. Attending to the details 

of nature can also inspire awe, which has been linked to 

positive mood, and increased life satisfaction. Enjoying 

creation can also help us connect with God. 

Looking outside: If you are truly stuck indoors, try putting 

bird feeders outside your window so creation comes to you. 

This is also an act of kindness (see below)! 

Lament and praise: The Psalms are a rich resource to help 

us express both our grief and our thanks to God. Try reading 

one or two each day. 

Journal writing: Keep a journal of thoughts, experiences 

or practices you have engaged with during the day. 

Constructing a personal narrative or story is now recognised 

as a very powerful psychological and spiritual tool for 

building resilience. It is also a vital learning tool that we can 

go back to when tough times return in the future. 

Ingredients 

— 225g butter, plus a little extra for greasing 

— 140g cooking apple, peeled, cored and chopped 

— 140g stoned dates, chopped 

— 280g light soft brown sugar 

— 175g plain flour 

— 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda 

— 100g porridge oats 

Method 

Heat oven to 1900C/1700C fan/gas 5. 

Grease an 18cm square tin and line with baking parchment. 

Tip the apples into a pan with 2 tbsp water. Bring to the boil 

and simmer on a low heat for 5 minutes until tender and 

slightly pulpy. Add the dates and 50g of the sugar, and cook 

for a further 5 mins. Take off the heat and break the apples 

down with the back of a spoon until smooth and well mixed 

with the dates. Set aside. 

Gently melt the butter in a saucepan. Mix the flour, bicarb, 

oats and remaining sugar in a bowl. Pour in the melted butter 

and stir well until oats are coated. 

Press half the mixture firmly into the tin, spread the apple 

mix on top and smooth over. Cover with the remaining oat 

mixture and press down. 

Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden and firm. 

Cool in the tin before cutting into squares. 

Acts of kindness: Helping or encouraging someone else 

is obviously a good thing to do in itself, but it also has a 

very positive effect on the giver — spiritually, mentally, 

emotionally, and even physically. Whichever way you look at 

it, finding new ways to show kindness to others can be a very 

effective way to help ourselves feel better too. 

Gratitude: This is another natural drug that can help us feel 

better. Try keeping a grateful diary, adding a few things each 

day. (See Rev Kate's letter on page 5) 

Laugh, sing, make music, and dance: All these activities 

are deeply rooted in our physical and mental makeup. You 

may have forgotten how great they feel, especially in times 

of sadness, but we can learn from children who do them very 

naturally.

38 The Parish Magazine - March 2021 Please mention The Parish Magazine when responding to advertisements 

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PUZZLE PAGE 

CROSSWORD 

Across 

1 Suggested or implied idea (11) 

9 Apply pressure (5) 

10 Mineral spring (3) 

11 Adjusted the pitch of (5) 

12 Agreeable sound or tune (5) 

13 Mislead (8) 

16 Mexican pancake (8) 

18 Dry red wine (5) 

21 Dissatisfaction (5) 

22 Golf peg (3) 

23 Small antelope (5) 

24 Initiators (11) 

Down 

2 Unity (7) 

3 Necessary (7) 

4 Rained heavily (6) 

5 ___ pole: tribal emblem (5) 

6 Expels from a position (5) 

7 Immoderate (11) 

8 Compelling (11) 

14 Non-believer in God (7) 

15 Careless mistake (7) 

17 Possessing (6) 

19 Large body of water (5) 

20 Select; formally approve (5) 

CODEWORD 

ANSWERS IN THE NEXT ISSUE 

1 2 3 4 5 6 

7 8 

11 

13 

18 19 20 

22 23 

24 

Across 

1 - Suggested or implied idea (11) 

9 - Apply pressure (5) 

10 - Mineral spring (3) 

11 - Adjusted the pitch of (5) 

12 - Agreeable sound or tune (5) 

13 - Mislead (8) 

16 - Mexican pancake (8) 

18 - Dry red wine (5) 

21 - Dissatisfaction (5) 

22 - Golf peg (3) 

23 - Small antelope (5) 

24 - Initiators (11) 

9 10 

16 17 

9 14 18 5 5 15 24 8 7 4 25 9 

15 26 7 9 17 25 5 

8 15 11 25 26 13 25 16 26 21 

25 17 7 26 18 21 14 18 21 25 

8 7 22 25 8 9 7 19 

20 22 7 21 7 13 25 9 

25 22 17 14 1 20 18 

9 25 23 13 25 17 7 14 

25 5 15 10 7 21 4 7 

12 18 17 5 10 25 26 15 23 2 

18 14 17 7 14 7 6 17 9 4 

17 25 9 8 8 26 7 

26 20 4 22 1 9 3 7 21 13 15 26 

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 

12 

14 15 

21 

Down 

2 - Unity (7) 

SOLUTIONS FOR THE FEBRUARY PUZZLES 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 

K 

3 - Necessary (7) 

4 - Rained heavily (6) 

5 - ___ pole: tribal emblem (5) 

6 - Expels from a position (5) 

7 - Immoderate (11) 

8 - Compelling (11) 

14 - Non-believer in God (7) 

15 - Careless mistake (7) 

17 - Possessing (6) 

19 - Large body of water (5) 

20 - Select; formally approve (5) 

SUDOKU 


Each of the nine blocks has to contain all the 

numbers 1-9 within its squares. Each number can 

only appear once in a row, column or box. 

WORDSEARCH FOR MARCH 

QUIZ 

CROSSWORD CODEWORD SUDOKU WORDSEARCH 

14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 

C R O P O B S O L E T E E X E M P T E D B U M P 

D E 

O T F I V X N L Q R N N L 

1 King Henry II 

2 Battle of Agincourt 

3 War of the Roses 

4 Armada 

5 King James I 

6 Execution of King 

Charles 1 

7 King George II at 

Dettinger 1743 

8 Lord Horatio Nelson 

THE MARCH QUIZ 

1 For what is STAY an abbreviation? 

2 What religion is most popular in Azerbaijan? 

3 Who was Reading Symphony Orchestra's 2020 Young Musican? 

4 What is the title of Jane Gascoine's latest book? 

5 Why are local people cutting holes in their fences? 

6 What disease destroyed 25 million trees in the 1960/70's 

7 When did Charvil Village Hall open? 

8 What was the original name of Milestone Avenue? 

N O T I O N S E T H I C 

S E R E R I O 

T H R U M C A R I B O U 

E A T E I R 

R E B E L S M A N T R A 

N A D R C G 

A T H L E T E T R A D E 

T R H I I M M 

I T A L Y G O O D B Y E 

O I D N N E N 

N O N S E N S E T R O T 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

K 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

D 

E 

A C U T E J U S T I C E 

N A S O T A 

T E I N S T E A D 

C H E V R O N T D I 

A V R N 

S T E B R E W I N G 

S C H E R Z O T N 

E O Y C D F 

T S U N A M I H A I K U 

T G S E G L 

E C H O C H A R C O A L 

A 

B 

C 

D 

E 

F 

G 

H 

I 

J 

K 

L 

M 

N 

O 

P 

Q 

R 

S 

T 

U 

V 

W 

X 

Y 

Z 

Holy 

Spirit 

Jordan 

Wilderness 

Tempted 

Devil 

Fasted 

Hungry 

If 

Bread 

Alone 

Kingdom 

World 

Authority 

Glory 

Worship 

Me 

Serve 

Jerusalem 

Pinnacle 

Temple 

Stone 

Foot 

Angels 

Bear 

Strike 

Test 

Temptation


Local Trades and Services 

ACG SERVICES - LOCKSMITH 

Locks changed, fitted, repaired and opened 

Door and window locks fitted, UPVC door lock expert 

Checkatrade member - Which Trusted Trader 

Call Richard Homden: 0149 168 2050 / 0771 040 9216 


CHIROPODY AND PODIATRY 

Linda Frewin HCPC member 

General foot care and treatment including home visits 

25 Ashtrees Road, Woodley RG5 4LP 

0118 969 6978 - 0790 022 4999 

CLARK BICKNELL LTD - PLUMBING & HEATING 

Qualified Plumbing and Heating Engineers Gas Safe 

25 years experience - local family run company 

Office: 0118 961 8784 - Paul: 0776 887 4440 

paul@clarkbicknell.co.uk 

COMPUTER FRUSTRATIONS? 

For jargon free help with your computer problems 

PC & laptop repairs, upgrades, installations, virus removal 

Free advice, reasonable rates 

0798 012 9364 help@computerfrustrations.co.uk 

INTERSMART LIMITED 

Electrical Installation and Smart Home Automation 

intersmartuk@gmail.com 

Elliott — 0777 186 6696 

Nick — 0758 429 4986 

HANDYMAN & DECORATING SERVICES 

Reliable and affordable 

Small jobs a speciality! 

Call Andy on 0795 810 0128 

http://www.handyman-reading.co.uk 

JAMES AUTOS 

Car Servicing, Repairs and MOT 

Mole Road, Sindlesham, RG41 5DJ 

0118 977 0831 

james_autos@hotmail.co.uk 

ALL AERIALS 

A local business based in Sonning. TV - FM - DAB aerials etc. 

Sky dishes. Communal premises IRS systems, TV points. 

Free estimates - All work guaranteed 

0118 944 0000 

MC CLEANING 

We are a family business with excellent references 

and we are fully insured 

All cleaning materials provided 

For free quote call: Maria 0779 902 7901 

THAMES CHIMNEY SWEEPS 

0779 926 8123 0162 882 8130 

enquiries@thameschimneysweeps.co.uk 

http://www.thameschimneysweeps.co.uk 

Member of the Guild of Master Sweeps 

PROFESSIONAL HOME VISIT WILL SERVICE 

Thames Valley Will Service 

Also Lasting Powers of Attorney and Probate Service 

We are still working during the pandemic period 

0134 464 1885 tvwills@yahoo.co.uk 

AJH ROOFING Co (READING) Ltd 

Tiling, Slating and Flat Roofing specialists 

36 Chatteris Way, Lower Earley, RG6 4 JA 

0118 986 6035 0794 447 4070 

ajhroofingco.co.uk info@ajhroofingco.co.uk 

WANT HELP WITH AN ‘ODD JOB’? 

For local odd jobs please call Phil on 

0118 944 0000 

0797 950 3908 

Thames Street, Sonning 

BIG HEART TREE CARE 

Reliable and friendly service for all tree care 

NPTC qualified — Public Liability of £10million 

0118 937 1929 0786 172 4071 

bighearttreecare.co.uk info@bighearttreecare.co.uk 

SMALLWOOD 

Landscaping, garden construction, 

patios, lawns, fencing, decking etc 

0118 969 8989 

info@smallwoodcc.co.uk http://www.smallwoodcc.com 

BEECHWOOD CARPENTRY & CONSTRUCTION SERVICES LTD 

All types of Carpentry, Kitchens, Renovations 

Built-in Cupboards & Wardrobes, Flooring & Doors 

78 Crockhamwell Road, Woodley 0776 276 6110 

http://www.beechwood-carpentry-construction.co.uk 

CARER — COMPANION 

Experienced lady carer who is local to this area 

offers live-in support at competitive rates 

Excellent references provided — Contact Louise 

0784 226 2583 lasheppard61@gmail.com 

PAINTER and DECORATOR 

Roger McGrath has 25 years experience 

Restoration painting work of any size undertaken 

For a free quotation call 

Roger 0742 332 1179

CHILDREN'S PAGE 

The Parish Magazine - March 2021 41

42 The Parish Magazine - March 2021 Please mention The Parish Magazine when replying to advertisements 

information — 2 

Parish contacts 

Ministry Team 

— The Vicar: Revd Jamie Taylor* 

The Parish Office, Thames Street, Sonning, RG4 6UR 

vicar@sonningparish.org.uk / 0118 969 3298 

*Day off Friday 

— Associate Vicar: Revd Kate Wakeman-Toogood 

revkate@sonningparish.org.uk / 0746 380 6735 

On duty Tuesday, Friday and Sunday 

— Youth Minister: Chris West (Westy) 

youthminister@sonningparish.org.uk / 0794 622 4106 

— Licensed Lay Minister: Bob Peters 

bob@sonningparish.org.uk / 0118 377 5887 

Children's Ministry 

— Alison Smyly office@sonningparish.org.uk / 0118 969 3298 

Churchwardens 

— Perry Mills perry@oaktreeoffice.com / 0786 035 5457 

— Stuart Bowman sdbowman73@aol.com / 0118 978 8414 

Deputy Churchwardens 

— Liz Nelson liz.nelson1@ntlworld.com / 0118 934 4837 

— Simon Darvall sdarvall@businessmoves.com 0793 928 2535 

— Sue Peters mail@susanjpeters.com / 0118 377 5887 

— Molly Woodley (deputy churchwarden emeritus) 

mollywoodley@live.co.uk / 0118 946 3667 

Parish Administrator 

— Hilary Rennie 

office@sonningparish.org.uk / 0118 969 3298 

Parochial Church Council 

— Secretary: Hilary Rennie 0118 969 3298 

— Treasurer: Richard Moore 0118 969 2588 

Director of Music, organist and choirmaster 

— Chris Goodwin MA (Cantab), ARCO (CHM), ARCM, LRAM 

music@sonningparish.org.uk 

Sacristan 

— Helen Goodwin 0134 462 7697 

Parish Website: http://www.sonningparish.org.uk 

The Parish Magazine: http://www.theparishmagazine.co.uk 

— Editor: Bob Peters 

editor@theparishmagazine.co.uk / 0118 377 5887 

— Advertising and Distribution: Gordon Nutbrown 

advertising@theparishmagazine.co.uk / 0118 969 3282 

— Treasurer: Pat Livesey 

pat.livesey@yahoo.co.uk / 0118 961 8017 

— The Parish Magazine is produced by St Andrew’s PCC and delivered 

free of charge to every home in Charvil, Sonning and Sonning Eye. 

— The Parish Magazine is printed in the United Kingdom by The Print 

Factory at Sarum Graphics Ltd, Old Sarum, Salisbury SP4 6QX 

— The Parish Magazine is distributed by Abracadabra Leaflet 

Distribution Ltd, Reading RG7 1AW 

— The Parish Magazine template was designed in 2012 by Roger 

Swindale rogerswindale@hotmail.co.uk and David Woodward 

david@designforprint.org 

Advertisers index 

ABD Construction 24 

ACG Services Locksmith 40 

ADD Plumbing 12 

AJH Roofing 40 

All Aerials Sonning 40 

All Waste Clearance 34 

Barn Store Henley 16 

Beechwood Carpentry and Construction 40 

Big Heart Tree Care 40 

Blandy & Blandy Solicitors 14 

Blinds Direct 26 

Blue Moose 8 

Bridge House 43 

Bridges Home Care 14 

Bright and Fresh Cleaning 26 

Bull Inn 8 

Carer Companion 40 

Chimney Sweep, Thames 40 

Chiropody, Linda Frewin 40 

Chris the Plumber 32 

Clark Bicknell 40 

Complete Pest Solutions 16 

Computer Frustrations 40 

Cruz Kitchens 34 

David Shailes Plumbing & Decorating 26 

Design for Print 36 

Freebody Boatbuilders 6 

Fields Pharmacy 32 

French Horn 44 

Gardiners Nursing 8 

Graham Blake Soft Furnishing 6 

Great House Sonning 26 

Handyman, Decorating 40 

Haslams Estate Agents 2 

Hicks Group 16 

Intersmart Electrical Installations 40 

James Autos 40 

Jones & Sheppard Stone Masons 16 

Just Brickwork 20 

Kingfisher Bathrooms 18 

MC Cleaning 40 

Mill at Sonning 4 

M & L Healthcare Solutions 12 

Mortgage Required 18 

Muck & Mulch 36 

Newgate Car Finance 20 

Odd Jobs 40 

Painter and Decorator 40 

Pearson Hall Sonning 30 

Pennymatters Finance Advice 24 

Q1 Care 30 

Reading Blue Coat School 18 

Richfield Flooring 14 

Sabella Interiors 38 

Shiplake College 20 

Signature Cliveden Manor Care Home 36 

Sonning Golf Club 32 

Sonning Scouts Marquees 32 

Smallwood Garden Services 40 

Style by Julie 24 

Sunrise of Sonning Senior Living 34 

Thames Valley Water Softeners 24 

Thames Valley Wills Service 40 

Tomalin Funerals 30 

Velvaere Studio 6 

Village Hamper 20 

Walker Funerals 12 

Water Softener Salt 36 

Window Cleaner 30

Please mention The Parish Magazine when responding this advertisement 


BRIDGE HOUSE 

of TWYFORD 

Because you deserve 

the very best 

Welcome to Bridge House Nursing Home 

Established for 35 years, the elegant Georgian Grade II listed Bridge House has extended its facilities to 

include a beautiful, light-filled and airy purpose built nursing home. 

Our philosophy is built upon helping residents maintain their independence and dignity, whilst ensuring 

their needs and expectations are fully met. We believe that being independent means having the freedom 

of choice and flexibility over how the day is spent. Working closely with families and professionals 

is fundamental in delivering and maintaining the required level of health and wellbeing. 

At Bridge House, our comprehensive facilities and care provision is designed to deliver skilled, 

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Call 0800 230 0206 

Visit www.bridgehouseoftwyford.co.uk 

INDEPENDENT LIVING • ASSISTED LIVING • NURSING HOME 

190821 - Bridge House Ad Parish Mag v01.indd 1 21/08/2019 18:06

44 The Parish Magazine - March Please 2021 mention The Parish Magazine when responding this advertisement 

The French Horn, 

Sonning. Quality. 

A continuing commitment to 

wonderful food and wine. 

0118 969 2204 

www.thefrenchhorn.co.uk

The Parish Magazine March 2021

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