Reflections Blog

Once again, we kick the festive season off to a great start with our truly amazing Nativity Crib Festival.  We will be filling the church with as many cribs as we can persuade people to lend us (last year we had almost 200).  They come from all around the world, are every shape and size and are made from everything you could imagine (including citrus peel and banana leaves!).  Best of all each has its own "story" saying why it is important to its owner.

We will also have a "living Crib".  Use our dressing up clothes to create your own nativity scene (if you take a photo it will make a beautiful, personal Christmas Card).

Naturally we will be serving delicious cakes and you have the chance to win a crib of your own.  Entry is £3, children are free and there is parking on the school playground.  If you have a crib we could borrow or could hand out flyers please contact Barbara.

If you could help on the weekend (we have slots 11-1, 1-3 and 3-5 on both days) or if you could make a cake (we are looking for iced versions - they look so much more tempting - of the following:- Chocolate, Lemon, Coffee, Carrot and Ginger, preferably 8" round!!).  Please keep your eyes open in church for sign-up sheets or contact Mary Hooper, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or tel. 01462-457350.

For more information contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 

tel. 01462-421647.

                                                                                    Barbara Thomas

The next Community Lunch will be on Wednesday 6^th November from 12.45pm. till 2.00pm. in St. Ippolyts Parish Hall.  (Serving time 12.45pm. till 1.00pm.)  Cost £4.  Everyone welcome.

The Christmas Community Lunch will be a ticket only event which will take place on Wednesday 4^thDecember.

Tickets priced £5 will be available at the November lunch and from Anne Steel (tel:  01462-432117).

There will not be a Community Lunch in January.

                                                                                              Anne Steel

FRIENDS OF ST. IPPOLYTS CHURCH

HARVEST

Thank you to everyone for your generous harvest donations.  St. Ippolyts Church looked and smelled wonderful with an assortment of both fresh produce and a variety of groceries.

We are very grateful to Friends who were available on Monday morning to clear and pack the produce into boxes and to St. Ippolyts School children who also came into the church to prepare food gift boxes and write a friendly note to accompany their gift.  These were delivered to our own friends in St. Ippolyts for different reasons.  We wanted to give them a harvest present, to say we are thinking of them.  The main bulk of the groceries was taken to the Homeless Shelter in Hitchin and was very gratefully received.  The remaining boxes were delivered to the Food Bank in Letchworth.

Both the Homeless Shelter and the Food Bank are always grateful to receive groceries throughout the year and we are reminded of those less fortunate than ourselves.

Dairy Date:

We will be decorating the church for Christmas on Saturday 21^st December from 9.30am.  This will include the flowers.  Please come and help if you can.  Further details will be in December Pax.

                                         Frances Williams, Carol Scott and Joan Pinkstone 

ST. IPPOLYTS PARISH HALL  Charity number 1072025

Christmas Fair

Come along on Saturday 23^rd November from 2.00pm. to 4.30pm.  There will be lots of stalls.  Father Christmas will be visiting to see the children in his lovely grotto.  Light refreshments available.  Last chance to buy raffle tickets before the draw at about 4.15pm.  Raffle tickets are priced 50p. each.  1st Prize Christmas Hamper, 2nd Prize Shellfish Platter for 2 by Colchester Oyster Fishery, 3rd Prize Sunday Lunch for 2 (including wine) at The Bridge Street Bistro, 4th Prize Cut and Blow Dry at Hair by Jane, 5th Prize A free MOT at The Car Agents, Queen Street, plus various other prizes!  Everybody is most welcome.

Raffle tickets are available to purchase from St. Ippolyts Stores, user groups and trustees if you cannot come to the Fair.

Diary dates:

Management Meeting - Tuesday 21^st January 2020 at 7.30pm.

22^ndAnnual General Meeting - Tuesday 24^th March 2020 at 7.30pm.

Management Meetings in June and September to be arranged.

www.stippolyts-hall.co.uk

www.facebook.com.stippolytsparishhall

                                                                                            Pam Skeggs

ST. IPPOLYTS CHURCH FLOODLIGHTING SPONSORSHIP - 2020

The church installed the floodlights for the Millennium celebrations 20 years ago with the aid of a grant from the Floodlighting Trust.  They were first illuminated at Christmas 1999 and they have been used every night since.  We had been facing increasing costs in maintaining the lights and after a lamp was found damaged we decided to replace them all with LED’s.  This has been done this year and they will keep a consistent colour and light intensity.  I hope many of you will have noticed a general improvement.

We are therefore continuing our annual sponsorship which costs £15 per week and we have 52 weeks to fill.  The sign-up list is at the back of church. You may sponsor as many weeks as you wish and you may wish this to be in memory of a loved one, to celebrate a birthday, a wedding, or anniversary etc.

Please help to fill the list in and sign up early.  Cheques please if possible, made payable to ‘St. Ippolyts Church’, as this makes it easier to track who has paid.  If you wish your sponsorship to be anonymous, please write ‘anonymous’ in the name space and put your donation in an envelope just stating the week(s).  Please pass all monies to Roger Cox.

                                                                                                Roger Cox