The Parish Magazine December 2022

The Parish Magazine - December 2022 1 

The 

Parish 

Magazine 

The John King Trophy and Gold Award 

Best Magazine of the Year 2018 

National Parish Magazine Awards 

Best Content 2021, 2016 

Best Overall 2020, 2015 

Best Editor 2019 

Best Print 2018 

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

December 2022 — Christmas 

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 - December 2022 

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The Parish Magazine - November 2022 1 

The John King Trophy and Gold Award 

Best Magazine of the Year 2018 

National Parish Magazine Awards 

Best Content 2021, 2016 

Best Overall 2020, 2015 

Best Editor 2019 

Best Print 2018 

information — 1 

Contents December 2022 

THE VICAR'S LETTER, 5 

THE PARISH NOTICEBOARD 

— River Baptisms, 7 

— Christmas Services, 9 

— Old New Year, 9 

— For your prayers, 9 

— My favourite carol, 11 

— Following the cross, 13 

— The Persecuted Church, 13 

— STAY, 15 

— Christian basics, 17 

— From the desk of the editor, 17 

FEATURES 

— The perfect Christmas present, 19 

— Chains of slavery, 21 

— Crisis at Christmas, 21 

— Christmas parish events, 22-23 

— The King's Christmas message, 25 

— A winter ramble, 25 

—around the villages 

— Sonning School welcome, 27 

— Link Visiting, 29 

— FoSTAC cleaning, 29 

— Macmillan Coffee Morning, 29 

— Sonning Art Group, 29 

health 

— Dr Simon Ruffle, 31-33 

HOME & GARDEn 

— In the garden, 33 

THE ARTS 

— Raphael's joy, 35 

— Poetry Corner, 35 

— Children's Book Reviews, 35 

history, 37 

THE SCIENCES 

— The Incarnation, 37 

PUZZLE PAGE, 39 

children's page, 41 

This ISSUE's FRONT COVER 

Drecember 2022 — Christmas 


Parish 

Magazine 

the church of st andrew, SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF 

CHARVIL, SONNING and sonning eye SINCE THE 7 th CENTURY 

Picture: Bob Peters 

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 January 

issue of The Parish Magazine is: 

Tuesday 6 December at 12 noon 

The Parish Magazine online 

The most recent issues can be viewed 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 

Sunday 4 December 

— 8.00am Holy Communion 

— 10.30am Family Toy Service, 

lighting of Christmas tree by 

St Nicholas 

— 4.00pm Advent Evensong 



— 10.30am Parish Eucharist with 

STAY and Sunday Club 

Saturday 17 December 

— 3.00pm Messy Church in The Ark 



— 10.30am Parish Eucharist 

— 5.00pm Traditional Candlelit 

Service of Nine Lessons & Carols 

Christmas Eve 

— 4.00pm Crib Service 

— 11.00pm Midnight Mass 

Christmas Day 

— 10.30am Christmas Parish 

Communion 

OTHER REGULAR SERVICES 

Morning Prayer is held in church 

every Tuesday at 9.30am. 

Mid-week Communion in The Ark is 

held every Wednesday at 10.00am. Tea 

and coffee follows the service. 

Home Communion at Signature at 

Sonning is held on the first Monday of 

each month at 11.00am. 

From the Registers 

baptisms 

— Sunday 9 October, Sophie Rebecca Galuszka-Mills 

— Sunday 6 November: In the River Thames, Fynn Alexander Riley; Samuel 

Benjamin Riley; Milo John Colin Astrup; Nancy Eleanor Faye Jeffery, and 

Isabelle Rose Lucie Jeffery 

weddings 

— Saturday 15 October, David William Fletcher and Jade Francesca Taylor 

information 

— Church services, 3 

— From the registers, 3 

— Parish contacts, 42 

— Advertisers' index, 42 

funerals 

— Saturday 8 October, Barbara Mary Masters, interment of ashes in churchyard 

— Tuesday 11 October, Marjorie Doreen Turner, funeral service in church 

followed by cremation at Reading Crematorium 

— Saturday 22 October, William Charles Albert Whitbourn, memorial service in 

church followed by interment of ashes in churchyard 

— Wednesday 26 October, Gwendoline Iris Clark, interment of ashes in churchyard


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The vicar's letter 

Dear friends, 

How often all our feverishness and scurrying about before Christmas 

simply serves to keep us apart rather than truly bringing us together. 

I recall the story of a family home where on a hectic night-before- 

Christmas the father was busy with preparations and upset over 

the bills. Mother's nerves were frayed, and their little daughter was 

constantly in the way, no matter what she did. Finally, she was sent off 

to bed with some harsh words and a hasty 'Good Night.' As she prayed 

the Lord's Prayer alone before going to sleep, the high-pitched tension of 

the day took its toll; her mind was a little mixed up when she came to the 

middle of the prayer and said, 'And forgive us our Christmases, as we forgive 

those who Christmas against us.' 

'Forgive us our Christmases!' How many of us need to pray that 

prayer! For all too often we let the madness we inject into Christmas 

drive us further apart instead of letting the peace of Christmas draw us 

together in a whole new way. Christmas togetherness is not something 

we manufacture within ourselves. It is God's wondrous gift that turns 

our hearts outward toward one another. It is God who breaks down 

all that divides us from one another — even our crazy Christmas 

celebrations — and finally brings us the true joy of the Lord's grace and 

mercy and love. 

A TRUE CHRISTMAS STORY 


When I think of the power of Christmas to bring us together, I remember a true story told by actor David 

Niven of his experience on Christmas Eve 1939. He had just arrived in England from Hollywood to volunteer for 

the British Army. Having had previous military experience, Niven was commissioned a second lieutenant and 

given a command of a platoon. The group was sent to France and no one was very happy about what was then 

called 'the phoney war' or having to be away from friends and family at Christmas. Even worse for the men of 

this unit was the irritating fact that they were commanded by a Hollywood actor! 

As David Niven wrote, 'the men were not mutinous — but they were certainly 40 of the least well-disposed 

characters I ever have been associated with, let alone been in command of.' No leave was permitted on Christmas Eve 

because the unit might well see action the next day and the entire platoon was billeted in the shabby stables of 

a country farm. 

CHRISTMAS TOUCHES THE HEARTS OF PEOPLE 

Now it so happened that David Niven every night of his life took the moment before going to bed to kneel 

down and offer a simple prayer to God but that night he was faced with a difficult decision. If he suddenly knelt 

down in prayer in front of an already hostile group of men, wouldn't those already disgruntled soldiers see that 

as just one more act of Hollywood flamboyance? On the other hand, Niven had been thinking all day about 

Christ's coming into the world, and his heart simply would not let him go to bed without thanking God for that 

wondrous gift. So, he summoned up his courage, knelt down there in the barn and began to pray quietly. There 

was some sniggering at first, but it soon died away and when he finished, Niven lay down on the straw and 

looked rather sheepishly around the stable where he saw every man in the unit on his knees in prayer. It was 

not the first time that God entered a stable — and touched the hearts of people with peace and togetherness. 

CHRISTMAS REALITY CHANGES LIVES 

That is the reality that the prophet Isaiah could see in the coming of the Messiah, hundreds of years before 

Christ’s birth: Christmas togetherness. As you prepare once more for the Lord's coming, be sure you make time 

for the realities in Christ-mas that can change your life now and for eternity. 

Warm wishes, 

Jamie

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Historic River 

Thames Baptisms 


Pictures by Indy Biddulph 

While it may be possible that when St Andrew's Church was founded in the 7th 

Century the first Christians were baptised in the River Thames, but we have no 

record of it happening in modern times, so Sunday 6 November was an historic 

day as five of this year's confirmation candidates — Milo Astrup, Isabelle 

Jeffery, Nancy Jeffery, Fynn Riley and Samuel Riley — decided to follow Jesus 

into a river to be baptised. It was a very special, joyful occasion that is likely to 

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Christmas Services 

Time to arrive? As a general rule for Christmas services at St Andrew's, it advisable 

to give yourself plenty of time to arrive in church before a service starts, especially if you are 

parking a car, but don't let this stop you from coming, we have room inside for everyone! 

Family Toy and Gift Service Sunday 4 December at 10.30am 

December's Family Service begins with the lighting of the second Advent Candle and 

includes a s visit by Saint Nicholas who will witness the lighting of the Christmas 

tree and receive toys and gifts for the Reading Family Aid Christmas Appeal. There 

will also be a cash collection for the Appeal to purchase more toys. Last year, Reading 

Family Aid delivered 1,401 toys and gifts to disadvantaged children in the Reading 

area — this year they have a list of over 2,500 needy children. 

Advent Evensong 

Sunday 4 December at 4pm 

Traditional Evensong service with an Advent theme followed by tea in The Ark. 

Rendezvous in The Ark Party Tuesday 13 December in The Ark, 12noon 

The annual Christmas lunch for Rendezvous in The Ark is always the busiest one of 

the year so if you are planning on being there for a delicious traditional Christmas 

lunch served up by Emma — from Emma's Kitchen — and her team and join in 

traditional Christmas entertainment, then book your seat as early as possible by 

contacting: office@sonningparish.org.uk or 0118 969 3298 

Messy Church Christmas Party Saturday 17 December in The Ark, 3-4.30pm 

Family fun for all ages with party food, Christmas craft activities, Christmas 

crackers, Carol singing and a visit from St Nicholas. 

Nine Lessons and Carols 

Sunday 18 December at 5pm 

The first Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols was held at King's College, Cambridge on 

Christmas Eve in 1918. Today it is a 'traditional' Christmas service. 

At St Andrew's we worship in candlelight with the original King James Bible 

readings. In keeping with the spirit of the original idea of it being 'more imaginative 

worship' the choir often sings a modern carol or two. As the title of the service 

suggests, the story of Christmas is told from the Creation to the birth of Christ. 

Christmas Crib Service 

Christmas Eve 24 December at 4pm 

In previous years this wonderful service has been the most popular of all our 

Christmastide acts of worship at St Andrew's, so give yourself plenty of time to 

get there, park and to be seated. The service revolves around children telling the 

Christmas story. All children are invited to come dressed as shepherds, angels, wise 

men, sheep, donkeys, and so on, to help make it a memorable and spectacular event. 

Midnight Mass 

Christmas Eve 24 December at 11pm 

Please note: Our first Holy Communion service for Christmas begins at 11pm. 

Christmas Day 

Sunday 25 December at 10.30 pm 

Parish Eucharist Service for Christmas Day. Children are invited to bring with 

them a Christmas toy or game to show the vicar. 

For your prayers in December 

— Crisis at Christmas 

— Ukrainian refugees away from families and home 

— Members of the armed forces serving abroad 

— The Salvation Army's work with the homeless 

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Looking forward to 

the Old New Year? 

For many people, New Year's Day 

heralds the end of their Christmas 

celebrations which seem to begin 

earlier and earlier every year — 

Christmas goods have been on sale 

since July, and there are some shops 

that sell them all year round! 

For Christians the last or 12th day 

of Christmas is The Epiphany on 6 

January and the Church's 'New Year's 

Day' is four weeks before Christmas 

on Advent Sunday. This year, Advent 

Sunday fell on Sunday 27 November, 

so we are already well into the 

Church New Year! 

Today, all countries in the world, 

except Iran, recognise New Year's 

Day on 1 January as being a public 

holiday when we recover from the 

New Year's Eve celebrations. China, 

as well as having a public holiday 

on 1 January also celebrates the 

'Chinese New Year' — in 2023 it is on 

22 January. 

So, you may be thinking, is Iran, 

where the official state religion is 

Twelver Ja'afari Shia Islam, just 

being difficult? But strangely the 

answer is 'not really'. The Iranians 

have chosen to stick with the world's 

traditional New Year which predates 

the modern calendar and celebrate it 

on 25 March, which is known today 

as 'Old New Year's Day' and which 

was originally a religious celebration. 

IRONIC? 

The confusion stems from the 

Gregorian calendar of 1582. Before 

this was introduced, March was 

the first month of the year and the 

vernal equinox, around 25 March, 

was the first day of the 'Old New 

Year'. This had been celebrated in 

Mesopotamia for 2,000 years. 

Several countries did not 

recognise the Gregorian calendar for 

hundreds of years and chose to keep 

to the traditional New Year's date of 

25 March. 

This is also the date of the 

Annunciation Feast that celebrates 

the day that Jesus was conceived, 

nine months before Christmas Day. 

It seems ironic that the Islamic 

State of Iran is the only country that 

chooses to keep to this Christian 

tradition – or perhaps it's not?


Planning Your 

Traditional Wedding? 

Then you might like to 

discuss the possibility of 

marriage in our ancient and 

beautiful parish church. 

If so, call the vicar, Jamie 

0118 969 3298 

He will be pleased to help! 

In addition to the stunning and historic location in Sonning, 

we will work hard to provide you with a memorable and 

moving occasion. We can provide a choir, organ, peal of 

eight bells, beautiful flowers, over 100 lit candles set in 

ornate Victorian chandeliers and the use of our beautiful 

churchyard as a backdrop for your photographs. 



the church of st andrew SERVING CHARVIL, 

SONNING & sonning eye since the 7 th century 

With Churches Together in Reading 

& the Reading Central Salvation Army Band 

Saturday 10th December at 

11.30, 12.30, 1.30 and 2.30 

(If wet on 10th December, we shall sing on 17th instead) 

Join us outside M&S in Broad St 

to kick off the Festive Season! 

All Welcome 

If you would like your church, choir or youth group to come and 

support the singing in one of the slots, that would be great. Please 

phone Michael Penny on 01491 671357 for further information 

IN THE ARK 

Saturday 17 December 

3pm — 4.30pm 

CHRISTMAS PARTY 

In 

The Ark 

Party food, Christmas 

craft activities, Christmas 

crackers, Carol singing and 

a visit from St Nicholas! 

revkate@sonningparish.org.uk


My favourite . . . 

Christmas Carol 

By Bob Peters 

What's your favourite Christmas 

Carol? This is something I have 

been asking people with very mixed 

results. It is fully understandable 

when the choice is so large — it 

is thought that there are about 

10,000 songs that can be classed as 

'Christmas Carols' although most 

people's choice is much more limited, 

and they often struggle to name 

more than a handful until they hear 

it being sung when, subconsciously, 

they know all the words. 

Add to this Christmas hymns and 

the choice is even more complicated. 

Most church historians agree that 

the oldest Christmas hymn we still 

sing regularly in church has its roots 

in The Gloria that was first sung by 

the angels in heaven on the night 

that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. 

The words and tune used today have 

been traced back to the 3rd Century. 

FRIENDLY BEASTS 

A contender for the oldest 'carol' 

is The Friendly Beasts which is 

believed to have originated in France 

in the 12th Century. The words are 

about some of the animals that today 

are often seen in a Nativity set — a 

donkey, cow, sheep, camel, and a 

dove. 

Modern sets also often include 

goats, which were certainly common 

in Biblical times and are mentioned 

in both the Old and New Testaments 

where it symbolises 'faith'. 

A Peruvian Nativity where the donkey is a llama. 

In South American Nativities you 

will find that the goat or the donkey 

is replaced with a llama that reflects 

their local culture. 

NATIVITY PLAY 

According to Wikipedia, the 

English language words to The 

Friendly Beasts (see panel on the 

right) were written in the 1920s by 

Robert Davis and they were used in 

The Coming of the Prince of Peace: A 

Nativity Play with Ancient Christmas 

Carols. 

O HOLY NIGHT 

It is generally agreed that the 

term, 'Christmas Carol', became 

popular worldwide in Victorian 

times after Charles Dickens wrote 

A Christmas Carol, a title he is said 

to have chosen because he expected 

his story to be retold and in doing so 

bring people together just as singing 

Christmas Carols bring people 

together to celebrate the birth of 

Christ. 

In recent years, a number of 

'favourite carol' polls, for example 


The Persecuted Church by Colin Bailey 

Angela Ostafichuk, dreamstime.com 

The Friendly Beasts 

By Robert Davis 

Based on a 12th Century French song 

Jesus our brother, strong and good, 

Was humbly born in a stable rude, 

And the friendly beasts around Him stood, 

Jesus our brother, strong and good. 

I, said the donkey shaggy and brown, 

I carried His mother up hill and down 

I carried her safely to Bethlehem town; 

I, said the donkey shaggy and brown. 

I, said the cow all white and red, 

I gave Him my manger for His bed, 

I gave Him my hay to pillow His head; 

I, said the cow all white and red. 

I, said the sheep with curly horn, 

I gave Him my wool for His blanket warm, 

He wore my coat on Christmas morn; 

I, said the sheep with curly horn. 

I, said the dove, from the rafters high, 

Cooed Him to sleep that He should not cry. 

We cooed Him to sleep, my mate and I; 

I, said the dove, from the rafters high. 

And every beast, by some good spell, 

In the stable dark was glad to tell 

Of the gift he gave Emmanuel; 

The gift he gave Emmanuel. 

the BBC's Songs of Praise poll, has 

named O Holy Night as the nation's 

first choice. However, from my 

own, very unscientific, survey, the 

favourite seems to be Silent Night. 

PERSONAL CHOICE 

My personal favourite choice, 

however, is Away in a Manger. The 

reason being that during Advent for 

several years before covid I would 

take my collection of 170 Nativity 

sets into local schools and talk to 

the children about their history, and 

their meaning, and why every home 

should have one. 

The talk always ended with the 

children gathering around the 

collection of Nativities, dimming 

the lights because some of the sets 

include lights and candles, and 

singing Away in a Manger. 

Their obvious joy and wonder 

reflected in their singing always 

moved me and made it a very special, 

favourite, and memorable Christmas 

moment.


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Following 

the cross 

or or the the 

Bible? 

By Rev Dr Jo White 

A recent web article asks if Christians 

actually need a ‘cross’ in a church and 

if they are unhelpful in worship? The 

argument against having one was that 

it could become the focus of worship, 

and it is not okay to worship idols. 

To me this argument is nonsensical. 

The cross is a graphic reminder of what 

Jesus Christ has done for us in his 

death. No one in their senses would 

dream of worshipping a cross itself, as it 

was the most humiliating and debasing 

form of capital punishment — it was a 

means of gruesome execution. 

Christians use crosses in churches 

to remind us of just how far Jesus was 

prepared to go to rescue us from what 

St Paul called ‘the dominion of darkness’. 

Have a look around your local 

church, and count how many crosses 

there are. There might be ‘hidden’ 

crosses where the building was 

consecrated, and also under the altar. 

There might also be paperwork, service 

books, sheets and hymnals with the 

sign of the cross on their covers. 

Perhaps there are candle holders 

with crosses sculptured into them. And 

in most Protestant churches you will 

see a cross on or above the altar table. 

CROSS OR BIBLE? 

Many processions of choir and clergy 

are led by a raised cross bearer. In some 

churches a cross is also carried when 

the Bible is processed into the nave for 

reading. People sometimes turn to face 

these processions as they travel without 

necessarily understanding which part 

they are facing: the Cross, the Bible or 

the person? 

We follow the Word of God — the 

Bible — not the cross. The same is true 

in any procession. We stand to honour 

the clergy in their role as Christ’s 

servants, not the cross which may be 

held aloft before them. 

How do crosses aid you in your 

worship and how much do they reflect 

your faith? 


The Persecuted Church 

A real calling to everyday 

obedience By Colin Bailey 

The founder of Open Doors, Brother Andrew, died on 

27 September, aged 94. He believed that ‘with God 

all things are possible’ (Matthew 19:26). As Brother 

Andrew said, and as his life is a witness to, ‘The Bible 

is full of ordinary people who went to impossible 

places and did wondrous things, simply because they 

decided to obey God.’ 

Andrew (‘Anne’) van der Bijl was born on 11 May 1928 in 

Sint Pancras, The Netherlands. Open Doors says, ‘His life 

is a testimony to the power of prayer’. He was a fervent 

believer in that power: ‘God invites us to influence our 

community, our nation, the world – to literally direct history while we’re on our knees.’ 

As a young Dutch missionary, he went, in 1955, to a Communist youth congress 

in Poland when it was in the Soviet bloc. His suitcase included hundreds of copies 

of a tract called The Way of Salvation which he intended to give away. 

Behind the Iron Curtain, he discovered churches desperately in need of Bibles, 

support and prayer. He found a group of Christians feeling isolated and who 

thought that the rest of the world had forgotten them. In that first visit, he spoke 

at a church in Warsaw and after the talk the pastor said ‘We want to thank you for 

being here. Even if you had not said a word, just seeing you would have meant so much. 

We feel at times as if we are all alone on our struggle’. After praying about what God 

wanted him to do, he was led to the verse which he came to see as his mission ‘Wake 

Up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die’ (Revelation 3:2). 

UNDERGROUND CHURCH IN CHINA 

Brother Andrew 

1928-2022 

Image: Wikipedia 

Open Doors relates how he smuggled Bibles behind the Iron Curtain in his 

iconic VW Beetle. The first time he smuggled Bibles — with them in full view in 

the car — he prayed, ‘Lord, in my luggage I have scripture that I want to take to your 

children across the border. When you were on earth you made blind eyes see. Now I pray 

you make seeing eyes blind.’ That Beetle became known as the miracle car due to its 

ability to miraculously keep going! 

He founded Open Doors in 1955 — always daring to go where following Jesus 

costs the most. He met with the underground church in communist China. Open 

Doors still distributes hundreds of thousands of Christian books and literature 

every year. Other needs emerged, seminary training for pastors, for example. Open 

Doors provided them with training. Small loans for starting businesses were given 

to help Christians who were subject to discrimination and denied education and 

job opportunities. 

Now the main threat to Christians is not from Communism but from radical 

Islam. Brother Andrew evangelised to leaders of Islamic extremist groups. He 

believed every door was open to the gospel and said: ‘You can get in anywhere if you 

go to serve.’ He became one of the few Western leaders to go as an Ambassador of 

Christ to meet Yasser Arafat, as well as leaders of groups such as Hamas, Islamic 

Jihad, the Taliban, and Hezbollah. During his visits he illustrated God’s love for the 

people of the Middle East 

‘The real calling’, he said, ‘is not a certain place or career but to everyday obedience. 

And that call is extended to every Christian, not just a select few.’ 

‘Whenever, wherever, however you want me, I’ll go. Lord, as I stand up from this 

place, and as I take my first step forward, will you consider this as a step toward complete 

obedience to you? I’ll call it the step of yes.’ 

As Open Doors has put it, ‘His life of risk, adventure, courage and faith has inspired 

so many to love Jesus more and share Jesus no matter the cost.’ 

Read more on Opendoorsuk.org and sign up to get a free copy of God’s Smuggler 

(Brother Andrew’s book, first published in 1967). 

‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith’ (2 Timothy 4:7).



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St Andrew's Youth 

STAY October Half Term Activities 

October saw three super fun activities: glow stick wide games, 

a movie and sports at Charvil's Multi-Use Games Area. About 

50 young people attended the activities and one commented 

on how much fun they had! Always nice to be told that! 

STAY Confirmation Class 

Our STAY confirmation classes continued with all 16 young 

people meeting each week in different young people's homes. 

We met each Monday evening to play games, eat pizza, watch a 

youth alpha video and discuss what it means to be a Christian, 

while allowing them space to ask questions, share stories and 

deepen their friendships and faith. 

STAY on Sunday 

We kicked off the new term with a new theme, Jesus’ parables. 

We looked at ‘The wise and foolish builders’ in Luke 6 and ‘the 

money lender forgiving unequal debts’ in Luke 7. We thought 

about the foundations on which we’ve built our own life and 

how Jesus forgives our sins no matter how big! The key is 

simply to come to him with a repentant heart. On one week 

there were so few that we decided to treat those there to hot 

chocolates and cakes at the Village Hamper, yum! 

STAY on Friday 

Our weekly youth club continues to be popular with local 

young people. We often have new faces, people bringing their 

friends and special nights to keep them active, such as our 

classic favourite dodgeball tournament!! 

STAY Schools Work 

Our work in schools is looking to grow with new clubs 

coming soon. In the meantime we have continued in the four 

local schools — Sonning Primary, Charvil Piggott Primary, 

Wargrave Piggott Secondary and Blue Coat School — with 

our usual assemblies, mentoring and staff prayer meetings. 

STAY Detached Project 

October is the last month of this project for a while. We 

need to regroup and find some new volunteers. It’s been 

fabulous to be on the streets with young people for the past 

18 months. I’m sure they’ll miss the amazing hot chocolate 

mountains throughout the winter months, however it 

needs at least two adult volunteers so watch this space for a 

relaunch! 

October Pictures (from top to bottom) 

— Glow stick wide game during half term 

— (left) Hot chocolate at STAY on Friday 

— (right) Dodgeball in The Ark 

— Detached on the streets in Charvil 

— Our confirmation group take a break 

— STAY on Sunday adjourn to the Village Hamper 

As always, to get in touch with me, Westy, email on 

youthminister@sonningparish.org.uk



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Christian Basics — Part 10 

By Rev Paul Hardingham 

Resisting evil 

Kittipong Jirasukhanont, dreamstime.com 

We shouldn’t forget that Satan’s existence is assumed 

throughout the Bible and Jesus prayed ‘deliver us from 

the evil one’ (The Lord’s Prayer). 

Paul adds: ‘For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, 

but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the 

powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces 

of evil in the heavenly realms’ (Ephesians 6:12). 

TAKING THE BLAME 

The spiritual world directly affects the physical, when 

evil powers oppose God’s work. However, God is sovereign 

and evil can only operate as he permits. We cannot blame 

Satan for our own wrong choices! 

‘There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race 

can fall into about devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. 

The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy 

interest in them.’ (CS Lewis). 

HOW SATAN OPERATES 

How does Satan operate in our lives? 

— By spoiling God’s work in us (John 10:10) 

— By hindering our spiritual understanding 

(2 Corinthians 4:4) 

— By sowing doubts into our minds (Matthew 4:3,6) 

— By tempting us to break God’s law (Genesis 3:6) 

VICTORY 

On the cross Jesus secured victory over Satan, ‘And 

having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a 

public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross’ 

(Colossians 2:15). 

Although Satan is still active today, his power is 

broken and he will be destroyed when Jesus returns. In 

the present we should put God first in our lives: ‘Submit 

yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from 

you’ (James 4:7). 

Making Jesus our Lord, gets Satan on the run!! 

‘There is no neutral ground in the universe: 

every square inch, every split second, 

is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan’ (CS Lewis). 

From the 

editor's desk 


editor@theparishmagazine.co.uk 

Move along inside . . . 

As I sit pondering about what to write for this month's 'from 

the desk' I found myself gazing at the bookshelf where I keep 

the back issues in one folder per year. It's almost time for me 

to make room for another folder, which will be the eleventh. 

It's hard to believe that 10 years have passed since I became 

editor and we launched the 'new' format for this magazine 

which has slowly evolved with more pages and full colour 

throughout. 

I also like to think that the magazine has returned to the 

original objectives that Canon Pearson had in mind when 

he launched it in January 1869. As well as informing local 

people about the life of their parish church, he wanted to 

provide news about the wider church, the country and the 

world, and he wanted readers to be entertained. 

While the world has changed beyond recognition 

during the past 153 years those original objectives of being 

informative and entertaining are still, I hope, being achieved. 

I am always happy to hear from you if you think we are not 

achieving this objective. 

Each month I start afresh with 20 pages to fill and each 

month I think, how is this going to happen? But every month 

it gradually fills up and by the final deadline it becomes a 

question of squeezing stories in. 

I can't help being reminded of the year I worked on 

the buses in Southend-on-sea in Essex before I went to 

university. Every morning I would leave the depot in a double 

decker full of empty seats and lots of standing room but it 

would not be long before I was yelling, move along inside 

please, before ringing the bell! 

Thankfully, like many of my regular passengers on the 

bus who arrived early, most of my regular contributors to the 

magazine email me their stories in good time. Like the early 

bus passengers who got the best seats, the early magazine 

contributors are more likely to get better coverage! 

READ TO RELAX 

While I am very happy to continue editing this magazine, 

I am fully aware that I am also 10 years older and at 76 I 

need to think more seriously about its long term future. If 

you think you could help, either with the editorial or the 

advertising — my advertising colleague is slightly older than 

me and would like some help now — let me know. 

Many churches these days are focussing on websites, 

which are very valuable sources of information and are easier 

to produce than a monthly printed magazine. Websites are 

ideal for finding information quickly especially if they are 

kept up-to-date — which many are not. Printed magazines, 

on the other hand, are without doubt a better source of 

entertainment and relaxation. Health experts recommend 

that you stop looking at screens at least 30 minutes, ideally 

more, before you go to bed. Instead, they suggest relaxing by 

reading a book or a magazine. I rest my case!



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feature — 1 

Looking for the Christmas present that 

will be perfect for every day of the year? 

Here is a great Christmas present idea that comes in a huge variety of 

options, colours, and sizes that will suit your budget however large or small. 

Indeed, it can cost as little as nothing, or up to tens of thousands of pounds – 

I recently found a single piece of a large set on sale for £11,699.99, needless to 

say, I did not buy it, writes Bob Peters. 

This present comes in a huge range of 

different materials to suit any décor 

or lifestyle — paper, cardboard, 

plaster of Paris, all types of wood, 

plastic, glass, almost every type of 

metal from aluminium and steel to 

silver and gold, pottery, china and 

porcelain, and you can even find 

them made of flour, stones, rocks, 

volcanic lava, seashells, knitted in 

wool, and made out of Lego, pizza 

and shortbread. And there are also 

outdoor versions to adorn your 

garden. 

GIVE ONE TO YOURSELF 

Typically, they have from one 

to 21 pieces although you can find 

some with many more. This means 

you can give your loved one one or 

more pieces at a time and so build 

it up over time — it's a good way of 

easing the stress in the years to come 

of having to think of Christmas, 

birthday, and anniversary gifts! 

And, if you can't think of anyone 

to give this special present to, then 

give it to yourself, which is how I 

discovered it. But, beware, they can 

become addictive! Since I bought my 

first one about 20 years ago, I now 

have over 170 which, during Advent, 

I take into schools, local clubs, and 

churches, to illustrate a talk about 

my addiction. 

AN ADDICTION 

The world's largest collection, 

according to the Guinness Book of 

Records, has over 2,150 so I have 

some way to go yet! My talk explains 

how they vary around the world and 

how they reflect the culture of the 

country from which they come. 

I also get them all out of storage 

to display them in every room of my 

house at Christmas. My wife likes to 

tell people we are the only house in 

the neighbourhood that has five of 

them in the downstairs loo! 

I rarely buy them these days as 

friends and family who know about 

this unusual addiction give them 

to me, often as souvenirs of their 

holidays abroad – and my wife also 

thinks that I have more than enough! 

This ideal Christmas present 

comes in a many different sizes — I 

have one that fits in a match box and 

another which stands 75cms high. 

The most important aspect is that 

you can also use it all the year round. 

I have about a dozen of them that I 

keep on permanent display around 

the house. 

You have probably worked out 

by now what my ideal Christmas, 

birthday or anniversary present is 

from the picture above. Yes, it is the 

Nativity set, but, as I said previously, 

it is not just for Christmas. Jesus was 

born for every moment of our lives, 

hence it's why I keep some on show 

all year round. 

TOLERANT FAMILY 

Whether your Nativity costs tens 

of thousands of pounds, or you made 

it for free, having one on show in 

your home in a prominent position 

all the year round is a permanent 

reminder of God's greatest gift to us, 

and catching a glimpse of it during 

the busyness of Christmas and 

everyday life is a reassuring reminder 

that he is always with us. Every home 

should have at least one! 

And, if you decide to build your 

own collection, the other necessity is 

an extremely tolerant wife, husband, 

partner or family who will not object 

to you filling the house with them!



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feature — 2 

Breaking 

the chains 

of slavery 


INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE 

ABOLITION OF SLAVERY, 2 DECEMBER 

Vchalup, dreamstime.com 

Slavery has been part of the world for thousands of years but in recent 

centuries it has taken on an increasingly inhuman and sinister nature that 

the United Nations calls 'modern slavery'. This prompted the UN to create, 

in 1949, an 'International Day for the Abolition of Slavery' which is held each 

year on 2 December to stimulate awareness of the need to break its chains. 

In Biblical times (picture right) there 

were two common ways someone 

became a slave — they were either 

taken into captivity as prisoners 

of war, or people could choose to 

become one, usually by selling 

themselves to a wealthy person in 

exchange for shelter and food. 

Such slaves could be likened to 

live-in servants in more modern 

times, although this does not mean 

that the slaves were always treated 

fairly. 

In the 1600s, slavery took a 

serious downturn with traders 

transporting an estimated 12.5 

million Africans to the Americas in 

such dreadful, inhumane, conditions 

that only 10.7 million survived the 

journey. 

It took about 50 years to bring the 

trade to an end during the 1800s and 

the repercussions are still rumbling 

on today. 

'Modern Slavery' as recognised 

by the United Nations in December 

1949 is a different, and in many ways, 

an even more serious issue, and it 

was this that prompted the founding 

of the International Day for the 

Abolition of Slavery with its focus on 

eradicating contemporary forms of 

slavery, such as trafficking people, 

sexual exploitation, the worst forms 

of child labour, forced marriage, and 

the forced recruitment of children 

for use in armed conflict. 

40 MILLION SLAVES 

It is estimated that 40.3 million 

people are modern slaves, including 

24.9 in forced labour and 15.4 million 

in forced marriages. 

There are 5.4 victims of modern 

slavery for every 1,000 people in 

the world with one in four being 

children. Some 16 million people 

are exploited in the private sector 

Could you help people in Crisis 

https://www.crisis.org.uk/get-involved/volunteer/volunteer-for-crisis-at-christmas/ 

Pavel Kusmartsev, dreamstime.com 

such as domestic work, construction, 

or agriculture; 4.8 million people 

in forced sexual exploitation, and 

4 million people in forced labour 

imposed by state authorities. Women 

and girls are disproportionately 

affected by forced labour, accounting 

for 99% of victims in the commercial 

sex industry, and 58% in other 

sectors. 

According to the UN, the 

international day on 2 December 

'seeks to educate the public on issues 

of concern, to mobilise political 

will and resources to address global 

problems, and to celebrate and 

reinforce achievements of humanity'. 

this Christmas? 

After fire destroyed her home, Sammy needed somewhere to live. She was living with her grandfather when their home 

was burnt down. Sammy was sent to a hostel and her grandfather went into dementia care where he still is. 

They lost everything in the fire. At the hostel Sammy education, employment, housing and well-being services, 

found out about Crisis, a charity formed in 1967 to help and they lobby Government for greater protection for 

homeless people, and she moved into a Crisis hotel in the homeless. It was Crisis campaigning that led to the 

December for a month where she was looked after by the 1977 Housing (Homeless Persons) Act, which included the 

volunteers working there. 

first legal definition of homelessness. The UK is the only 

Crisis volunteers arranged specialist medical help and country where homeless people have a legal entitlement to 

a coach to help her find more permanent accommodation settled housing enforced by the courts. 

in a women's home where she now lives in safety and 

Christmas is always extremely busy for Crisis 

where she can stay as long as she needs. 

volunteers throughout the country as they seek to help 

This is just one of many examples of the help that 

homeless people living on the streets by offering them 

Crisis provides for homeless people through its Crisis food, shelter and Christmas cheer at Crisis centres. As 

Skylight Centres in East London, Newcastle, Oxford, 

well as donations to help them through the Christmas 

Edinburgh, South Yorkshire, South Wales, Croydon, Brent period, Crisis also needs volunteers. Could you help this 

and Merseyside. The registered charity offers year-round Christmas? To find out more, or to make a donation, go to:

CHRISTMAS CE 


EVERYONE IS WELCOME EV 

TUESDAY 13 DECEMBER 

12.oo noon 

RENDEZVOUS CHRISTMAS 

LUNCH PARTY 

Book your seat early for 

lunch, conversation 

and Christmas 

Carol singing 

SUNDAY 4 DECEMBER 

4.00pm 

TUESDAY 13 DECEMBER 

7.00pm 

BLUE COAT SCHOOL 

FAMILY CAROL 

CONCERT 

Entry by 

invitation only 

FRIDAY 16 

6.45 

STA 

CHRIST 

PAR 

Fun, games 

in The 

until 8. 

ADVENT EVENSONG 

Followed by tea, coffee, 

cakes and conversation 

in The Ark 

THURSDAY 15 DECEMBER 

6.30pm 

SONNING PRIMARY 

SCHOOL 

CAROL CONCERT 

Entry by 

invitation only 


10.30am 

FAMILY TOY SERVICE 

Gifts and toys collected 

for the Reading Family Aid 

Christmas Appeal 

Christmas Tree 

lights switched on 

by St Nicholas 

F 

F 

CHRIS 

PAR 

Children b 

presen 

Further details

LEBRATIONS 


ERY DAY OF EVERY YEAR! 

DECEMBER 

pm 

Y 

MAS 

TY 

and food 

Ark 

15pm 

3.00pm 

SATURDAY 17 DECEMBER 

CHRISTMAS 

PARTY 

5.00pm 


NINE LESSONS 

AND CAROLS 

Traditional, candlelit 

service followed by mince 

pies and a glass of 

wine. Arrive in 

good time. 

4.00pm 


CHRISTMAS EVE 

CRIB SERVICE 

Children come dressed 

as shepherds, kings 

donkeys, sheep, 

cows, goats etc. 

TMAS DAY 

10.30am 

ISH COMMUNION 

ring one of your Christmas 

ts to show the vicar! 

11.00pm 11.00pm 


CANDLELIT 

MIDNIGHT 

MASS 

of the December services on page 9


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feature — 4 

90 years of Royal Christmas messages 

By Tim Lenton 

This year we shall have our first 

Royal Christmas Message from King 

Charles III. He follows in a tradition 

that spans three generations. 

It was 90 years ago, on 25 December 

1932, that the first Royal Christmas 

Message was broadcast on radio. 

King George V addressed the nation 

live from Sandringham. 

A quarter of a century later, on 

25 December 1957, the Christmas 

message by Queen Elizabeth II was 

televised for the first time. 

King George V had been asked 

to broadcast a Christmas message 

in 1922, but at the time he felt that 

radio was for entertainment, and 

therefore not suitable. 

Ten years later, after a visit to the 

BBC, he was persuaded otherwise, 

and agreed to do it as part of the 

inauguration of the new Empire 

Service (now the World Service). 

The time chosen was 3pm because 

it was the best time for reaching 

most countries in the Empire. In 

fact the first message started five 

minutes late and lasted only two and 

a half minutes, but it made a massive 

impact and established itself as a 

regular Christmas Day event. 

Edward VIII never delivered 

a Christmas broadcast, but King 

George VI continued the tradition, 

using it to encourage people during 

the Second World War. 

Queen Elizabeth II broadcast 

her first Christmas message in 1952, 

again from a room at Sandringham, 

and five years later agreed that 

NATIONAL EVENTS 

King Charles III 

her Christmas message could be 

televised live. She proved to be a 

natural broadcaster. 

But times changed, and in 

1960 the message was prerecorded 

from Buckingham Palace, which 

meant that it could be sent to 

Commonwealth countries for 

broadcast at a convenient time. 

However, the 3pm UK broadcast 

continued every year — except 

1969, when the Queen wrote a 

message instead, believing that the 

Royal Family had received enough 

exposure with the TV documentary 

Royal Family, which had aired in the 

summer. 

But the tradition was resumed 

the following year. The Christmas 

message is now also available each 

year as a podcast and can be seen 

through Facebook and YouTube. King 

Charles III is expected to give his 

first Christmas message this year. 

King George V making his annual Christmas Broadcast to the nation, 1934 

wikimedia commons 

Public domain 


Monkey Business Images, dreamstime.com 

Getting out 

for a winter 

festival ramble 

During the covid lockdown many 

people rediscovered the joy of 

walking for pleasure, but how many 

of these have returned to their 

armchairs as we have returned to 

our previously 'normal' lives? 

If you are one these, or if you are 

looking for new walks, then the 

Festival of Winter Walks organised 

by The Ramblers could get you 

walking again. 

The festival has been running 

for over 30 years and is designed 'to 

provide an opportunity to get more 

people walking'. This year, it runs 

from Tuesday 20 December 2022 to 

Thursday 5 January 2023. 

WALKING PATHS 

The Ramblers is a charitable 

organization that aims to protect the 

ability of people to enjoy 'a sense of 

freedom and the benefits that come 

from being outdoors on foot.' Its 

initial objective was to ensure access 

to the countryside for the general 

public. 

By law, The Ramblers in England 

and Wales needs to be consulted 

before there are any changes to 

walking paths. They have hundreds 

of volunteers looking after 

thousands of miles of walking paths. 

The festival walks are being held 

throughout the UK — to find one 

near you search online for Festival of 

Winter Walks 2022.


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around the villages — 1 

Welcome from 

Sonning CofE 

Primary School! 

From Phil Sherwood 

I would like to introduce myself as the 

new headteacher at Sonning Church 

of England Primary School. Our 

vision is to build strong foundations 

for the years ahead (Matthew 7:24- 

25), and we are keen to build strong 

foundations in our community by 

developing our relationships with 

local businesses and organisations. 

We would like to help support the 

community, but also for them to 

support our pupils where possible. 

The community of Sonning and the 

surrounding area is diverse, caring and 

supportive, and we would love to hear 

from local community organisations 

who would like to connect with us. 

For example, the relationships 

we build could lead to donating 

time or financial support to the 

school, sharing information between 

both parties, visiting each other or 

advertising local services that could 

help our families. 

The Parish Magazine is a wonderful 

way to connect with the residents 

and organisations in the local area, 

Phil Sherwood 

and we look forward to working with 

our community even more than we 

do currently! If you would like to 

connect, please contact our school 

office via phone 0118 969 3399 or email 

spsadmin@sonning.wokingham.sch.uk. 

Since the start of this academic 

year, our school has been involved 

in a number of community events, 

including The Sonning Village Show, 

and we have also engaged with St. 

Andrew’s Church (who we have strong 

bonds with), Sonning Farm and 

Signature at Sonning. 

On the right is a report by our 

eldest School Council representatives, 

Eshwar and Maya, about our recent 

visit to Signature at Sonning (below): 


Love, respect 

and curiosity 

By Maya and Eshwar 

We are two of the School Council 

representatives, and we are an 

important part of the school 

development team. We have earned 

a leadership role to take our peers’ 

ideas and aspirations for the school 

and turn them into reality. 

Before the half term, we made 

speeches in an election for this role 

and all our class got to vote. We were 

the two fortunate candidates who 

were elected, along with two pupils 

from the other classes in the school. 

Recently, we went on a trip to 

Signature at Sonning and helped 

out the residents by participating in 

activities with them. 

KINDNESS 

We were able to show our school 

values of love, respect and curiosity 

in particular during the visit. 

We wanted to focus on showing 

everyone kindness and support. 

We made biscuits, autumn cards 

and leaf collages with the other 

school council representatives from 

the younger years and interacted 

with the people in the home. 

It was wonderful to be able to 

support others in our community 

and hear about their early 

experiences. 

INCREDIBLE 

The carers at Signature at Sonning 

went out and collected vibrant leaves 

and conkers to use in our collages. 

The residents were extremely 

thankful for our visit and, in 

exchange for coming, they kindly 

gave us refreshments. 

It was an incredible experience 

for us and we would love to go 

again, and thank you to the Sonning 

Community who organised the trip. 

We, as students, enjoyed our 

experience at Signature at Sonning 

and would love to work with more 

organisations and people within 

the community. If you would like 

to connect with us, please email 

our school at spsadmin@sonning. 

wokingham.sch.uk for the attention of 

our headteacher, Mr Sherwood.



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around the villages — 2 

Giving the gift 

of friendship 

this Christmas 

For many, Christmas Day is a day 

for family, for getting together and 

celebrating with loved ones. Sadly, 

however, for some people without 

family or close friends, it is the 

loneliest day of the year. A time 

when isolation, loss and grief are 

even more keenly felt. 

For the 11th year running, the Link 

Visiting Scheme is planning to bring 

festive cheer to those who are alone 

and who would love some extra 

company. This includes having a 

friend to talk to, a delicious meal on 

the day plus a gift of treats. 

The Link Visiting Scheme is an 

award-winning charity dedicated 

to reducing loneliness in the 

Wokingham Borough. For over 

20 years, it has provided social 

connections for older people through 

regular visits and local community 

activities. 

With the support of over 400 

volunteers, the scheme currently 

helps around 500 people feel valued 

and connected. 

If you are on your own, please get 

in touch with them to find out how 

they can help. 

The scheme relies on donations 

and always welcome support. For 

more information see: 

https://www.linkvisiting.org/ 

or call: 0118 979 8019 


Sparkling bright and ready to welcome you 

to St Andrew’s Church this Christmastide 

Liz Nelson / Tina Hawkins 

Some of the Friends of St Andrew’s Church (FoStAC) who spent a Saturday 

morning giving the Church an extra ‘spring’ clean before the busy seasons of 

Advent and Christmas. 

Macmillan Coffee Morning in The Ark 

A Macmillan fund raising coffee morning will follow the mid-week Communion 

Service in The Ark on Wednesday 11 January, and to which everyone is invited. 

It will be from about 10.30am — the service starts at 10am and you are 

welcome to join that as well. 

There will be coffee and cake, a bring and buy table, some table games, and 

paintings and cards depicting local views. 

For more information speak to Janet Robson on 0118 969 2253. 

Sonning Art Club continues to paint high quality pictures each Friday in Pearson Hall. Here are three examples, a 

beautiful kingfisher by Kay Mottram, a mother and baby by Sue Dobson, and a pony by Phil Simpson.


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HEALTH —1 

Dr Simon Ruffle writes . . . New York 

Nearly three years ago Mrs R and our best friends planned 

a trip to New York. We were celebrating our 25th wedding 

anniversaries. We married four days apart (the couples not 

Dr and Mrs R!) but Covid prevented the trip until this year. 

Our trip included the 7 day transatlantic crossing on the 

Queen Mary 2, following the path of the Titanic known as 

the North Atlantic Grand Circle. Over 110 years on from 

the tragic events in 1912, the Great Circle navigation 

still plots the shortest route between ports; which isn’t a 

straight line. Look up the equation, it’s mind boggling. 

Travellers on ocean going liners entering the US dock at 

Brooklyn are ‘processed’ into the States in a large shed; far 

less beautiful than the Ellis Island facility that welcomed 

immigrants from 1892 to the mid 20th century. 

In this large shed there are thermal scanners looking for 

active high temperatures, the usual passport control and 

many CCTV and face ID cameras spying on us. Once we have 

passed these checks we are shepherded to our bus, train or 

taxi for onward transit. 

Interestingly, the system used over a century ago was not 

that dissimilar. 22 million people entered the USA while Ellis 

Island operated, with about 18 million through the island. 

On arrival the immigrants were observed finding their 

luggage and then required to walk through the lower hall 

and up the stairs to the main hall. Anyone struggling or 

acting oddly was separated immediately for more extensive 

examination and processing. If found ‘wanting’ they would 

be sent back to the charge of the ocean liner company that 

brought them. 

Ellis Island Immigration Hall 

Simon Ruffle 

33rd and Park Avenue 


In one sad story, highlighted at the museum, a 

grandmother was sent home to Italy while her family were 

accepted. The elderly granddaughter, recalling the story, was 

in tears 80 years on from the event. 

Further on the people were then subjected to more 

questioning and examination. Just being suspected of 

mental illness would see you back on the gangplank. 

RED EYES 

A button hook was used to lower the eyelid to look for 

trachoma. Trachoma was rife in Europe, especially southern, 

and Africa. Caused by Chlamydia it causes roughening of the 

eyelids which leads to cornea damage and blindness. Until 

the late 1930s there was no treatment and the US did not 

want to take on people who would be dependent on the State. 

Seeing the instruments used I wonder how many people 

were infected by the screening process, but symptoms would 

not present for weeks. By this time 60% or more will have 

been dispersed across the continent. 

Theodore Roosevelt in 1906: 'the doctors made the 

examination with dirty hands and no pretence to clean 

their instruments.' Things changed. Trachoma still causes 

many cases of blindness, but is treated by a simple course of 

eyedrops. https://www.sightsavers.org/trachoma-charity/ 

DON'T COUGH 

Simon Ruffle 

Since covid started we seem to get jumpy on the 

underground or train if someone coughs or we try to 

suppress our own. 

On Ellis Island that could land you in a heap of trouble or 

back on a ship with very few people, a lot of cargo and a crew 

that don’t want you there and are compelled to deport you to 

your original port of embarkation. 

Tuberculosis (TB) was a common disease. Being cooped up 

on a ship may have caused many cases of TB spread but only 

active cases showed symptoms. 

Before X-Ray screening, people would be quarantined and 

should they not recover would be sent home again or would 

die in the Island’s medical facility. 

Treatment of TB at the turn of the 20th century was to 

collapse the diseased lung. 

turn to page 33



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from page 31 

HEALTH —2 

Times Square 

New York 

DIPHTHERIA 

Simon Ruffle 

Diphtheria was also rife in 

immigrants. Throats were inspected. 

This illness causes a swollen neck, 

sore throat with pus and can lead to a 

closed airway and death. Vaccination 

and antibiotics has seen the worldwide 

cases fall to 4,000 or so, compared 

with over 200,000 cases and 20,000 

deaths in the '20s in the States alone. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR 

Today many Americans can trace 

their families to immigration, forced 

or voluntary. With tourists they 

gather in numbers, over a million, to 

celebrate the liberty and opportunity 

America has given in Times Square on 

Manhattan Island at one of the biggest 

New Year celebrations in the world. 

Despite the tough circumstances 

many were welcomed and they built 

America. 

Having travelled the route and 

spending a day on Ellis Island it makes 

me appreciate the Western world we 

live in today; the farsighted attitude 

of America in the early 20th century 

and the UK's post WWII approach to 

immigration, and the fact that we have 

nothing to flee from in the UK. 

During Christmas and New Year we 

can thank those people brave enough 

to leave home and those wise enough 

to welcome them which is the human, 

Christian, kind and right thing to do. 

From Bedside Manor, have a Happy 

Christmas and a wonderful New Year! 

HOME AND GARDEN 

In the Garden 

Patience brings 

a reward 

By Bob Peters 

One thing that gardening — which I 

became interested in at the age of 10 

when my parents gave me a small patch 

of garden that was a wilderness — has 

taught me is patience. According to the 

Cambridge Dictionary patience is 'the 

ability to wait, or to continue doing 

something despite difficulties, or to 

suffer without complaining or becoming 

annoyed'. 


The picture (right) may not look like a 

particular attractive flower, it is small 

a little hairy, and has a pungent odour, 

although for this time of year, it is very 

colourful. To me, it is the reward for more 

than four years of patience, and much 

trial and error. 

There are some people who believe 

that it can't be grown in the UK which 

makes it even more of a challenge, 

even though there a quite number of people who do grow it. If you have not 

recognised it, it's an ancient plant called a mandrake. 

Mandrakes have a lot of mystery and sinister superstitions attached to 

them, not so much with their flowers but their tuberous roots that take on 

strange entangled shapes. They are mentioned in Genesis, the first book of the 

Bible and also in Solomon's Song of Songs which is a collection of Hebrew love 

poetry that depicts the beauty and mystery of sexual love within marriage, one 

of God's gifts to humanity. 

Mandrakes are mentioned in the Song of Songs just after another plant that 

is still testing my patience — pomegranate — but that is a different story. 

When I obtained a mandrake root from a grower in the UK it came with a 

booklet that explained how to nurture it. Nothing happened much the first 

year and I contacted the supplier who advised 'patience'. The next year a few 

small leaves appeared but they withered and died, Then came covid, after which 

I had no energy and my Bible garden was left to fend for itself. 

This year I began to slowly try to restore the garden having lost many of the 

unestablished plants. When it came to the mandrake there was no sign of life 

except that the deep pot in which it was meant to be growing had become a massive 

colony of ants. I retrieved the mandrake root and left it my shed for couple of 

months before replanting it in clean soil. A few weeks ago it began to send up leaves 

again, this time they looked healthy and strong, the down side being that they are 

also popular with slugs which like the ants had to be dealt with! 

Then, on 6 November, much to my surprise, a flower appeared along with 

four or five other flower buds! This is the joy of gardening, trial and error, and 

lots of patience! 

Don't forget your donation 

for the Woodley Food Bank 

bin in St Andrew's Church 

during Christmastide . . . . . .


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THE ARTS 

Raphael's sign of joy and love 

When painted, this month’s drawing became known as 'The 

Mackintosh Madonna', after its last owner. 'The Virgin and 

Child' drawing is by Raphael (1483-1520). He was a talented 

artist from a very early age, although this drawing was made 

when he was in Rome from 1510-12. 

It was the first stage in creating the Mackintosh Madonna: it is 

in black chalk with heightening marks of white. When an artist 

made such an initial drawing, he would prick it with holes and 

sprinkle charcoal powder over it to reproduce the design on the 

canvas below. The pinholes are still clearly visible. 

Sadly the final painting has been damaged through time, 

but here in the drawing we see that first stage: a sensitive and 

balanced picture of mother and child: Mary warm and caring, 

Jesus laughing and alive. 

During Advent we think of the preparations God made for 

the birth of the Saviour. We celebrate God’s work of creation 

and how he chose a people for his own. He looked for a holy 

remnant and then finally a loving heart in the assent of Mary 

to be the mother of our Lord. These preparatory steps were as 

vital for our salvation as the artist moving from idea to sketch 

to the finished work. 

Vasari wrote of Raphael that in his paintings ‘the flesh 

palpitates, the breath comes and goes, every organ lives, and life 

pulsates everywhere.’ It is a life we celebrate at Christmas in the 

birth of a child who turns to us, as he does in this work, as a 

sign of joy and love. 

Children's Christmas Book Reviews 

The Christmas Star, by Hilary Robinson, SPCK, £7.99 

This is a fresh, heart-warming retelling of the story 

of Christmas for 3-5-year-olds. Children will love 

the story of the small, plucky star that becomes the 

Christmas star, and will learn that everyone can play 

a part in God’s story, no matter how small they are, 

and that everyone should be given a chance to shine. 

The clear, simple text is perfect for children just 

starting to read, and for adults to read aloud to them. 

The Christmas Bible Storybook 

Board book 

by Maggie Barfield, SPCK, £5.99 

Get your young children off to a good start in 

learning the Christmas story. Your under-5s will 

enjoy this full-coloured board book which opens to 

show them Mary and Joseph, angels and shepherds, 

wise men and, most of all, Jesus! 

The Hoity-Toity Angel – a Christmas story 

by Caroline Hoile, SPCK, £6.99 

A fun re-telling of the Christmas story for children 

aged 3-6. A beautiful angel with gleaming hair, and 

sparkling wings, was the most elegant angel that 

you could ever see. But she was very, very proud. She 

thought that she was the best! When Gabriel appears 

to Mary, the Hoity-Toity Angel is not impressed. Mary 

is not even a princess! And how can a king be born in a 

scruffy, smelly stable? Follow the Hoity-Toity Angel as 

she discovers that it's what's on the inside that counts. 


By Rev Michael Burgess 

Poetry Corner 

Emmanuel Expresses 

By Steven Rolling 

Matthew 1: 18-25 parts 

Tune: Stille Nacht – ‘Silent Night’ 

The Son of God, here appears 

On earth now, each revered 

Him, the Lord God, He breaks into 

Human history, lowly and true 

Jesus of virgin born 

Jesus of virgin born 

Born of the Spirit, Mary 

His humble mother be 

Joseph as His father earthly 

Yet sinless nature Jesus has, see 

His Father, God above 

His Father, God above 

And His name Emmanuel 

God with us, let all tell 

Mary bore the child, He Jesus 

He comes to earth, a Saviour for us 

Saves us from all our sins 

Saves us from all our sins 

Leaving heaven for earth 

Lo, He comes, here new birth 

All creation it joins to praise 

And all heaven, worshipful arrays 

Light of the world shine bright 

Light of the world shine bright

36 The Parish Magazine - December 2022 Please mention The Parish Magazine when responding this advertisement 

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History 

Was it really . . . ? 

. . . 200 YEARS AGO, on 27 

December 1822 that Louis 

Pasteur, French biologist, 

microbiologist, and chemist 

was born. One of the fathers 

of germ theory, he is 

best known for the 

pasteurisation 

process, named 

in his honour. 

Polodymyr Polotovskyi, dreamstime.com 

. . . 100 YEARS AGO, on 14 December 1922 that Lord John 

Reith was appointed general manager of the BBC. 

. . 100 YEARS AGO, on 30 December 1922 that the Soviet 

Union was founded. Officially known as the Union of Soviet 

Socialist Republics (USSR), it was dissolved in 1991. 

. . . 90 YEARS AGO, on 25 December 1932 that the first Royal 

Christmas Message was broadcast on radio. King George V 

addressed the nation live from Sandringham. 

. . . 80 YEARS AGO, on 1 December 1942 that the British 

Government published the Beveridge Report, which formed 

the basis of the welfare state. 

. . . 80 YEARS AGO,, on 17 December 1942 that British 

Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden told the House of Commons 

about the mass executions of Jews by the Nazis in occupied 

Europe. Ministers and Members of Parliament condemned 

the massacres and held a minute’s silence as a mark of respect 

for the victims. 

. . . 65 YEARS AGO, on 25 December 1957 that for the first 

time Queen Elizabeth II’s Christmas message was televised. 

. . . 50 YEARS AGO, on 22 December 1972 that 14 people were 

found alive in the Andes more than 2 months after their plane 

crashed. They survived by eating dead passengers. 

. . .40 YEARS AGO, on 12 December 1982 that 30,000 women 

joined hands around the Greenham Common RAF base to 

protest against the US Cruise missiles there. 

. . . 25 YEARS AGO, on 11 December 1997 that Sinn Fein 

president Gerry Adams met Prime Minister Tony Blair at 10 

Downing Street — the first Irish Republican leader to do so 

since Michael Collins in 1921. 

. . . 25 YEARS AGO, on 11 December 1997 that the Kyoto 

Protocol, aimed at reducing greenhouse gases and combating 

global warming, was adopted at a conference in Japan. More 

than 190 countries have signed the agreement, which came 

into effect in February 2005. 

. . . 20 YEARS AGO, on 7 December 2002 that Iraq 

submitted a weapons declaration to the United Nations in 

which it said it had no weapons of mass destruction. This 

was a prelude to the March 2003 invasion of Iraq. 


the sciences 

The Incarnation: fearfully 

and wonderfully made 

By Dr Ruth Bancewicz, 

The Faraday Institute for Science 

and Religion in Cambridge. 

My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret 

place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your 

eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were 

written in your book before one of them came to be. (Psalm 139:15-16) 

You began life as a single cell. For a few hours you were a 

miniscule but highly complex blob of jelly, until it began 

to divide: two cells, four, eight, 16, a ball, a hollow ball, 

and then something more recognisably such as a living 

organism. You were still tiny, but developing a nervous 

system, a head, a body, arms and legs. 

Until recently I hadn’t thought much about Jesus 

being an embryo. Somehow, I find that thought even more 

shocking than his birth. How could God, who made the 

universe, have become something so completely and utterly 

vulnerable? Maybe in the past, when the development of a 

child happened in ‘secret’, it was possible just to let that part 

of the Christmas story go untold. 

Today, when we see images of a developing child, or even 

embryos outside the womb, it is harder to ignore the process 

of Jesus developing into a baby. The incarnation meant 

that God’s son went through all the stages in the diagram 

in my developmental biology textbook: ‘zygote’, ‘morula’, 

‘blastocyst’, 'implantation', and so on. 

ONE OF US 

Nomadsoul1, dreamstime.com 

Jesus was there in the beginning, and all life owes its 

existence to him. But instead of remaining aloof, he chose to 

become one of us. The Son of God shared the same kind of 

DNA as every other organism on the planet. He knows what 

it feels like to have a body, to feel hungry and thirsty, pain 

and pleasure, dark and light. 

In Psalm 139, the writer is meditating on God’s intimate 

knowledge of him, which began when he was an embryo. 

There is nothing God doesn’t know about him, and even 

darkness cannot obscure him from God’s sight. The 

incarnation means that God’s intimacy with us now extends 

even further. He became one of us, lived alongside us, and 

shared our very fragile material nature. 

The transcendent God is also immanent, longing for 

us to relate to him as Father. He became as fragile as we 

are so he could rescue us from the messes we so often find 

ourselves in. With his help, we can remember what it means 

to be fearfully and wonderfully made. 

Reproduced by permission from Merry Christmas Everyone: A 

festive feast of stories, poems and reflection, Edited by Wendy H 

Jones, Amy Robinson & Jane Clamp (Association of Christian 

Writers, 2018)



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Abbey Human Intelligence 125H x 175W.indd 1 09/11/2022 12:58

CROSSWORD 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 

8 

9 10 

11 12 

13 14 15 

17 18 19 

16 

20 21 

22 23 

Across 

Down 

Across 

1 - (4) 

1. Helps (4) 

3 - utter (8) 

3. Complete; utter (8) 

99. - Pursuing (7) (7) 

10. - Number after seven after (5) seven (5) 

11. Eg copper or calcium (5) 

11 - Eg copper or calcium (5) 

12. Japanese flower arranging (7) 

12 - Japanese flower arranging (7) 

13. Late time of life (3,3) 

13 - Late time of life (3,3) 

15. Greek goddess of wisdom (6) 

15 17. - Greek Make goddess less of wisdom intense (6) (7) 

17 18. - Make Aimed less intense (anag) (7) (5) 

18 

20. 

- Aimed 

Golf 

(anag) 

clubs 

(5) 

(5) 

21. Diminish the worth of (7) 

20 - Golf clubs (5) 

22. Estimating (8) 

21 - Diminish the worth of (7) 

23. Solely (4) 

22 Down - Estimating (8) 

23 1. - Easy Solely (4) to deal with (13) 

2. Early version of a document (5) 

4. Important person (6) 

5. Make a guess that is too high (12) 

6. Improve equipment (7) 

7. Wastefully; lavishly (13) 

8. Binoculars (5,7) 

14. Get rid of (7) 

16. Heavy (6) 

19. Looking tired (5) 

CODEWORD 

1 - Easy to deal with (13) 

2 - Early version of a document (5) 

4 - Important person (6) 

5 - Make a guess that is too high (12) 

6 - Improve equipment (7) 

7 - Wastefully; lavishly (13) 

8 - Binoculars (5,7) 

14 - Get rid of (7) 

16 - Heavy (6) 

19 - Looking tired (5) 

2 9 22 18 15 16 22 23 17 16 15 10 

16 9 1 2 17 24 9 

15 9 3 25 6 15 16 16 1 25 16 15 

23 16 3 22 15 15 19 

20 16 1 3 16 22 25 9 22 5 16 19 

23 15 1 9 12 11 

9 1 25 8 12 9 20 6 15 16 9 6 

12 16 9 25 25 9 

15 16 14 15 16 1 8 7 13 21 5 10 

8 12 18 16 23 5 1 

9 1 7 19 16 25 1 6 13 9 12 7 

7 13 25 1 1 26 19 

15 16 21 7 1 25 16 15 4 16 15 16 

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 

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

S 

L 

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

O 

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 CHRISTMAS 


PUZZLE PAGE — the answers will be published in the next issue 

Christmas is nearly here! Two thousand 

years ago the Jews were longing for 

the coming of their Messiah. The Old 

Testament had promised that when he 

came, he would preach good news to 

the poor, bind up the broken hearted, 

proclaim freedom for the captives and 

release from darkness for the prisoners, 

proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour, 

comfort all who mourn and to bestow 

on his people a crown of beauty instead 

of ashes. Jesus did all those things. He 

was and is the Son of God, and whoever 

has seen him has seen the Father. 

Whoever believes in him will have the 

best gift of all – his Spirit within them, 

which gives them eternal life. 

MESSIAH 

BROKEN 

HEART 

FREEDOM 

DARKNESS 

FAVOUR 

PRISONERS 

COMFORT 

MOURN 

BESTOW 

CROWN 

BEAUTY 

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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 MInstChp, HCPC member 

General foot care and treatments 

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 

http://www.jamesautos.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 

PROFESSIONAL HOME VISIT 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 

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 

CALLAGHAN CARPETS & FLOORING 

Thirty-six years local experience 

Family run company 

0118 962 8527 0779 223 9474 

callaghancarpets@btinternet.com 

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 https://www.smallwoodlandscaping.co.uk/ 

office@smallwoodlandscaping.co.uk 

ALL WASTE CLEARANCE & DISPOSAL 

Waste clearance from office, house, garden, loft 

Licensed waste carriers, no job too small or large 

Contact: John 

0771 021 2056 j.garmston@ntlworld.com 

BERKSHIRE STUMP REMOVALS 

Stump grinding and tree stump removal 

Latest narrow access machinery 

Contact: Mark 

0798 495 7334 http://www.berkshirestumpremoval 

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 - December 2022 41

42 The Parish Magazine - December 2022 Please mention The Parish Magazine when replying to advertisements 

information — 2 

Parish contacts 

Ministry Team 

— The Vicar: Revd Jamie Taylor (Day off Friday) 

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

vicar@sonningparish.org.uk / 0118 969 3298 

— Associate Vicar: Revd Kate Wakeman-Toogood 

revkate@sonningparish.org.uk / 0744 747 8048 

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 

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

— Liz Nelson liz.nelson1@ntlworld.com / 0779 194 4270 

Deputy Churchwardens 

— Simon Darvall sdarvall@businessmoves.com / 0793 928 2535 

— Terry Hunt terencehunt@me.com / 0773 470 7368 

— 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 3298 

Director of Music, organist and choirmaster 

— Hannah Towndrow BA(Oxon), MA(RAM), LRAM 

music@sonningparish.org.uk 

Sonning Bell Ringers 

— Tower Captain: Pam Elliston 

pam.elliston@talktalk.net / 0118 969 5967 

— Deputy Tower Captain: Rob Needham 

r06needham@gmail.com / 0118 926 7724 

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 6 

Abbey School 38 

Abbeyfield Wey Valley Society 20 

ACG Services Locksmith 40 

Active Domestic Appliances 16 

Active Security 30 

ADD Plumbing 12 

All Aerials 40 

All Waste Clearance 40 

Barn Store Henley 16 

Berkshire Stump Removals 40 

Big Heart Tree Care 40 

Blandy & Blandy Solicitors 14 

Blinds Direct 26 

Blue Moose 8 

Bridge House 43 

Bridges Home Care 26 

Bull Inn 8 

Callaghan Carpets & Flooring 40 

Chimney Sweep, Thames 40 

Chiropody, Linda Frewin 40 

Chris the Plumber 32 

Clark Bicknell 40 

Comfort in Care 10 

Complete Pest Solutions 24 

Computer Frustrations 40 

CPS Fuels 28 

Cruz Kitchens 28 

Design for Print 28 

EMDR Hypnotherapist 30 

Freebody Boatbuilders 6 

Fields Pharmacy 32 

French Horn 44 

Gardiner’s Homecare 8 

Great House Sonning 24 

Handyman and Decorating Services 40 

Haslams Estate Agents 2 

Hicks Group 16 

Intersmart Electrical Installations 40 

James Autos 40 

Jones & Sheppard Stone Masons 32 

Kingfisher Bathrooms 26 

MC Cleaning 40 

Mill at Sonning 4 

M & L Healthcare Solutions 12 

Mortgage Required 18 

Muck & Mulch 28 

Nutrition & Health Consultant 38 

Odd Jobs 40 

Painter and Decorator 40 

Pearson Hall Sonning 24 

Reading Blue Coat School 26 

Richfield Flooring 14 

Sabella Interiors 34 

SecureHeat 20 

Seniors Helping Seniors 12 

Shiplake College 14 

Signature Care Homes 36 

Sonning Golf Club 32 

Sonning Scouts Marquees 30 

Smallwood Garden Services 40 

Style by Julie 6 

Thames Valley Water Softeners 6 

Thames Valley Wills Service 40 

The 50 Plus Home Repairs 28 

Tomalin Funerals 24 

Walker Funerals 12 

Water Softener Salt 28 

Window Cleaner 16

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, 

professional and individually planned care in an unobtrusive manner. 

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 - December Please mention 2022The 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 December 2022

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