Phemie is now home from Kingston Hospital, and is still awaiting an operation.

Alan has had his first session of a six-month course of chemotherapy following the finding of a lymphoma on his inflamed appendix.

We are keeping Phemie and Alan very much in our thoughts.

Peggy Smith has had a few days in Mayday Hospital following a short bout of pneumonia, and is now back at her care home.

Doris and Archie Swan are back home following a week of convalescence, but Doris is still under treatment.

Archie Paterson says that he is improving – we trust that he is right.

Lily Moody has now moved to a home in St Leonard’s on Sea, to be near her daughter and son-in-law. Daphne has her address, should you wish to write.

Frank Dobby had a few days in hospital recently, but is now back home.

We remember all these, and Marjorie, Mary, Sonia and Dorothy in our prayers.

Dear Friends,

My head is still buzzing with the presentation at the Church Meeting last Wednesday by Tom Roberts! I want to encourage as many of you as possible to come to the meeting on 28^th May at 11 am, when we will be deciding which option to pursue. Tom will be there to answer questions, and to guide us forward. I would suggest that we allow 1-1 ½ hours for the meeting. If you were at the Church Meeting last night but can’t come to the Wednesday meeting, please make known your feelings on paper. It won’t count as a vote, but it would be good to have your thoughts! Please give careful consideration to this matter and include it in your prayers.

And speaking of prayers, prayers for the Epsom URC and the way forward will be held on Tuesday, 3^rd June and 1^st July at 10 am, both in the church. We plan to meet for up to an hour. This is open to all.

Now, onto other things. The URC is asking us to be involved in Vision4Life.

"Vision4Life is the next phase of Catch the Vision. You might say it’s about moving beyond structures to the nitty-gritty of renewing the spiritual life of the United Reformed Church. It’s not only about personal renewal, however; significantly, it’s about drawing the whole of the Church - liberal, evangelical and everything in between - into a renewed and shared engagement with the Bible, prayer and evangelism.” (Vision4Life website)

 Each congregation is invited to set up three conversations to explore ‘the big picture’ and their own local story about: the effectiveness of the Bible in their church; the role of prayer in the life of their church; how comfortable they are talking about their faith to each other and to outsiders. Our ‘conversations’ will take place on Saturdays 31^st May, 12^th July and 9^th August, at 10 am and should last for about 1½ to 2 hours, and will include coffee and lots of time to discuss. This is open to all the congregation, no matter how wise or knowledgeable or spiritual you are! Then we will need to decide if we want to do more involved work with each of these themes in the next three years.

There will be a Wimbledon Area Gathering to be held at Kingston URC on 2^nd July 2008 from 7 p.m. to 9:30 pm. This is open to anyone from the churches in the Wimbledon Area. There will be a buffet supper; Worship; Workshops on: Use of Premises with Peter Southcombe, Synod Regeneration Officer; Pastoral Care with David Skitt, Synod Pastor; Children’s and Youth Work with Nick White, Synod Youth & Children’s Worker. If you would like to come and pray for the work of the Synod or just chat you would be most welcome. There will also be an opportunity for getting young people together as well as meeting the Synod FURY Representative. If you are interested in going, please let Pat or Sheila know, so that we can arrange transport.

There will be a Manse Garden Party for both congregations on 9^th August, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.. (This is a Vision4Life morning as well.) Peter and I look forward to seeing you there!

Pat

The Secretary's Letter
Sheila Smith

I must apologise for missing my bit in the last Newsletter but we were in Italy . This was a Birthday treat for George and it certainly was a treat. We saw a wealth of skills and marvelled as to how such great buildings were erected so many years ago. I don’t think I could say which was my favourite place as each building had a magic of its own. One thing that did impress me was the reverence of the teenagers inside the various churches, especially St. Frances in Assisi. Whatever your views on the wealth spent on these buildings you cannot but marvel at the dedication of the artists when you see the size of most of the buildings.

Talking of buildings tonight we are to hear what progress Tom Roberts has made with our development project. After hearing what he has in mind we shall then have to think very carefully before we make any decision.

Thursday morning after the presentation and I must say that I feel very excited about the future plans, there is too much to write about here, but if you could not attend last evening there will be another meeting on Wednesday 28^th May at 11a.m. in the Longhurst room. Tom Roberts will repeat the presentation. Please make a special effort to be there as we must come to a decision very soon or we may miss a golden opportunity for our future development. If you require transport please contact one of the Elders.

At the last Church Life Committee Meeting dates were fixed until the end of the year if you would like a list please ask me I have some spare. I know we are all concerned about some of our members who are going through difficult health problems. Please be assured that we are thinking and praying for you.

Here I was thinking it was only me! Yet according to what I've read, a psychologist believes there are as many as three million of us who have hang-ups about telephone calls.

We ‘phonophobics’ hate such things! My aversion to them is rooted in the fact that I was well in my eighth or ninth year before making one. As a family, we didn't possess a telephone before – instead we had a phone box at the end of the road. So I grew up, associating it with the police, the ambulance, the fire brigade and suchlike heart-stopping services.

I'm talking, of course, of the time when telephones were a rarity, and the phone directory contained a page of handy hints like, ‘First lift the receiver from its cradle. . .’

When my parents first had a telephone, it was treated rather like an intruder. It was installed in a draughty entrance hall, with its clangorous bell ringing throughout the house. No question then of it being ‘good to talk’ as it is today! And trunk calls, in an age when even ringing the next town meant going through the operator, were ‘verboten’, unless it was a matter of life or death.

But time marches on... and so does technology. Nowadays you see people who literally can’t keep off the phone – bless their little cotton socks! On the train, in the car, out on the street, wherever, they babble on as if life would come to an end if they stopped talking.

For myself, I can live without this pinging, ringing, monstrosity. So if I sound like a demented crosspatch, I'll respond by saying that the telephone is the most intrusive device ever invented, and frequently an impertinent one at that.

I realise that the telephone must come as a boon to some, but so far as I'm concerned it's a ruddy nuisance! Give me, rather, some words with the Lord – it's undoubtedly much easier and more beneficial!

What a surprise it was to me when attending Kingston Hospital for the results of a routine blood test to be told I had Multiple Myloma which is cancer, but it is very rare for women to get; it is much more a male cancer. I was then admitted to the hospital and spent the next six weeks courtesy of the NHS.

I am grateful to Alan for giving me space to THANK everyone for the flowers, ’phone calls, visits, fruit and the cards, what a lot of cards – the hospital people had never seen anything like it; over seventy – they made a lovely display. When you are in hospital for so long it is just wonderful to know that you are being remembered.

I have now been at home for a week and life has not been good, but the doctors tell me this is due to the change in medication.

An operation on my back is planned, I’m just waiting to be called for that, then I should be up and running again.

Thank you all so very much.

We are pleased to include this Citation for Phemie from Rosalind Stew, of Age Concern:

“I am delighted to report that one of our volunteers, Phemie Young, was awarded the Active Citizen's Award last week by the Mayor, our former Chairman, Cllr Jean Steer.

This award is given to someone very special who puts service to others above everything else and Phemie richly deserves it. She is tireless in the ways she helps us, as a trustee, a driver, the co-ordinator of our Sunday Tea service and a helper at every fund-raising, social event. In addition to all this, Phemie befriends and helps many people through the United Reformed Church. We are really proud to have such a close association with Phemie. So many of you are unsung heroes and your contributions are very much appreciated by us all as well as the people you help.”

Phemie is seen here having received her certificate, reproduced below, and a gong. Well done, Phemie.

I have recently heard from Ben Costello, who came and met Gwyneth and me, and enjoyed playing our organ, and have pleasure in printing his email about this Memorial Recital:

Monday 28th July 2008 at 1.00pm
St Michael's, Cornhill, London EC3
Organist - Jonathan Rennert
Admission Free

This recital - the first John Kelsall Memorial Recital - will take place on the closest Monday to Kelsall's birthday (31st July - he would have been sixty-one this year).  The 50-minute programme will include at least one work by Kelsall, and by those composers who had great influence on him (programme yet to be confirmed but may include music by Howells, Mathias, Leighton and Messiaen). 

I suspect a number of us will retire to one of the many excellent hostelries in the vicinity following the performance.

Please forward this email onto as many people as you can who may be interested in attending.

Don't hesitate to email me if you need any further information.

Best regards, Ben Costello

Benjamin Costello MA PGDip BMus FRSA
2 Exeter Court, Maple Road, Surbiton, Surrey KT6 4AX
Telephone: 07889 659324
Electronic mail: bjlc@blueyonder.co.uk
Website: http://www.bencostello.com

1^st      Kathleen Hodgson

8^th      Sheila Carpenter

15^th    Sheila Stredwick

22^nd   Allan Healey

29^th    Sheila Carpenter

On 12th May, Gwyneth arranged another evening of play-readings. Although several members were unable to be present, it was a most enjoyable evening, with several members participating.

The AGM is scheduled for Monday, 2nd June at 8.00 p.m. in the Longhurst Room.

Tailpiece 
Alan Wood

I thought that I’d put my jottings at the end of the magazine for a change. Comments?

I would like to thank everybody for their prayers and good wishes during my unexpected illness. I find your support is very encouraging. Keep it up! And my thanks to the St Martin’s Pre-School Playgroup for my lovely giant Get Well card!

I would like to draw special attention to our guest organist for 22nd June, when we are privileged to have Allan Healey at the console. Allan was our organist for a number of years about thirty years ago.