By Nick Clarke (Communications team, Guildford Diocese)
Alexandra Sanderson, Project Manager at St Marys’ Ash Vale, has been recognised in the recent Queen’s New Year Honours list. Alex who’s worshipped at St Mary’s since 2008 was awarded the “Medal of the Order of the British Empire” (BEM) for services to the community in Ash Vale, particularly during Covid-19.
Wed 2 Feb—Mothers Union (afternoon group) 2.30pm at St Peter’s Centre (First Wednesday of the month) Guest Speaker this month: Linda Tallon, on teaching children with special needs. All Welcome.
Whatever it was that brought the wise men searching for the new king or Messiah, whether it was a super nova, alignment of planets, Halley’s comet or a supernatural event, we do not know. However, we do know that these wise men went to the wrong place! (Only by about 6 miles…)
As most locals will already know, the Chapel Project on Wharf Rd is all about sharing Christ’s love through creativity, hospitality and worship. We welcome everyone, of all faiths and none. The Chapel is a joint initiative between the Hants Surrey Border Methodist Circuit, and St Marys Church in Ash Vale (more on our website here: www.ashvalechapel.com and Facebook @ashvalechapel). Now you can help us do more in 2022, through the Co-op ‘Local Causes’ scheme!https://www.coop.co.uk/local-causes
Mon 6th Dec. St Nicholas Lantern Walk 4-6pm Celebrate Advent with a lantern walk from The Chapel (Wharf Rd) to the church garden at St Mary’s (Vale Rd), where you can meet St Nicholas, enjoy the bonfire and taste Rev Neil’s famous home made pizza! Text to book a start time: 07730 609446
News from Matt Weeks, Chapel Musician in Residence
Things in the Ash Vale Chapel Studio have been going well in recent months. Here’s an update of what’s been going on recently…
We’ve had a wonderful variety of different people in:
We had a church choir who came in all the way from Battersea! Due to people moving on, the choir was actually coming to an end, so it was really lovely to be able to capture what they’d been working on so they all had a souvenir of their efforts of the past years.
We had a young rock band in from Wales; XL Live. They are a lovely young group of lads who, by all accounts, haven’t had the easiest of upbringings. So it was amazing to see them enjoy having a day in a studio and to see all their hard work begin to pay off. They loved the space, and were ever so appreciative to have the chance to be using it.
We’ve had some old friends come in to the studio to get their projects mixed. A lovely album which is in progress is a collection of cover versions sung by a father and daughter duo. We’re even bringing the families together!
We also recorded the bass part for a song Brian Doerksen is recording, which has been written about the awful discovery in Canada of 215 bodies of children found buried at an indigenous school.
The Chapel is such a blessing, and we are so pleased to be serving such a wide variety of people.
Debi is continuing to run the monthly make on Zoom but hoping to return to face to face sessions at the Chapel from September…..
May’s monthly make was a Bird sculpture; one of the participants has caught the making bug and is now on her 9th Bird sculpture; she’s even teaching her friends to make them!
June Monthly Make: Join Debi for the next monthly make to do some wire work, creating your own dragonfly: 4pm on Tuesday 1st June 2021.
The Chapel Poetry Group invites you to get creative and submit poems reflecting on your memories. All the winning poems will be published in our 2021 poetry collection “Mirror Mind”, and celebrated at a launch event either in person or online, as covid regulations permit.
First Prize for our overall winner is a £30 book voucher, and all winners whose poems are published will receive an author’s copy of the collection with your poem in it. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate local poets and explore treasured memories.
Everyone is welcome to participate, whether you are an established poet or a beginner, young or old. The important thing is, you must write about your own memories and experiences. Here’s how to enter: