All Saints Church – article in October 2016 Village Views
August is the holiday month for many, especially for those with children, and we had no special events in that month on which I can report except to record with sadness the funeral of Mrs Kathleen Petty which took place on 25th August and was followed by her burial in the churchyard.
Over 100 relatives and friends celebrated the life of Robert Jefferys at a memorial service on 6th September which followed his cremation. After he retired from farming, Robert tended the churchyard for over 10 years before he suffered a stroke. He was also well known in the area for his volunteer hospital driving for which he was awarded an MBE.
Some members of my family and our dog joined me on the Ride & Stride walk in the rain on Saturday 10th September in aid of the Berkshire Churches Trust. We visited the churches of Shefford Woodlands, Wickham, Welford, Great Shefford, East Garston, Eastbury and Lambourn, covering a distance of approximately 13 miles. I would still welcome sponsorship as 50% of any money raised by participants comes back to their nominated church.
The afternoon concert of “Timeless Classics for Cello and Strings” in the afternoon of Sunday 11th September in All Saints Church was a true delight. The international cellist Philip Daish-Handy and his accompanist Martin Penrose were joined by West Berkshire Strings under the direction of Patricia Glover. The programme included both classical and popular music. In addition to the pieces played by Phil and Martin and the Strings, there were some excellently performed solos by local members of the Strings, several of whom are pupils of Phil. He was very complimentary about the standard achieved by the Strings who only met to rehearse just prior to the concert. My thanks to Dawn Tonge, Jill Cawte and my wife for providing the refreshments which were enjoyed in the warm and sunny churchyard.
Our next special service will be our Harvest Festival on Sunday 9th October at 12 noon.
Bob Briant
Churchwarden