St Mary's Church
Fairford

The Christmas Coffee Morning
& Christmas Draw

This event, held on December 10th, was a great success - the net profit will be in the region of £1,500! Jo Williams has already thanked all those who helped beforehand and on the day, but it won’t hurt to do so again. So, thank you Barbara Gibbs, Robert Dean, Eric and Wendy Graham… there are others of course, not least all those who bought tickets, donated items for the Bring and Buy stall etc, served drinks and provided lush cakes and brownies (plus warmed them up and put cream on for those cheeky enough to ask!) or came along on the day to partake of all this.

A big thank you too for the donations. Our local businesses are very good at supporting St Mary’s, many of them by advertising in the Parish Magazine, but also by providing prizes for the Draw. So, please support them!

• Andrew Butler - meat voucher
• The Bull - Sunday lunch for 2
• Fairford Opticians - £50 voucher
• Londis - champagne
• Park Close Stores - fruit basket

In addition, anonymous donors gave cash for prizes and for the cost of printing the Draw tickets.

And of course, a huge thank you to Jo Williams, who started planning this event months and months ago.

The end of an era for St Mary’s Mothers Union

St. Mary’s Mothers Union began in October 1910 and has thrived for just over 100 years.

It has been a very vibrant branch over the years but sadly of late, has not had the support of St. Mary’s parishioners therefore we have not been able to gain new members. The present Committee of 5 members are stepping down at the A.G.M. in January 2012. Unfortunately, a new committee cannot be found for the branch to keep going. Members will be amalgamating with either Lechlade or Poulton branches.

Our final meeting of the branch will be on Wednesday 25th January, 2012 at 2.p.m. in the Barker Room of the Community Centre. We hope as many as possible of our members will be able to attend.

Church Pews

St Mary’s PCC have authorised an application for a Faculty to dispose of the pews removed from the church during the reordering projects of 1999 and 2009. The new arrangements inside St Mary’s have proved entirely satisfactory with regard to seating, accommodating even the largest services, such as Remembrance Sunday. This means that the pews currently in storage are no longer needed, so if the Faculty is granted we plan to offer them for sale. Members of St Mary’s would be given the chance to buy one first, then the local community. Any remaining would be put up for sale at public auction. If you wish to register an interest please speak to the Vicar or either of the Churchwardens.

Charity of the Month:
Biblelands

The first charity for 2012 is BibleLands. Their income comes from donations and through the sale of products like the ”Carol Sheet” that has been used in church during the Christmas period.

As BibleLands Trading the income made is used to help needy children in the Holy Land, Lebanon and Egypt. Support is given to local Christian groups which care for children, with an emphasis on health and education. Some Children are blind or disabled. Others come from poor or broken families. Please help with prayers and by placing a donation in the box by the south door. Your help will be very much appreciated.

There is information about BibleLands on the stand by the south wall or you can write to: BibleLands trading, PO Box 50, HIGH WYCOMBE, Bucks HP15 7QU Tel: 01494 897912. See their website.

Local Ministry Revamp

Our approach to Local Ministry is in the process of being revamped, with a much more project-based focus. We are now at the stage where we need to form a new team to help us tackle the three main challenges which emerged during the ‘ Body of Christ’ project in 2011 - Outreach, Families and Finance.

• Is the church something of a ‘closed shop’?
• Would you like to see more families, children, young people in church?
• Could you do something to help St Mary’s pay it’s way?

If the answer to any of the above is yes (and even if it’s no!) please look out for the explanatory leaflets being issued in church on 15th, 22nd and 29th of January. This is a real opportunity for YOU to make a difference to the life of St Mary’s.

Merger of Fairford and Cirencester Deaneries

Fairford and Cirencester Deaneries have now merged to form a larger, united deanery. There are many reasons for this merger, some pastoral, some organisational. The end result is that we start the year as a major part of something new and exciting. As part of the church’s system of governance the new deanery is of a size to have some real clout in decision making.

Our local clergy are now part of a much larger peer group with better opportunities to support one another, engage with current theological issues and to contribute to the Church’s Ministry across the whole of the South Cotswolds.

The Rev'd Brian Atkinson will no longer be Area Dean, a post he has held for the past seven years. He will now have more time to devote to St Mary’s and the South Cotswold Team Ministry (SCTM), of which he remains Team Rector.

Visit of The Rt Rev’d Michael Perham, Bishop of Gloucester,

On Wednesday 1 February, 7.30pm, we welcome The Rt Rev’d Michael Perham, Bishop of Gloucester, to St Mary’s. He will talk about ‘Worship that transforms lives’. The Bishop spoke on this subject at a recent Clergy Training Day and many of the resultant questions and comments came from clergy in rural parishes, with their particular challenges and opportunities. The Team clergy felt that as many people as possible from this area should hear what the Bishop has to say to our rural communities. Clergy and laypeople from all over the SCTM will join us - more details to follow.

Messy Space, Sat 1st January

2.00 – 4.00 p.m. Fairford Community Centre

This month’s theme: Challenges

Adults & children (recommended 4 yrs upwards). £2 per child - maximum £5 per family.
A project of Churches Together Around Fairford.

Previous Charity Fundraising

Monies collected from the box on the south wall for the November charity, Helen and Douglas House, amounted to £32.67 to which the PCC will add further amounts.

News December 2011
News November 2011
News October 2011
News September 2011
News August 2011
News July 2011
News June 2011
News May 2011
News April 2011
News March 2011
News February 2011
News January 2011