The Parish Magazine March 2021

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10 The Parish Magazine - March 2021 the parish noticeboard — 3 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
The Parish Magazine - March 2021 11 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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Page 3 and 4: Serving the communities of Charvil,
Page 5 and 6: The associate vicar's letter The Pa
Page 7 and 8: the parish noticeboard — 1 The Pa
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Page 15 and 16: feature — 1 MARCH 2021 Daffodil m
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Page 25 and 26: around the villages — 1 The Paris
Page 29 and 30: In the first of several 'champagne
Page 31 and 32: around the villages — 4 Anniversa
Page 33 and 34: HEALTH The Parish Magazine - March
Page 35 and 36: THE ARTS Behold the handmaid of the
Page 37 and 38: the sciences Learning from the youn
Page 39 and 40: PUZZLE PAGE CROSSWORD Across 1 Sugg
Page 41 and 42: CHILDREN'S PAGE The Parish Magazine
Page 43 and 44: Please mention The Parish Magazine

The Parish Magazine March 2021

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