Dates to Remember
| Sat 9 Nov* | Police Surgery – Village Hall – 10.00am – 12.00noon |
| Sat 16 Nov | Quiz and Chips – Village Hall – 7.00pm |
| Wed 20 Nov | Preston Village Society – Dynsley House – 8.00pm |
| Wed 20 Nov | Deadline for the December 2019 newsletter |
| Sun 1 Dec | Christmas lights switch on – The Red Lion – 6.00pm |
*Please note date changed from 2 Nov.
Christmas Tree Lights Switch On
Sunday 1 December, 6.00pm at The Red Lion
The Preston Trust committee warmly invites you to the Christmas Tree lights switch-on. There will be free mulled wine to keep you warm, along with mince pies and some other treats. Following the switching on of the lights there will be some carols outside, then we will move inside for the Village Voices to kick-start the festive season.
Friends Of St Martins Quiz And Chips: Saturday 16 November
The annual Quiz and Chips Evening will be held in the Village Hall on Saturday 16 November at 7.00 p.m. Ticket price £10.00 including fish and chips, BYO, tables of up to eight. For tickets contact Sue Griffiths 01462 434194. Please also let Sue know the food order for your team: fish, scampi or chicken. There will be a raffle during the evening.
Preston Village Society
Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday 20 November at Chris Challans, Dynsley House, Butchers Lane. Briony Harford BA MA will give an insight into the workings of an auctioneer and valuer.
St Martin’s Church And All Saints’ Church Services
| November | Service | Sidesman | Reader | |
| 3rd | No Service at St Martin’s | |||
| 11.00am | Family Communion at All Saints’ | |||
| 10th | 9.30am | Remembrance Sunday | Malcolm Lowle | Hugh Reeves |
| Micah 4:1-5, RCL p. 1236 Gospel: Luke 20:27-38, p. 1047 Intercessions: Alec Dickinson Chalice: Alec Dickinson | ||||
| 10.45am | Holy Communion at All Saints’ | |||
| 3.00pm | Act of Remembrance at the Memorial in Whitwell | |||
| 17th | 8.00am | BCP, at All Saints’ | ||
| 9.30am | Richard Blockley | Paul Constantinidi | ||
| 2 Thess.3:6-13, RCL p. 1052 Gospel: Luke 21:5-19 Intercessions: Doreen Sansom Chalice: Carolyn Hill | ||||
| 11.00am | Family Praise and Baptism at All Saints’ | |||
| 24th | 9.30am | Andy Cole | Liz Hunter | |
| Col.1:11-20, RCL p. 1057 Gospel: Luke 23:33-43 Intercessions: Meta Reeves Chalice: Chalice: Di Blockley | ||||
| 11.00am | Holy Communion at All Saints’ | |||
| December | ||||
| 1st | 10.00am | Advent 1 | Malcolm Lowle | Tim Liddell |
| Romans 13:11-end, RCL p.2 Gospel: Mt 24:36-44 Intercessions: Hugh Reeves Chalice: Chalice: Meta Reeves | ||||
Weekday services in Whitwell:
Alternate Wednesdays 9.30am. Holy Communion at Lime Tree House
13th November, 27th November
Stagenhoe:, 27th November 11am Holy Communion
Church cleaning at St Martin’s.
Every first Tuesday of the month at 4.00pm.
3rd December: Brass cleaning.
St Martin’s Church 120 Club Draw 2019/2020
The winners of the October draw in the 2019/20 120 Club (£30 each) were:
No. 58 Capt M R Lowle
No. 21 Mrs F Wright
A Letter from Our Vicar
Our Vicar, Canon Stephen, Writes:
November is primarily a month for memory – for remembering. In our nation and community, we honour the dead in war on Remembrance Sunday. On All Souls Day, (Nov 2) we remember the departed. A day earlier, we celebrate All Saints Day, recalling the lives of Christians everywhere but also remembering the past of our own church, All Saints St Paul’s Walden. And we remember – we strengthen our memory – because it is important to look back and acknowledge the past as something vital and influential.
But if memory is important, so is hope – looking forward with confidence. At this moment in our nation’s life, with our future relations with the EU at so critical a point, it is vital to step up our hope, whatever the outcome. This hope for the future is in fact part of our trust in the God who holds everything in the palms of his hands – who says that we are to have confidence that all will be well in the end. Nothing can defeat the good purposes of God, as the Old Testament prophets proclaimed, just as the worst that the world could do to Jesus in killing him could not prevent God raising him from the dead.
So memory and hope are the twin pillars of our community life and also of our individual lives; and we value them by trusting in the God who is a continuing source of life and joy.
Every blessing
Stephen
The Revd Canon Stephen Fielding
The vicar’s usual working days, in addition to Sunday, are Tuesday and Wednesday. He can be contacted at slfielding@hotmail.com
Looking and Longing, An Advent study course
Come and join us for a fun and lively discussion, as over four weeks on a Wednesday afternoon from 2-3pm followed by tea and biscuits!
Advent is an important season in the Church; it celebrates the eternal coming of our God to us and to the world. Advent calls for us to be alert and awake, to open our eyes and ears at what is going on around us, and God’s love. This year we will be looking at characters from the Old and New Testaments to see where we stand in relationship with them.
November 27th – Hiding and seeking @ 50 Hornhill, Whitwell
December 4th – Seeking and Finding @ Crunnells Green House, Preston
December 11th – Finding and seeing @ Vicarage, Bendish Lane
December 18th – Seeing and worshipping @ Crunnells Green House, Preston
Please contact me if you would like more information – Dawn 01438 871831
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: 07590 460263 or 01438 757604
PCSO Heather Burrows: 07847 364955 or 07740 745168 or heather.burrows@herts.pnn.police.uk
In the event of an emergency or if you witness a crime taking place please call 999.
Police Surgery – Village Hall – Saturday 2 November
There will be a Police Surgery in Preston Village Hall on 2nd November from 10am – 12 noon. PCSO Heather Burrows from our Safer Neighbourhood Team will be happy to discuss any concerns you may have.
Hitchin Foodbank
Many thanks for your ongoing support and contributions to the Hitchin Foodbank. Due to increased recent demand the following items are most urgently needed:
tea bags, tinned vegetables, tinned potatoes, dried potato (instant mash), sponge puddings, tinned fruit, tinned rice/custard, jam/marmalade, longlife juice, dried milk, deodorants.
Please ensure items are undamaged and in date. Donations can be deposited in the blue box in the garage at Lychgate House, Church Lane, or at Waitrose and Sainsbury’s.
Preston Parish Council: Mobile Phone Providers
The Parish Council would like to thank everyone who provided information about their mobile phone provider and the quality of their signal. Letters were sent by post and email to the CEOs of both Vodafone and EE asking them to request that their equipment is installed on the tower.
EE has replied to say that they are looking into this with the EE network deployment team and will come back to us with a more detailed response after discussion with them.
Vodafone’s response was: We can confirm that Vodafone are not currently looking to expand their technology to cover the village of Preston at this moment in time. This is not to say that Vodafone technology will not be implemented in the village of Preston in the future.
The Parish Council realise that this is not what residents want to hear but there is nothing more they can do at the present time.