We would like to welcome everyone to our traditional Christmas Eve carol service – back at Huge Farm by kind permission of Anka and John Taylor – for the first time since 2019. The service will begin at 4pm so please arrive in good time; there will be readings by children from the village, plenty of carols and refreshments afterwards.
Mince pies gratefully received on the day – please let Anka know if you’re able to provide some. There is no parking on site so please use the village hall car park or St John’s Church car park and walk the short distance to Huge Farm. When walking, please make sure you are well lit and have children under close supervision so everyone stays safe.
At St. John’s Church we are holding a regular ‘Tea and chat’ get-together in the church on the second Wednesday of each month at 2.30 pm. The next one will be on Wednesday 14 December. It’s a chance for people to get together and literally have a chat with others. Quite a bit of reminiscing took place at the last meeting! Anyone is most welcome to come.
Our regular carol service will be in the church on Sunday 18th December at 10am – please do join us, you will be most welcome, even if you haven’t been before.
We would like to welcome everyone to our traditional Christmas Eve carol service – back at Huge Farm by kind permission of Anka and John Taylor – for the first time since 2019. The service will begin at 4pm so please arrive in good time; there will be readings by children from the village, plenty of carols and refreshments afterwards.
Mince pies gratefully received on the day – please let Anka know if you’re able to provide some. There is no parking on site so please use the village hall car park or St John’s Church car park and walk the short distance to Huge Farm. When walking, please make sure you are well lit and have children under close supervision so everyone stays safe.
Finally, we are going to hold a short candlelit service at 4pm on New Year’s Day. This will be instead of our usual 10.00 service which will not take place on that date. Again, anyone is most welcome.
Ukrainian families living in the Chilterns seek new hosts.
By Christmas, many local Ukrainian guests will have been with their families for a little over 6 months – the agreed time commitment. Whilst some hosts are happy to continue into 2023, many guests are already needing to look for more permanent accommodation. But will they manage it?
The private rental market is under huge pressure, particularly in our area. Talking the other day with a local estate agent, we discovered that almost every rental on offer is snapped up within days, if not hours, with landlords able to pick and choose from several possible tenants. Using criteria such as a good credit history and an established UK employment record, it is hard for recently arrived Ukrainians to be top of the list.
So, the poster below is part of a campaign by our local support group, collaborating with Bucks Council, to find ‘second wave’ hosts to take over while guests continue to improve their English and establish themselves in employment. Unless this happens, a potential crisis is looming. If Ukrainians are unable to secure a second host or find a suitable rental soon, then they will be declared homeless and offered only B&B accommodation or worse.
Our community has done a huge amount to welcome Ukrainian families made homeless by a horrific war. And, if we may add a personal note, the last few months have been a rewarding eye-opener for us both. We have learned about a different culture and been privileged to support some vulnerable people though the toughest time of their lives. We have also made three very good friends.
All our guests have already been through so much – it would be truly tragic for them to be made homeless again. Please consider whether you are able to offer a Ukrainian family a temporary refuge, either now or after Christmas. Even if it’s a ‘maybe’, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us to learn more, either at: ddennis48@outlook.com or by using the phone number on the poster – 07494 427355. David Dennis and Lesley Paton
We will be commencing our weekly art Classes at the Bellingdon and Asheridge Village Hall on Tuesday 10th January and will run for 13 weeks to Tuesday 4th April.
We have already started to receive bookings –hooray! two of which are Christmas Presents……so a great idea for those struggling to come up with innovative Christmas present ideas.
A bit about our classes:
Classes are fun and friendly, a place to learn and make new friends. We offer two 3 hour classes, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. You receive tuition and guidance from our excellent tutor Jo allowing you to produce beautiful art using a variety of media over a 13 week period such as charcoal, coloured inks, pastels, watercolours and acrylic and other media.
The principles of drawing and painting are progressively practiced with techniques and subjects such as landscapes, still life, figure drawing and portrait. We use a variation of images, props & life models as inspiration for our tasks ( see brief facebook video) https://fb.watch/gXduzA2-CK/
Classes are suitable for beginners and more experienced artists. Our classes are immensely popular with over 90% of students choosing to return to do another course, hone and learn new skills, chat with friends & enjoy some ‘me time’. We provide well organised, well prepared, fun classes, nothing is too much trouble! We pride ourselves on creating a sense of community in our classes, we believe the social aspect of art class compliments the tuition to create the perfect environment for creativity and friendship. Not only do you receive tuition throughout the course but all materials, art supplies and refreshments are provided. This means you need bring nothing but yourself to class?
A reminder that this coming Saturday, 3rd September, is our Autumn Show in Bellingdon & Asheridge Village Hall. We do hope you will consider exhibiting, even if just in one class, as it is such fun.
Set up of exhibits is between 9.30am – 11am, and we open the doors in the afternoon from 2.30pm until 4.30pm, giving you a chance to view the exhibits, see who has been awarded the trophies, join in our raffle with a filled picnic hamper as the main prize, and enjoy refreshments with a slice of wonderful homemade cake.
