Wow wow wow! These kids are unstoppable! The Foodbank Youth Group, plus friends and family had an amazing night last weekend. They played badminton all night long from 7pm to 7am, to raise money for the Ash Villages Food Parcels Project. Their original target was £280 (enough to buy 1000 tins of beans), but they have absolutely smashed it! The sponsor money is still coming in, but as of today they have raised £477 online, plus more offline, and their latest total is £811.50 – simply amazing! Huge congratulations to the team who took part, and massive thanks fo the volunteers and generous donors. You are amazing!
The Parishioner was delighted to interview Refeia, a locally based Holistic Life Coach:
Parishioner – It was lovely to meet you at a community coffee morning organised by the ladies from the Ahmadiya community at the Ash Centre recently. What is your local connection, and what does community mean to you?
Refeia – I have lived in Frimley Green for the past 26 years, my children grew up and went to school around Frimley. Community to me means friendship and support during good times and the not so easy times.
Parishioner – We are always interested in what people love about the local area and what would you suggest to newcomers to try within a few miles of Ash Vale. Any favourite pass times, places to visit, walks, clubs or groups you would recommend?
Refeia – My happy place is feeling the sun on my skin. I take a daily walk through Frimley Lodge Park, along the canal. It is so peaceful and I love being in nature. There’s lots to do for those with children and a cafe. The past couple of weeks, the ducks and geese are having their babies, so I’ve been feeding the ducklings and goslings. Tip: Try leaving your phone at home.
Parishioner – We understand that you are a professional Holistic Life Coach, how did you find your way in to this profession, and can you give our readers an idea of what you get up to in a typical week?
Refeia – I’ve always been interested in helping people become the best version of themselves. About five years ago, I trained as an organisational development coach, and through working with people, I quickly realised that you can’t really separate work life from home life. When things improve in one area, it often has a positive knock-on effect in others.
In any given week, I might be supporting someone who’s feeling overwhelmed and trying to find a better work-life balance, helping someone build confidence, or talking things through with someone going through a big life change such as becoming a parent, going through a divorce, retiring, or coping with bereavement.
No two days are ever the same, and that’s something I really enjoy. But what I enjoy most is seeing people start to feel more like themselves again, often through small, simple changes that make a big difference.
It’s not about having all the answers or making huge life overhauls. Sometimes, it’s just about having the space to pause, reflect, and take that next step forward.
Parishioner – You gave us a wonderful deep breathing exercise to try at the coffee morning. It was a very effective way to release some of the stresses of the day. If you had one piece of advice for a new habit for someone to start, what would you suggest?
Refeia – Step outside and pause long enough to take it in. Properly pause and let your attention land on something natural around you. A tree, the sky, the sound of the leaves rustling or the birds singing. The calm you’re searching for isn’t something you need to build from scratch but something your body already knows how to access.
Parishioner – Thank you so much for being our “meet the local” for April 2026. If a community group, company or individual is interested in your services how can they reach you?
Refeia – Thank you so much. I work with both individuals and groups.
Our lovely young Foodbank volunteers are a brilliant team. They come and help take in the foodbank stock on Thursday evenings, sort donations, bag up laundry pods and check the fridges. This week, they spent some of their foodbank time on these beautiful donations boxes for our foyer at St Mary’s and some more for The Chapel. Let’s encourage them and fill them up!
We have booked a double stall at the Ash Village Fair on the 28th June. Revd Neil will be doing his legendary pancakes and the Foodbank team are planning a bottle tombola. Can you spare a bottle and pop it in one of the donations boxes please?
Every item donated will go to help the Ash Villages Food Parcels Project, (https://ash-vale.org.uk/foodparcels-2/ ) either in a food parcel, or on the bottle tombola to raise funds for food and toiletries. Thank you for your support!
Can you spare 32 seconds to dwnload the “Bank The Food” app onto your smartphone, and find out what your local foodbank most needs? #BankTheFood #32seconds #AshVillagesFoodParcelsProject Thank you!
#PicnicAndPlay takes place again this year at Ash Vale Chapel and we can’t wait to welcome you, for lots of family friendly fun in the sunshine. We have plenty of fun on offer, DJ Martin is doing the disco & games, Revd Neil is planning his legendary pancakes, and we have arts and crafts, games and activities each week from printing to clay, sand and water play, and more in between.
DATES: It’s on the 4 middle Wednesdays in the holidays: 31 July, 7th August, 14th August, 21st August from 11:30am until 3pm (slightly longer this year so it’s easier to work around naps for our littlest customers!)
BOOKING ESSENTIAL text phone or whatsapp to 07730 609446 please so we know you are coming and can cater for the right numbers. (All children must be accompanied by a responsible adult please.)
FOOD: Let us know your choice of sandwich filling for each person when you book (or let us know now if you already booked and we dont have your lunch choice yet). We can offer cheese, ham, vegan humus, cream cheese, jimjam chocolate spread, or jam. Let us know your preference and we will order in accordingly, so there is no waste. Any allergies eg gluten free please let us know before you get here so we can be prepared.
COST: We don’t set a fixed fee, so that all families who want to can join us. We do have a donations link, and we do need donations to help cover our costs, so please if you can bring a cash donation on the day or pop a contiribution on the Give A Little link if possible. The amount you give is up to you, THANK YOU! . https://givealittle.co/c/4BYNqSiaQc0wz1KTSgzKPz
VOLUNTEERS: We are always in need of more helping hands, setting up the gazebos, making the picnics, serving the drinks, leading the crafts, clearing down and cleaning, theres a job for everyone! If you would like to pitch in please get in touch thank you!
Remember to book for Picnic and Play at The Chapel (Wharf Rd, Ash Vale) in the summer holidays and why not bring a friend! #PicnicAndPlay
We need volunteers on Wednesdays this summer to set up / serve food and drinks / run the activities/ clear down. If you can help please see Alex! Thank you xxx
Did you know? Our Ash Villages Food Parcels Proejct received funding from the The Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund to help us keep the project going in 2023/2024. We are so grateful for this government funding, as it makes all the difference for local families. The funding ended in March and we have just finished writing up our end of grant report, so I thought you might like to see a few of the statistics.
I am so incredibly proud of this amazing volunteer team! In 23 weeks they have fed 1300 people. They have been very busy collecting donations, managing the stock, packing and delivering over 400 parcels. The funding we received stocked up the shelves to make sure we could deliver enough food, basic toiletries, and baby bank items to those in urgent need in our local villages of Ash, Ash Vale, Ash Green and Tongham.
Have a guess how many volunteer hours they have racked up between them? We had 32 different volunteers, who worked a total of 373 shifts, donating a staggering 648 hours of their time between them during these 23 weeks. What a huge thing to do for the community. Thank you all so much!
If you would like me to pass on a message to them for you, please email me projectmanager@Ash-Vale.org.uk and I will be sure to share it in our team chat!
I came across a sixpence recently and this made me think of the rich culture we had with our pre-decimal coinage. The only recognisable one these days is half-a-crown mainly because the bricks for the Cathedral were sold for this amount. Two shillings and sixpence. The pennies and ha’pennies were real coins and with two or three in your pocket, you knew you had some money. My first ‘pocket money’ was thruppence or three whole pennies. With these in your pocket, you were rich.
Movement can feel like a luxury and is so important.
Spring is the perfect time to get more active. In Ash Vale we have the beautiful Basingstoke canal to enjoy. Regular walking is beneficial in so many ways including:
+ Maintain a healthy weight and lose body fat
+ Prevent or manage various conditions, including heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, cancer and type 2 diabetes
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.
