May 2019

Dates to Remember

Fri 3 May Village Hall AGM – Village Hall – 11.00am
Wed 8 May Parish Council AGM – Village Hall – 8pm
Wed 15 May Preston Village Society – Pryor House – 8.00pm
Sun 19 May The Preston Trust AGM – Village Hall – 11.30am

Preston Open Gardens 26 May, 12.30pm – 5.00pm.

We hope you will not mind being asked again to make a cake (or two) for the teas in the Village Hall? Whatever you enjoy baking will be much appreciated. Either bring them/it to the Hall on the day or leave them with Pam Stark or Liz Hunter beforehand.

Plants for the Plant Stall on the Green will also be welcome and can be left earlier in the week beginning 20th May with Meta & Hugh Reeves at Crunnells Green House.

Homemade Preserves will be on sale in the Village Hall. Margaret Trinder will be pleased to receive them at the Hall on the morning of the 26th.

Do visit the church either for the Songs of Praise + Choir on Saturday 25th at 6.30pm or on the day and be amazed at the wonderful flower arrangements, which fill the church with gorgeous colours as well as scent!

Do you have a favourite hymn or reading that you would the congregation to sing or someone to read at the Songs of Praise service? Let Meta know on 456567.

The Scarecrows Are Coming… Village Day – Saturday 6 July

After being on an extended holiday the Preston Scarecrows will be arriving back home in time for this year’s Village Day on Saturday 6th of July. Please join them.

Whether you’ve made a scarecrow in the past or this will be your first time, it would be great if you could make one to join this special, happy band of parishioners.

To talk to The Preston Trust Village Day team about making a scarecrow, having a stall or other attraction, or if you would like to help on the day, please e-mail the PNS address, use The Preston Trust contact form or call 434403

Please Save the Date, more details will follow soon…

St Martin’s Church And All Saints’ Church Services

May Service Sidesman Reader
5thNo Service at St Martin’s
11.00amFamily Communion at All Saints’
12th9.30amLiz HunterMark Lawson
   Acts 9:2-6, RCL p. 869   Gospel: John 10:22-30
Intercessions: Alec Dickinson   Chalice: Alec Dickinson
19th9.30amRichard BlockleyRichard Blockley
   Acts 11:1-18, RCL p.872   Gospel: John 13:31-35
Intercessions: Hugh Reeves   Chalice: Di Blockley
11.00amFamily Service at All Saints’
25th6.30amSongs of PraiseAndy ColeVarious
26th9.00amMorning PrayerMalcolm Lowle
11.00amHoly Communion at All Saints’
June
2ndNo Service at St Martin’s
11.00amFamily Communion at All Saints’
All services are at St. Martin's unless stated otherwise

A Letter From The Reader At St Martin’s Church

Dear All,

As we become older, most of us of a certain age have no idea what we would like as a birthday present, at least not until after the day has passed. I did however come up with something – a 12 month subscription to “The Dalesman” a magazine about God’s golden acre – Yorkshire, a county close to my heart as it would be being a dyed in the wool Yorkshire lad. It is full of personal stories, down on the farm experiences, history, geography relating to the county and evokes many happy memories. Although I moved away when I did my National Service, in a way I have never left it and also return frequently.

My chosen career in farm management enabled me to move around the countryside, experiencing the beauty of this green and pleasant land, appreciating all that it has to offer. From rustic Herefordshire – now that is a county not to be missed, to the fells of Yorkshire where I quickly realized the hardships that the dales farmers endured high up on “the tops”. On to Lincolnshire and finally coming to rest in Hertfordshire, a delightfully wooded county, which being close to London has an abundance of fine estates and good shooting. How fortunate I have been.

J.B. Priestley, John Betjeman and H.V. Morton to name but a few all wrote about “this England”. H. V. Morton, amongst his other publications also wrote “In the steps of the Master”. A travelogue of Jesus’ journeys. It is a book full of interest and a faithful account of the journey taken by the author through the Holy Land in search of every village and town associated with the life and ministry of Jesus.

We are not in a position to trace those steps today for political reasons but we can follow Jesus’ steps through what he taught us during his travels throughout his ministry. To pray for guidance in our lives; to love God as surely he loves us and finally to love our neighbours as ourselves. That would be quite a journey.

If you are not sure where to begin, pop in to St Martin’s Church. There’s guidance there for the asking and people already on that same journey. You will be surprised where it will take you.

Finally, in the Dalesman each month there are words of wisdom from an old fellow – Amos – that I came across recently. “T’doctor once said Ah should walk two miles afoar breakfast. Two months later Ah were in Scotland”.

Go well,
Alec Dickinson

The Archbishops of York and Canterbury have issued their invitation for Christians worldwide to once again take part in this year’s Thy Kingdom Come.

At both St Martins and All Saints we will be encouraging people to pray for more people to come to know the love of God through Jesus Christ.

“When we pray ‘Thy Kingdom Come’, and pray for our family, friends and neighbours to come to know Jesus Christ, we’re offering up our broken world for God to fix. And as we pray, we’re learning to trust a Father who has adopted us and to embark on an adoption adventure that can change the world”.

To join in, pray for 5 or 6 people each day from the period between Ascension (May 30th) and Pentecost (9th June). If it helps we will be putting up a prayer board in our churches with some sticky notes for you to write those names on, and we will be praying.

Watch Dr Krish Kandiah’s video for Thy Kingdom Come 2019 on youtube now.

Who could you be praying for during this year’s Thy Kingdom Come, so that they may come to know the Fathers love? God bless love Dawn.

Neighbourhood Watch

The number to contact at North Herts Police for all non-emergencies (including witnessing of fly-tipping) is  101 or 01707 354000.

For removal of fly tipping which has already occurred, call NHDC 01462 474000 or online at www.north-herts.gov.uk, then follow the links to Transport and Streets, Street Cleaning and Fly Tipping where there is a form to complete to report the details.

PC Matt Jenkins and PCSO Heather Burrows can be contacted regarding local community issues. Their contact details are as follows:

PC Matt Jenkins: 07736 225349 or 01438 757604

PCSO Heather Burrows: 07847 364955 or 01438 757604 or heather.burrows@herts.pnn.police.uk

In the event of an emergency or if you witness a crime taking place please call 999.

Preston Village Hall – AGM

The Annual General Meeting of the Village Hall Committee will take place in the hall on Friday 3 May at 11.00am.

Preston Village Society

Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday 15 May at 8.00pm at Rosemary Brenham’s, Pryor House, The Green. Sarah Atkinson will give a talk entitled ‘Dogs for Good’ which is about autism assistance dogs.

St Martin’s Church 120 Club

The winners in the first two draws in the 2019/20 120 Club (£30 each) were:

March

No. 46 Dr T Win
No. 8 Mr G Constantinidi

April

No.127 Mrs Z E A Coles
No. 45 Mr R Silverman

There are a few unsold tickets and we welcome any new participants – tickets cost £20 for the year, with 25 prizes of £30. This is an important source of income for St Martin’s church to help maintain the building and churchyard.  If you would like to join please call Richard Blockley on 457631.

The Preston Trust AGM 19 May, 11.30am

The Preston Trust Committee warmly invite you to their Annual General Meeting on Sunday 19th May at 11:30am in the Village Hall. Do come along to hear what has been achieved over the last year and our plans for the future. We would also like to hear any ideas you might have for The Trust to consider putting into action over the next year.

The Great Easter Egg Hunt – Thank you all!

The dust has settled, the bunny paw prints are fading away from the path and calm has returned to the Parish. It was wonderful to see all ages attempting the games together. The search for the number of crosses in St. Martin’s sparked some earnest debate. Yet still no one knows for sure! If you’re curious to know what the other answers are, go to The Great Easter Egg Hunt Report. The winners of the games and quizzes have all been notified.

Thank you so much for coming, whether to play or help, and making this a very happy time, full of fun and laughter.

The Preston Trust Committee