Staplecross

SPRING CLEANING at ST. JAMES: Is your house always ‘Spick & Span’ ?, - Is dusting and polishing a passion of yours ? Or are you never happier as when you have a hoover in your hand ? - Or would you just like to show a little kindness, help some-one out and do a good deed ?. Well, if you can answer yes to any of these questions, then St. James the Great needs you ! Willing, working hands, - of any size, are urgently required for the annual Spring Clean of this beloved church of ours. Taking place on Saturday March 19th. from 9.30am, at the church, in Ewhurst Green, - help of any kind in carrying out this little task would be so very gratefully received. You don’t have to stay for hours, as even half an hour will make a great difference to the team, - as the old adage “Many Hands Make Light Work”, will be so very true in this case - the aim is to ‘refresh the parts that are not usually reached’, and the more hands to help do this, will make this little chore, all the more pleasant and easier for everyone. Coffee will be provided, - so please just turn up on the day. Come for a long time, or a little time, whatever time you can spare really will make a huge difference. To find out just what is involved, why not telephone Ruth on 01580~831918 for more details.

EASTER LILIES at ST. JAMES: Easter is a special time of the year for many people, for many reasons. An appeal has been made via Ana West for donations towards the Easter Lilies which will be placed under the altar of St. James the Great, at Ewhurst Green at Easter. By tradition, they are given in memory of a loved one. We will have a basket on the altar in the side chapel (St. Stephen’s) together with a small arrangement for anyone who would like to place a card with names of those they wish to be remembered. A £5:00 donation would be very welcome and so very gratefully received. Please give donations to either Jo Goodwin or Ana West, or pop it into our letterboxes, in an envelope with your name, at 3, Snaggs Hall, Ewhurst Green or Rother View, Ewhurst Green, respectively. Thank you.

STAPLECROSS MCP SCHOOL: Lots of lovely things are being organised for our super little folk at this wonderful village school of ours, especially in the ‘sports’ department. As we hurtle through this busy month of March, many sports fixtures have - and will be taking place, including many football and netball tournaments in & with Northiam, Robertsbridge, St. Leonards, and Vinehall schools. The ‘Kingfishers’ class had a fantastic time at the Chatham Dockyards on Thursday in a fun and historical trip, - more like ‘an adventure’ - exploring a range of ships and enjoying all the exhibits. The ‘Swallows & Robins’ classes, will be experiencing the delights of the Herstmonceux Science Centre with lots of exciting ‘hands on’ exhibits this week (14th) and Year 6 will be attending the ‘Safety in Action’ event when they attend the Bexhill Fire Station also this week (16th) whilst the Kestrels will be off to the Congress Theatre in Eastbourne, on 23rd.of this month to watch an exciting show about ‘the Vikings’, all part of the “Horrible Histories” series. What amazing ways to learn about any subject ?. Truthfully, school, therefore education, was never like this in my day ! - Don’t forget, parents, Friday March 18th, will be when the school have their ‘Sport Relief Event’, which is when everyone - (including the Staff ???) - for the cost of a £1:00 donation, come to school dressed as their favourite sports person - then during the afternoon, the school will be holding their own ‘Sports Marathon’ where every child in the school participates in two hours of sports activities. Each Year 6 pupil is organising one activity to lead for groups of children from other classes. Also each child will have a sponsor form, so they feel the effort they put into their ‘sporting marathon afternoon’ will be raising money for the benefit of others, through the Sport Relief charity. Another great and fun filled day when many lessons will be learnt, but not all of them academic !

STAPLECROSS BONFIRE BOYS: A fantastic invitation is extended to one and all to come along and join in the fun in what is now a firm favourite event on the local Bonfire Society calendar. “Come A’ Waissailing” with your local Bonfire Society on Saturday March 12th from 6.30pm when we begin the traditional Orchard Celebrations at Quarry Farm, Bodiam. - Entrance through the Business Park, near Bodiam railway station -SatNav TN32 5RA- -NOT Junction Road entrance, as used last year ! There will be a licensed bar, mulled cider, hot drinks, food-a-plenty, in the form of chilli, hot dogs, burgers and soup. There will also be lots of music to aid the celebrations and help make the evening go ‘with a bang’, - as drumming and banging will be a major part of the historical celebrations. To help this along, there’ll also be lots of singing from sea shanties and other folk music. This promises to be a fabulous night out for ALL the family, with free entry to everyone, - so make sure you all come along and join in with all the folky fun. Full details can be found at www.esbs.org.uk

ROTHER RAMBLERS: Another delightful stroll around our ‘neck of the woods’ is planned for Sunday March 13th when members of this friendly and outdoor walking group will meet up for an eight (8) mile circular stroll of Northiam to Beckley.The meeting point will be the central car park in Northiam OS EXP124. TQ829245. (SatNav TN18 4HZ) at 10.00am. As usual, a picnic lunch is suggested and as part of this walk, you will be checking out part of the Sussex Border Path. Lovely scenery along the way makes this an interesting meander. Your ‘walk leaders’ for this trip will be Rita & Lionel and you may contact them on 01424~752452 for further details. Walk no: 2 is of slightly less mileage being only 6 miles and is described as ‘Eastbourne Town & Downs’ which is beautiful at any time of the year. Arranged to take place on Wednesday March 16th, the meeting point for this trip will be the car park ( which is free - 4 hours) at the entrance to Gildredge Park- ( off The Goffs, A259) OS EXP123. TV604993. (SatNavBN22 1EY) at 10.15am. There will be a short refreshment stop only, and John will be your ‘walk leader’ for today, so please contact him on 01424~773998 for all further information

STAPLECROSS LUNCHEON CLUB: Back on track, following a brief hiccup, due to the ‘poorliness’ amongst the helpers & the diners alike, - this week we shall all be looking forward to another delicious meal as provided by ‘resident’ cook, Sally and her merry band of helpers. The diners will be making their way to the Village Hall, Northiam Road, Staplecross on Wednesday March 16th beginning at 12.30pm , where they will sit down to enjoy a delicious repast consisting of: Turkey and Ham Pie, with fresh vegetables followed by a really yummy cheesecake, finishing with tea or coffee. Having had to cancel last month’s meeting, due to illness, this goes to show how important this group is to a great number of people within our community and as a result a little reminder of the appeal made recently, on behalf of this little dining group is repeated here. I have often told you of the delicious 2 course meals that are provided every month at the Village Hall in Staplecross and where for a very small cost of £6:00 per person, a small group of happy and very friendly diners meet up to enjoy the simple, delectable and home cooked meal, eaten amongst congenial company, in comfortable surroundings. Well, sadly for any number of reasons, the numbers of those attending these lunches, are declining and the hard working organisers now find themselves in a bit of a quandary and are now looking into the economic and validity of continuing to provide these lunches. The Luncheon Club has a superb group of people ‘In Charge’ -so to speak - who do all the hard and messy work involved in this, including;- selecting the menu’s, preparing the food, who cook & serve, clear & clean up, who lay out the hall & tables and tidy it all away after we’ve gone home. These lovely people really enjoy doing it, - but there does come a time when the costs going out outweigh the diners coming in!. Hence this ONGOING APPEAL !. This super little dining group is looking for -’MORE BUMS ON SEATS’ - Yes, WE NEED YOU !. Additional members are urgently needed and would be so very welcome. The meals, as I’ve said many times before, are always delicious, freshly cooked with the provisions often locally sourced, and of great variety. Rules are few and far between and you don’t even have to live within the parish boundary as several of our diners travel from outside, (-which just shows you how great the meals are! ) Please come along and join this lovely club group and help prevent another local social club from being lost to the community. We meet every 3rd Wednesday of each month at 12.30pm in Staplecross Village Hall. Our next date for the meeting of the Luncheon Club will be Wednesday March 16th so please contact Sally on 01580~830000 or Dennis on 01580~830816 for all further information. We really do look forward to welcoming you to our table.

THE CROSS INN: Another entertaining evening is promised for Saturday March 19th at this popular and friendly village pub right in the heart of Staplecross. In the form of a ‘Pub Quiz’ -beginning at 7.30pm.- mine host, Robin Matthews- will take on the dubious role of Quizmaster for this event which should provide for a fun filled evening. Tickets are £6:50 per person for tables of up to 6 people, - this does include a supper of Cottage Pie with a vegetarian alternative. Beginning at 7.30pm you can book your table by contacting The Cross Inn on 01580~830217 for all further information.

STAPLECROSS VILLAGE HALL: Our next event will be the first of our Annual Mammoth Jumble Sales and will be held at the Village Hall on Saturday March 19th at 2.00pm. ‘Jumble’ donations will always be most gratefully accepted, as will anyone willing to be a helper - the more the merrier, as these events often find us greatly outnumbered by the ‘Jumble Bargain Hunters’ - so all helpers will be received with open arms,smiling thanks and cups of tea !. There will also be a cake stall, a raffle table, and of course, teas & coffees, with soft drinks for children will be served throughout the afternoon. Donations of jumble may be left at the village hall from 930am onwards, but if you find that you cannot bring it to the hall, then please contact Hilary on 01580~83070 or Pauline on 01580~830570 who will do all they can to arrange for the collection of it. This is another of the V.H. Committee ‘Fund-Raising’ events, so please do all you can to come along and support us. For more information regarding this, please contact Hilary, once again, via her contact point. Come along and bag yourself a bargain.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARIES: These dates may seem quite a way away, but time marches on even quicker now, and these events are just around the corner, so please make a note of them in your diary and on your calendar. ---Date No: 1 is for Advance Notice for our local Garden Society ‘Spring Flower Show’ This is booked to take place on Thursday April 7th and is a fabulous part of the Ewhurst, Staplecross & Bodiam’s Garden Society’s April meeting. Together with a very interesting speaker in the person of Joanna Pope, from the ‘Perfect Tree Company’, who will give us an “Enthusiast’s Guide to Olive Oil”, - the sight and scent of all the stunning and beautiful spring flowers adorning the tables and filling the hall with their heady and uplifting perfume, will make you really believe that winter has truly gone and brighter days are just around the corner !. Another superb enticement to take part in this little spring show, is that there are NO fees to pay and NO forms to fill in. There won’t be prize money, but points gained at this show WILL count towards the Hughes Silver Challenge Cup; the Hurley Challenge Cup; the Norma Stringer Memorial Cup and the Parva Cup. There is a lovely selection of simple but various classes to consider taking part in. Exhibits should be staged from 7.00pm to 7.30pm so for more details of what to do, how to do it and what to expect, please contact either of the garden society’s ‘Show Secretaries’ - Pam Underhill on 01580~881839 or Maggie Whitaker on 01580~830041. They will give you all the help, support and encouragement you’ll ever need.

Date No: 2. Is the advance notice of another Fund-Raising event promoted by the Village Hall Committee. This promises to be a light-hearted and fun filled evening entertainment in the form of a ‘Quiz Night’, which together with a great raffle, a delicious hot supper (including a vegetarian option) all enjoyed amongst congenial company is set to be a popular event in the busy calendar for the dedicated supporters of the village hall. This event is booked for Saturday April 9th. 7.00pm for commencing at 7.30pm. Mr. Peter Hook will be the ‘Quizmaster’ and you are encouraged to bring along your own choice of drinks. Why not get up a team of 4 and come along and have a really great night out !. Please look out for the posters & flyers and contact Hilary on 01580830704 or Pauline on 01580~830570 or even me on 01580~831881 for all further information. Any event that benefits our Village Hall, ultimately benefits us all, so please do what you can to support it, --- Date No: 3. Is the advance notice for the Ewhurst Parish Council’s ‘Annual Parish Assembly’. This will take place once again in the Village Hall, Northiam road, Staplecross on Tuesday April 12th. from 6.45pm -to allow for ‘mingling’.This is when all of the residents from all three parish’s are cordially invited to come along and ‘meet your Councillors’ - on ALL three levels - and hear the summary of the Council’s forecast incomings and outgoings for the past year. As in previous years, there will be guest speakers from other organisations, talking on matters, which we feel may be of interest to our residents. There will be opportunities for you to raise any concerns you may have which are relevant to the parish and to make suggestions. A delicious buffet style refreshment table, kindly provided by our own local W.I. ladies, for your convenience, will be available together with tea/coffee and soft drinks. This meeting also gives you the chance to visit the many charming table displays, ably promoting many of our local groups interests and activities which abound throughout our parish. The Annual Report, on behalf of Ewhurst Parish Council, will be dropping through your letterboxes in the very near future, so please make sure this date is also added to your diary and calendar and make sure you keep that date free. It’s always a friendly, interesting and worthwhile evening, so do please come along and join us.

CHURCH SERVICES: Church services for the parish of Ewhurst will commence at St. James the Great, Ewhurst Green on Sunday March 13th. Lent 5. at 9.30am This service will also include Holy Communion.(BCP) Canon Richard Orchard, who is a retired clergy in the Rye Deanery, will once more conduct this service. There will be NO SERVICE at St. Giles church, Bodiam today, but a Morning Prayer service at St. Mark’s church, Northiam Road, Staplecross will take place directly after at 11.15am. Canon Richard Orchard will also officiate at this service. We are all very grateful to all of our parish friends, for stepping in to help out at this difficult time and we hope you all know how much we truly do appreciate your services. All enquiries regarding Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals should, for the time being, be made, in the first instance, to the appropriate Churchwardens who are: Bodiam Parish ~ Graham Peters: Telephone no: 01580~830203 -email [email protected] and Ewhurst Parish ~ Jo Goodwin: Telephone no: 01580~830601- email [email protected] They would both be pleased to help in any way they can, so just get in touch. On a sad, but necessary note, Gordon and Judy would like to say that they appreciate all the prayers and messages of love and support which they have received, and we ask they continue to be remembered in your prayers as our much loved Reverend, Gordon with a smile on his face and faith in his heart, also continues with his ongoing treatment.

PLEASE CONTACT ME: If you are arranging an event in the near future, --- however large or small and you’d like some extra coverage for it, then please get in touch. If it’s of interest to you, - it’s of interest to us. It’s never too early to send in your details and to tell us what you are planning, so please do contact me, as I’d love to hear from you and to help ‘spread the word’ on your behalf.........Thank You

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