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Calendar for October 2001

Services in Kingscote

Services in Horsley

• The Taize worship meeting will be held at 7.30 pm onThursday 4th October in the Lady Chapel.
• Springboard is a national initiative of the Archbishop of Canterbury aimed at recruiting and growingnew church members. The title invokes the thought of ?taking the plunge? ! There is an initial meetingto educate PCC members on the campaign on Tuesday 9th October, from 7.30 pm to 9.30 pm, atCirencester College. Please put this in your diaries. We will arrange shared transport nearer the time.
• Clergy have been engaged for all of the normal Kingscoteservices in October. However this maynot always be possible in future months. When it is clear that we cannot find a minister for a futureservice, this will be indicated in the Forerunner. The editor will try to ensure that the services inHorsley are correctly advertised, so that if there is not a service in Kingscote then parishioners canattend there in confidence. Please make a special effort to support these services as the clergy areseverely stretched by local demands at this time.
• The next PCC Meeting will be held at 8.00 pm on Monday22 October in the Village Hall.
• Forerunner Internet Site www.geocities.com/forerunneruk/
• Diocesan Internet News Site www.glosdioc.org.uk

Our Christian Responsibility

I was fortunate to serve my first curacy in the parish of St Ambrose, East Bristol, from 1960-62. Looking back on those very early days in my ordained ministry, I realise that in many ways that parish was far ahead of its time, not least in taking very seriously the concept of Christian stewardship. My vicar was constantly teaching and preaching about the gracious and generous goodness of God to His people, which required of us all a gracious and generous response in return.

And this teaching was sharpened on regular occasions with what were then called Stewardship Campaigns, when all those who had any connection with the church were visited and challenged about their response in a practical way. The response sheet usually had three sections, Time, Talent and Treasure - the Three Ts - and everybody was encouraged to make as sacrificial response as possible to the three sections in terms of what they were prepared to offer to God of their time, their talent, their treasure or money.

Following that first curacy, I then served a second curacy, two incumbencies, and was a suffragan bishop for seven years before I came to Gloucester, and in each of those ministries I have tried to teach and preach about Christian stewardship and the Three Ts. And I have to admit that there is never much problem with the offering of Time and Talents. The church in our diocese, and many community organisations as well, could not survive without the costly giving of much time and many talents by a multitude of people. And we thank God for them.

But the sacrificial giving of money is always more difficult; we dont much like talking about it let alone preaching about it, and we certainly are not desperately keen on giving it, certainly not at the sacrificial level described in the Bible and underlined by a great deal of Jesus teaching. Money for many people is a private matter, and we like to believe that we can do as we like with it. We have earned it and how we spend it is entirely up to us.

But Christian stewardship teaches that it isnt actually ours at all. It is Gods and he has lent it to us in order to carry out His work in the church and in the world. We are stewards of it and not owners, and one day we shall have to give Him an account of our stewardship. For many good reasons, our diocese is going to need us to give more money in future if all our present ministry and mission are to continue, and each of us, whether ordained or lay, needs to reconsider our giving and , if possible increase it. We are not a poor diocese and our parish share ought to be paid 100%. And not grudgingly but gladly and joyfully, for God loves a cheerful giver. TRIO means The Responsibility Is Ours. When we prayerfully consider the amazing goodness of God to each of us, how dare we fail to respond ?

The Bishop of Gloucester

During October the Diocese is collecting records of the number of people who attend church, parish by parish, week by week. They do not need to be regular attenders, but equally people who attend more than one service during a given week are only counted once. In order to avoid double accounting a judgement needs to be made as to whether some individuals may be recorded by another church.

A distinction is drawn between over 16 and under 16, and the Sunday Club is regarded as church for the purpose of the survey. The clergy normally enter attendance in the service register in the vestry, but perhaps the sidespersons could confirm that this has been done on the day. Likewise, could Elin and Janet make a record on Sunday 7th October.

The PCC

The Harvest Supper will take place on Saturday 13th October at 7.30 pm in the Village Hall. The meal will comprise a drink on arrival, a main course and a dessert, followed by tea or coffee. Experience suggests that satisfaction is most likely to result if people bring their own drink to accompany the meal, but water and glasses will be provided. Tickets priced at £6 for adults and £4 for under 16s will be available from the beginning of October at the following locations:

Bagpath - Philip Kendell Hunters Hall - Vida Sutton

Kingscote - Kay Brightley Post Office

Any profit from the event will go towards general church costs.

The PCC

Oct 7th Mrs J. Tibbert

Oct 14th & 21st (Harvest) Altar Guild and helpers

Oct 28th & Nov 4th Mrs L. Reynolds

Nov 11th & 18th (Remembrance) Mrs S. Bradley-Jones

Jo Spash

We shall meet at the Village Hall at 11.00 am on Sunday 7th October to make a harvest loaf. All children are welcome, although we would prefer under 3s to be accompanied if possible. We are asking for donations of non-perishable items (food, soap, washing powder etc.) for the harvest service on 14th October. These items will afterwards be taken to the Gloucestershire Gear Project - a drop in centre, largely for homeless people. Thank you.

We have cleaned and treated wooden benches in the churchyard ready for winter weather. Our next meeting will be in the Church at 2.30 pm on Wednesday 10th October.

The Coffee Morning this year will be on November 17th. More details will be given in the November Forerunner.

Jane Bateman needs empty jam jars. Please take them to Mrs Shorey or bring them to the Coffee Morning.

Our trip to the theatre on 11th September was saddened by the terrible news from America. Two minutes silence was observed before the show commenced and our hearts went out to all the families stricken by this cruel and senseless act.

Our next meeting will be a walk in Westonbirt Arboretum. We will meet at the Village Hall at 11 am on the 8th October and the walk will be followed by a pub lunch.

Vida Sutton

Following the last five yearly report by the Diocesan architect which highlighted accelerating deterioration of the church building due to rain ingress and erosion around the roofs of the tower, the Lady chapel and the vestry, the PCC engaged commercial specialists to prepare a restoration plan. The companies selected were Bartosh and Stokes (architects) of Cheltenham and Ward & Co Ltd (builders) of Stonehouse. Both are highly respected and experienced in this field.

Ward & Co have prepared detailed cost estimates based on the work specifications generated by Bartosh and Stokes. The estimated total cost is over £50,000 so quite clearly with Fabric Fund balance currently at £7,500 we need assistance. We may well have to start off with the work which we can afford, and then break off until more funds have been found. However obviously there is no sense in putting scaffolding up a church tower and then only doing part of the necessary work.

The status of Kingscote Church as a Grade II* Listed Building ensures that it is eligible for grant aid from a number of sources. One of the problems which we have been warned about however is that Gloucestershire is regarded as an affluent area, and that priority may be given to buildings of equal merit in less prosperous places. In any event, we are more likely to secure grant aid if we demonstrate our commitment and energy by seriously addressing the need for a very significant amount of money.

In order to make progress it was decided to assume that we will achieve grant aid at the level of 50% and appeal directly to the whole community. We have elected to present Appeal 2001 as a shopping list made up of the 31 individual building tasks which were identified in the Ward & Co cost estimate. These vary greatly in magnitude from under £100 to several thousands in a few cases.

You are invited if you wish to select and adopt one of the items, or to make a general contribution which can be allocated where it is most needed. Unless specifically authorised, the PCC will in no case reveal donors or donations. Those who pay UK taxes should of course take advantage of the government subsidy through Gift Aid.

The focal point of the appeal will be the Gift Week from 5th to 11th November which will be publicised in the Forerunner and in the media. We do not wish to detract from your enjoyment of the event, but some further details will be presented at the Harvest Supper !

Questions and suggestions about Appeal 2001 will be gratefully received. Call Harry Tubbs (860 194) or Georgina Harford.

The PCC

Kingscote Village Hall

The Village Hall Management Committee held its AGM on Wednesday 5th September. The meeting afforded the committee the opportunity to canvas the views of local people on the future of the hall. Many parishioners attended and the lively and positive discussion reflected a clear commitment to the halls future.

There was general agreement that the events hosted by the committee in the course of the last couple of years had been widely enjoyed, and more quiz nights, music evenings and whist drives were requested. Many suggestions were also made as to other events and activities which the committee might consider for the future.

It was agreed that as many local people as possible should have the opportunity to express an interest in the ideas put forward so as to enable the committee to gauge their popularity. To this end you will find enclosed a questionnaire detailing the ideas put forward. You are invited to respond to these ideas and, if you wish, enter your own further suggestions. See the questionnaire for further information. The completed questionnaires will be reviewed at the next committee meeting on Wednesday 10th October at 8.00 pm in the Village Hall. Any parish residents wishing to contribute to the discussion are welcome to attend.

It is with regret that the committee has received the resignation of Tim Sage. Tim has contributed much to the Village Hall over many years and, whilst he assures us that he will be available to assist as required, his presence at the meetings will be much missed. The committee is very pleased to announce that Alice Cooper has agreed to replace Tim. The membership of the committee is therefore:

At the meeting on 3rd September the Parish Council considered a letter from the Cotswold District Council introducing a new grant scheme for home insulation and heating measures.

• This provides funding of up to £5,000 per household for measures which reduce peoples fuels bills and help them keep their homes warmer.
• The measures available include cavity wall insulation, loft insulation, draught proofing, hot water tank jackets, thermostatic radiator valves, reflecting radiator panels and heating improvements.
• A points system (not a means test) is used to assess eligibility which takes into account peoples age, any pension they receive, health problems, their perceived vulnerability, what kind of heating they have, and finally the energy efficiency rating of their property.
• If people qualify for a grant, then all details are handled by the home improvements agency Cotswold Staying Put. Clients do not need to get quotes etc. for themselves.

Those interested may obtain an enquiry form from the Clerk to The Parish Council, Bob Smith. (Tel: 01666 890 263).

If you notice builders and construction activity in the churchyard, there may be two reasons:

The first, which needs to be reported to the Police immediately, is that people may be stealing roof tiles from the church. In August both Westonbirt and Long Newton churches were raided for this highly lucrative commodity.

The second is that we now have enough grant aid to repair some of the Table Tombs in the churchyard. A well qualified conservation stonemason, Stephen Critchley, with his small team of specialists, has started work recently. He has explained that he will be taking parts of some of the tombs away to the workshop for repair, so individual tombs may look disturbed until the repaired sections are replaced. All the plans have been scrutinised , approved and partially funded by the Cotswold District Council and the Council for the Care of Churches, amongst other generous grant giving organisations. More information may be obtained from Georgina Harford.

Mobile Library

The mobile library will be by The Walled Garden from 9.40 am to 9.55 am on Thursdays October 4th and 18th.

The boxes will be emptied as follows:

Newington and Bagpath - Mon. 1st, 15th and 29th October.

Kingscote - Tues. 2nd, 16th and 30th October.

Contributions for the next issue please by 20th October to HarryTubbs, 3 The Walled Garden, Tel. 860 194, Email .

(We have some space to spare this month so the editor has added the material below which has been supplied by Rod and Jenny Tibbert for your interest. It is the second part of a historical series on the large house and estate which previously existed to the right of the road leading to Wotton-under-Edge)

My twin sister, Elinor Daisy, and I, Emily Marguerite, were born at The Ridge on the twenty-third of October 1869. I being the elder by twenty minutes. Except for a boy, born three years later, we were the youngest of a family of ten - six boys and four girls. There was a most lovely view from the windows of the room in which we first opened our eyes - a view which would take a far more eloquent pen than mine to describe as it deserves - the glorious woods beyond the park, the vale below them, the silver Severn and the soft blue distant welsh and Malvern hills.

Of that room of our mothers in which we twins and three brotherswere born, I have only two recollections, one the pleasure of strokingthe sealskin jacket and its delicious sealskin smell, and two how Wethree, commonly called The Twins and Puss, and the two brothers aboveus used to go there every every morning for our Bible reading with mother. We learnt a great deal of the Bible by heart and I still have one given to me when seven years old by my elder sister, at the end of which my mother wrote Maggie knows followed by a list of the passages we had learnt with her. I wish I could remember them all now.

Below the windows of the room a wide terrace, onto which opened the library, drawing room and dining room, ran the length of the house and along the back of the conservatory. Below it were two tennis courts, with steps down to each - the lower one being divided from the park by a Ha-Ha (sunken wall). The front of the conservatory formed one side of a large garden, with ribbon borders planted in the fashion of those days with such brilliant flowers as geraniums, lobelia, ageratum and calceolarias - not a very artistic combination perhaps but beautiful to our childs eyes.

Onto this gay garden and park beyond looked the quarters of us children, bedrooms, nurseries, schoolrooms as well as my fathers study and the smoking room for the big boys. A high creeper-covered wall divided it from the third side of the house - the front - whence a drive led up through the main gates to the high road above, along which for more than a mile stretched a sheltering belt of plantations.

The front of the house was very pillared and porticoed, and on either side of the steps was a large pleasant faced lion crouchant made of stone or what looked like stone. They were great pets of us children being large enough for three or four to ride on at once. In after years a small niece was found tearfully confiding her troubles into the sympathetic stone ear of one of them.

Another fascination there, neatly hidden in a jutting out piece of wall, was a tiny square hole with a little door to it - a most suitable home for a goblin - but its real use was a receptacle for a little paper proof that a policeman had been round in the night to look after us.

All that part of the house in which we lived has been pulled down - all that is still standing being the servants quarters, kitchens, laundry and stables.

(to be continued)

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