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THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND IN PLYMSTOCK & HOOE

January 2015 50p

Photo: Mount Batten Tower. John Emery

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Pa r i s h o f P l y m s t o c k & H o o e , P l y m o u t h S u n d a y S e r v i c e s St Mary & All Saints, Plymstock 8.00am Eucharist ~ See rota on Page 2 of Magazine 10.45am Eucharist St John the Evangelist, Hooe 8.00am Eucharist ~ See rota on Page 2 10.45am Eucharist (Morning Praise ~ 1st Sunday) Church of the Good Shepherd, Oreston 9.15am Sung Eucharist (Family Eucharist ~ 1st Sunday) Church of the Holy Family, Staddiscombe 9.15am Informal Iona Eucharist W e e k d a y W o r s h i p 10.00am Tuesday Eucharist St Mary & All Saints, Plymstock 10.30am Wednesday Eucharist Good Shepherd, Oreston 11.00am Thursday Eucharist St John’s, Hooe 8.00am Friday Eucharist St Mary & All Saints, Plymstock Enquiries for Baptisms & Weddings ~ Please contact the Clergy (Contact details inside back cover of Magazine) Holy Communion, Anointing of the Sick and Confession ~ Please contact the Clergy. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Note: The deadline date for items for February 2015 Magazine is Jan 15th 2015 Our thanks to the Advertisers who sponsor this Magazine. Advertisements and service quotes do not imply recommendations on the part of the Church. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Editor. Printed & published by St John’s DCC, Hooe, Plymouth UK. © Plymstock & Hooe PCC 2015.

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FROM READER TONY BANBURY

Dear Friends,

Another calendar year begins bringing with it the hopes and dreams of humanity. For some it

begins with parties and great celebrations – large sums of money being spent on fireworks,

food, drink and festivities. For some it is welcomed with quiet reflection, gathering up the old

year and preparing for what is to come. However, for the majority of humanity it is greeted

from the perspective of grinding poverty, disease, famine, drought, pestilence and conflict.

What has happened to the dreams of hopes of a year ago when our brave new century

became a teenager?

If we follow the news in the media, much seems to have gone wrong. There are still conflicts

around the world. Fanatics of many persuasions still seek to impose their ‘vision’ of a brave

new world by inflicting violence on helpless peoples whose only wish is to live in peace and

get on with their lives.

Many are still in grip of grinding poverty, have no access to clean water, enough food,

education, shelter or health care. There is huge inequality in our world!

And yet amongst this bad news there is hope and good news. We just don’t hear of it too

often!

All over the world charities, and other agencies, many of them Christian, are working with

governments and peoples to bring these things to those in need. Those in some of the

poorest communities are feeling hope in the future through projects to allow them to become

self-sustaining; to have access to markets for their products, to ensure that they are paid a

fair price for their goods and services, and that they are free from exploitation and fear.

Jesus’ time on earth was largely spent amongst such people. His closest associates were

mostly ordinary, poor people; although, of course, he made it very clear that his message is

for all those from whatever ‘station’ in life who come to him.

In St Matthew’s Gospel, chapter 25, verses 34-40, Jesus talks about how we should treat

each other, especially the disadvantaged, in order to claim to live in his way and make our

world a better, more equitable place.

In 2015 let’s look beyond the bad news and see how we can all share the bounty of God’s

creation to create more and more hope, equity and good news for all people.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Yours in Christ,Tony Banbury

Licensed Lay Minister (Reader).

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PARISH OF PLYMSTOCK AND HOOE

8am Parish Service of Holy Communion

From December the pattern of services will be as follows :-

St. John’s - 8am Communion 1st & 3rd Sundays

St Mary’s – 8am Communion 2nd & 4th Sundays

Sunday 11th January – Joint Service

10.00am at Holy Family, Staddiscombe

FROM THE PARISH REGISTER

We welcomed into God’s family through Baptism at St. Mary’s in November:

16th November ELLA-ROSE ROBERTS, the daughter of Mark and Emma

Roberts.

23rd November MORRIS ANTHONY WILLIAM LEE, the son of Lewis and

Hayley Lee.

30th November HARRY LEWIS MIDDLETON and MAX OWEN MIDDLETON

the sons of John and Natasha Middleton.

______________

FROM ST JOHN’S PARISH REGISTERS

BAPTISM: We welcomed into God’s family by Baptism:-

November 16th JACOB HARLEY BIDDLECOMBE, son of Joseph and Kelly

Biddlecombe.

December 21st GRACE EMILY DUCKETT, daughter of Samantha Acton and

Martin Duckett

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ADVENT SERVICE

This Service of readings, hymns and prayers, proved to be a lovely way of starting the

preparations for Christmas. St John's was partly lit and the candles and music added

to the reflective and prayerful atmosphere. This was a joint Service by the members of

the four churches and led by Graham Dee one of the Readers

The completion of the Christmas celebrations will be another Service of 9 Lessons and

Carols on Sunday, 4th January 2015 at 4pm, again at St John's. At this Service the

mood will be much more joyful as we celebrate together the Saviour's birth and reflect

that even at a few weeks old the Holy family were forced to leave at night to flee to

another country. Refugees are not a new problem of our century.

The Service will again be led by Graham Dee with David Stevens, St John's Organist,

leading the music.

Afterwards the congregation move across to the Hall for a Bring & Share tea and more

celebrations. We look forward to seeing you.

A JOINT EPIPHANY SERVICE of

NINE LESSONS & CAROLS will be held at ST JOHN’S CHURCH

SUNDAY, 4th JANUARY 2015 AT 4.00pm ALL WELCOME

A Bring & Share Tea after the Service in the Church Hall

THE CHILDREN’S SOCIETY HOUSE BOXES from St John the Evangelist Church, Hooe Thank you to all who gave so generously to the Children’s Society this year. The final amount sent was £548.10. Thank you again -Angela Woodward ST JOHN'S BOXES These were started in 1955 to commemorate the Church's centenary. This coming year it will be their Diamond anniversary. At present there are 15 boxes in the homes of the people of Hooe and these people

have given an amazing £318.14. Thank you. If you are interested in putting your small

change into a box for St John's, please ring Mary Skilton on Tel: 407447 to arrange

delivery.

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HOOE'S PLACE CAFÉ

(Photo: David

Demellwick)

This has now been

open since 7th

February 2008,

meeting every

Thursday except

during Christmas

period. Each week

over 40 people

gather to eat the

lunch of their

choice and enjoy each other’s company.

On Thursday, 11th December, the patrons enjoyed a three course Christmas meal with

the usual trimmings in a true party atmosphere.

The members of St John's wish to thank the Hooe's Place gang, led by Tony Kelway,

who start work at 8.00am each Thursday to ensure that the meals are ready by

11.45am, and create a most welcoming atmosphere.

Their efforts have enabled the Church council to undertake many repairs to St

John's and to purchase new Mission Praise hymn books which were entirely

donated by Hooe's Place patronage.

The Café will reopen on Thursday, 8th January 2015. Look forward to seeing you.

NEW ENTRANCE TO ST JOHN'S

The paving slabs leading to the South Door were unlevel and showing their age. In

addition the drainage from the main roof was constantly being choaked by leaves,

plastic bags and cigarette ends. A new drain has been installed to replace the one

which was over 100 years old and connected to the down pipes from the lych gate

roof. A wider path should make a much easier access to the church.

Although much toward the cost has been donated by people who have

attended Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals, the rest has been covered by Hooe's

Place Café.

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‘CHRISTMAS CRACKERS’ AT GOOD SHEPHERD

On Sunday, 7th December, we held our all age

event ‘Christmas Crackers’ in the Church Hall.

There was the Christmas story told on the

screen digitally by emails, which was very well

done. A modern take on an event which took

place 2000+ years ago. We sang Christmas

songs.

The children and the adults both enjoyed

making tree decorations using polystyrene

shapes and then pinning foil pieces onto it.

They were very effective. They also made mosaic coasters and gift bags. Several

adults found the word searches challenging.

The afternoon finished with some lovely refreshments. Thanks to Steve for the digital

presentation; Sue for sorting out all the crafts and all the other helpers for making the

afternoon a success. Thank you. -Lin Miller

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LADIES FELLOWSHIP CHRISTMAS LUNCH

On Tuesday, 2nd December, the Ladies Fellowship at Oreston went to Kitley House for

their Christmas lunch. We were joined by Jennie Appleby. The food was superb and

very tasty.

Whilst eating we were entertained by a pianist in the foyer playing well known

Christmas songs and carols. We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Many thank to Cynthia Warren for organising the event.

-Lin Miller

ORESTON VILLAGE GREEN APPLICATION

In 2012 I submitted, with the support of the community of Oreston, an application to

register Oreston Quay as a Village Green. Unfortunately this application has not been

successful. Plymouth City Council as the landowner contends that permission has

already been given for the land to be used for lawful sports or pastimes and this is

reinforced by a decision of the High Court, upheld by the Supreme Court, regarding an

application for local authority land in North Yorkshire to be registered as a Village

Green. May I thank all those who supported the application by filling out evidence

forms, supplying information, loaning photographs and otherwise helping. It now

seems that the land at The Quay will be Oreston’s Village Green in name only.

-Kevin Warley

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Never mind a White Christmas, how about a Messy one?

Pictured is one of the

families enjoying

themselves at The

Staddy as they met the

Christmas angels.

Angel wings were

made, biscuits

decorated and songs

were sung (complete

with messy musical

instruments) before tea

was served to the

crowd of 30 parents,

children and

volunteers.

Messy Church meets again at The Staddy

at 4pm on Sunday, 1st February,

when we’ll follow the theme of Noah’s Ark;

and then we’ll prepare for Easter

at 4pm on Sunday, 22nd March.

Come and join in Messy Church!

More details from Bob Davidson on 481020. -Bob Davidson

TABLE TOP SALE SATURDAY, 31st JANUARY 2015

10.00am to 12 noon ST MARY & ALL SAINTS PARISH HALL

Tea or Coffee ~ Raffle In aid of the Church Roof fund.

THE NOVEMBER MARKET raised the sum of £540. Many thanks to all those who supported this event.

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THE PARISH NEWS FOR 2015 With the support of our local businesses we are able to publish our Parish Magazine each month and we are able to keep the price of the 2015 Magazine at 50p per copy. Please support the Advertisers who support our publication. For readers at St John’s, Hooe, who have their Magazine delivered each month the distributors will collect money for the year with the February issue. Our thanks to the distributors who undertake this task each month. Thanks also to the Magazine Co-ordinators from our Team churches who collect together copy by the deadline date. We welcome photos which could be suitable for our covers as well as any articles. They may not be used immediately but will be kept on file. Any contributions can be sent to the Editor: email: mpskilton@sky.com or to Graham Bulley, email: grahambulley@aol.com Thank you for all your support in the past year and we wish all our readers

A VERY HAPPY AND HEALTHY 2015. -Mary Skilton, Editor (Tel: 407447)

PLYM VALLEY HERITAGE The meeting on Thursday, 15th January 2015, in St John’s Hall will be the :

‘A Visit to the Eddystone Lighthouse in 1892’ with Nigel Overton, Plymouth Museum.

PLYMSTOCK GARDENING SOCIETY The meeting on Monday, 2015, 7.30pm, at Plymstock United Church Hall, Plymstock Road, Oreston, will be:-

(Non-members welcome ~ £1 per meeting)

Contact No: 01752 403652.

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We are the Little Saints of Plymstock!

And here we are in front of the beautiful Christmas tree inside St Mary’s church. After

hearing Teddy Horsley tell us the Christmas story (with a bit of help from Rev Jennie),

we sang Little Donkey and Away in a Manger, and said a prayer.

Then we went into the Parish

Hall for our party with Mary

and Margaret, and our

mums. After our party tea,

we had a special visitor when

Father Christmas came to ive

us each a present! We had a

great time, and look forward

to Monday 12th January at

1.45pm when we meet

together again. Call Rev

Jennie Appleby on 941844 if

you want to come along and

be a Little Saint!

-Jenny Appleby

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CHILDREN’S PAGE

Happy New Year everyone! Did you know that New

Year festivals have been celebrated for more than

5,000 years? Some of the festivals are religious and

some of them are not. Some are celebrated on

January 1st . Some take place at other times of the

year. Will the church bells in your area be rung to

mark the coming in of 2015? Maybe, you will look

back at what you did or didn’t do in 2014 and think of

something you could improve on in 2015 and make that your New Year’s resolution.

Perhaps you could try to do the things Mum asks you to after the first time she asks

you! Your church may celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany early in the New Year. It’s

the time when we remember the visit of the three wise men to the infant Jesus. You

can find the account in the New Testament in the gospel of St. Matthew, chapter 2.

How long will it take you to find words from the story in this WORDSEARCH?

Remember to look diagonally as well as up and down!

WISE

WORSHIP

BETHLEHEM

GOLD

MEN

DREAM

STAR

FRANKINCENSE

MYRRH

HEROD

EAST

HOUSE

H R F W B Q W I G L D Y K B

O K F R S V I U U I X Q W E

U S A J A V S M C D I H O T

S W D O W N E D E M K E R H

E E T R J S K E R N O R S L

P T A C I Z M I S E R O H E

G O O S Y T B Y N E A D I H

C O R F T Y U Q R C S M P E

Q J L B Y P W T K R E T X M

Z V X D M W B J Y E H N A Y

T C C L Y P L B M L Y L S R

J H J O W T K L K S S Z K E

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AS IT WAS

Taken in 1897, our below picture show a local train crossing Hooe Lake to arrive at

Turnchapel Station (to the right). A passer-by adds to the picture with Billy Harts

Quay in the background and Hooe village.

Some things change with time but the piers of the old railway bridge remain. Hooe

village has expanded up the hill in the background and a huge new housing estate

is being built to the right. If the railway was still there you could travel into

Plymouth in about ten minutes!!!

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THE LAST ITEMS OF TRUE PORCELAIN TO BE MADE IN PLYMOUTH

Within the collections at Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery sits the largest collection of Plymouth porcelain with over 600 items. Amongst these are two sauceboats and a teapot which might seem fairly normal at first glance. But turn them upside down and the inscriptions on the undersides reveal that they hold a very special status. They are, in fact, some of the very final items to be produced at the 18th century Plymouth porcelain factory. Why was this particular factory so special? It was actually the first place in the UK to produce true porcelain. The Quaker and chemist, William Cookworthy, who had a shop on Notte Street, not only discovered China Clay deposits in Cornwall but also realised they could be used to make porcelain. Having discovered China Clay in the 1740s, Cookworthy spent the next 20 or so years trying to make it into porcelain. This was easier said than done though. The aim was to produce porcelain like the Chinese – sometimes referred to as 'hard paste' porcelain. Only the Chinese knew the recipe and methods for making this however, and they weren't sharing their secret! In Germany, at Meissen in 1708, a factory became the first in Europe to produce true porcelain, but they weren't giving anything away either. Cookworthy had to use his own knowledge as a chemist and a lot of trial and error to work out how to mix the China Clay in the right quantities. He then had to experiment with firing the porcelain as well as decorating it. This took a long time but finally, in 1768, he was able to patent porcelain production in Plymouth. He leased a warehouse in Coxside – now the site of the China House pub – where he based his factory which had two tall kilns. The production of porcelain was such a great achievement that Cookworthy wanted to mark this momentous occasion. The British Museum actually has one of the products from the very first firing in its collections – a tiny blue and white coffee can. This remarkable piece is dated with 1768 and bears the Plymouth Coat of Arms.

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The two sauceboats and teapot in our collection shows the other end of the spectrum and the final firing at Plymouth. This happened in 1770 after the factory had been running for only two years. Usually, factories used very small marks to identify pieces. Cookworthy's Plymouth factory used a mark that looks like a 2 and a 4 together – the alchemist's sign for tin. Dated ceramics with a full inscription like these are very rare and quite remarkable. To have three dated pieces in our collection marking the factory's last firing is very significant. You can see these pieces in the Museum and Art Gallery's Atrium and Plymouth: Port and Place galleries. plymouth.gov.org/loveourpast -Alison Cooper, Curator of Decorative Art PLANNING PERMISSION GRANTED Planning permission has been granted to Mr and Mrs Truscott for the demolition of garage, shop, and lean-to and construction of detached retail unit together with repair and restoration of Hooe Barn to form retail unit and café with assorted car parking and landscaping. For further information see: www.plymouth.gov.uk application number 14/01850/FUL or www.plymvalleyheritage.org

A CELTIC BLESSING

May you have –

Walls for the wind

And a roof for the rain,

And drinks beside the fire.

Laughter to cheer you

And those you love near you,

And all that your heart may desire.

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Cherishing Churchyards

A-Z of Churchyard Conservation

Reprinted with permission from Caring for God's Acre, the conservation charity for

churchyards and burial grounds, 01588 673041, http://www.caringforgodsacre.org.uk/

"L" is for Lettering

In days gone by all gravestones

were made from local stone and

carved by hand. Letter carvers

had different abilities and styles.

The stones varied in colour and

lent themselves to different styles

of lettering. Families were free to

choose what wording they

wanted, without strict guidelines.

Gravestones therefore, were a

unique combination of the carver,

the stone, and the families taste,

choice of words and budget.

This uniqueness is reflected in the beginning of Great Expectations, where Pip recalls

that his first notion of what his deceased parents were like “were unreasonably derived

from their tombstones. The shape of the letters on my father’s, gave me an odd idea

that he was a square, stout, dark man, with curly black hair”.

The art of letter-cutting was reinvigorated by craftsmen like Eric Gill (1882-1940), and

Britain has led in the techniques during the past century. We are lucky to have talented

letter carvers working in the tradition today, creating memorials of beauty to uniquely

honour the memory of loved ones.

The Lettering and Commemorative Arts Trust (LCAT) works with over 75 fine

lettercarvers, encouraging Britain's long tradition of lettercarving to flourish. It is the

single most important provider of training in letter-design and letter-carving in the UK.

For more information contact 01728 688393, www.letterartstrust.org.uk

For information on managing churchyard grassland contact::

Caring for God’s Acre, the conservation charity for churchyards and burial grounds,

01588 673041, http://www.caringforgodsacre.org.uk/

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LOCAL NEWS Severe Cold Weather Advice

To prevent freezing of internal pipes it is

recommended that you turn off your water

supply to prevent pipes from bursting.

Locate the stop-cock inside your home

(usually under the kitchen sink). Also, know

the location of the stop-cock outside of your

home, if you cannot find it, contact South

West Water.

Keep torches (and any batteries) to hand in

case lighting fails or you need to switch off

power.

Keep important emergency numbers near

your home – for example a 24-hour

plumber and an emergency salvage and

clean-up company (usually listed under

'carpet and upholstery cleaners' in

directories).

Check your buildings and contents

insurance details. Most will be pleased for

you to arrange damage limitation with

plumbers and cleaners yourself. Note any

emergency contact telephone numbers.

If your house has any exposed pipes, lag

them with thick material or old blankets. If

lofts are very cold, leave trap doors open.

If you are away from your house overnight

or for any long period, leave the heating

system on a low setting to prevent pipes

freezing. If practical, switch off water and

drain pipes.

Ensure everyone living in your home knows

where the water stop cock and electricity

mains switch, are located.

If you have a battery radio, check it and

ensure you have spare batteries.

Receive alerts and newsletters of severe

weather by signing up on the Plymouth City

Council website

Help Available

Gary Streeter MP for South West Devon

holds regular advice surgeries throughout

the constituency. Surgeries in January:

Friday 9 January 2015, Plympton-----------

----------------+++++++++++++--

Friday 16 January 2015, Plymstock

Friday 23 January 2015, Ivybridge

Call 01752 335666 to book an

appointment.

Plymstock Ward Surgeries

Plymstock Dunstone and Radford ward

councillors hold advice surgeries in

Plymstock Library on the 2nd Wednesday of

each month between 12 Noon and 1.00pm.

It is not necessary to book an appointment.

NEW Weekly Police Surgeries

Plymstock Neighbourhood Police Team is

now available every Wednesday from

10.30 to 11.30 in Plymstock Library.

Please feel free to come along and have a

chat or discuss any concerns you may

have in your neighbourhood with your local

police team.

Have Your Say Meetings

Neighbourhood meetings in January are an

opportunity to discuss and influence what

matters most in your local area.

The Turnchapel, Hooe, Oreston and

Mount Batten meeting will be held in Hooe

Baptist Church on Tuesday 6th January at

7.00pm.

The Plymstock and Radford meeting will

take place in Plymstock Library on

Wednesday 14th January at 7.00pm.

Library Films in January

Films to be shown in the Plymstock Library

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in January 2015

The film, One Chance, on Monday 19

January at 2.00pm carries a Certificate 12

and runs for 103 minutes.

Classic Films to be shown this Month.

Captain Corelli’s Mandolin

Tuesday 13 January at 2.00pm. The

Certificate 15 film runs for 124 minutes.

O Brother Where Art Thou?

Tuesday 27th January at 2.00pm. The

Certificate 12 film runs for 101 minutes

Christmas Trees Pickup

Plymouth City Council is putting on a

special collection to pick up all the trees

after the festive period is over.

For the first time ever, the Council will be

picking up real trees after Christmas as

part of a pilot scheme. The round will take

place from the week beginning Monday 5

January and will run until Thursday 8

January.

All people have to do is to put the trees out

next to their bins or bags and a crew will

pick it up on the day their rubbish and

recycling is collected that week.

Plymotion Newsletter

The newsletter is available on the website

www.plymouth.gov.uk/plymotion

It contains lots of information about getting

around Plymouth by bus, bike and on foot.

Travel advisors will hold Drop in sessions

in Plymstock Library on Wednesdays 14

January between 10am and 12 noon, 21

January from 1.30 to 3pm and 28 January

between 10am and 12 noon.

Why not come along and chat if you

missed the home visits by advisors last

summer?

New Rubbish Collection Dates

Plymouth City Council last month delivered

thousands of Christmas cards to city

homes to let people know what days their

bins will be collected as part of a major

reorganisation of the city’s rubbish and

recycling rounds.

New recycling and rubbish collection days

start on the 19th January

Recycling

Forthcoming legislation requires the

Council to consider the separate collection

of glass, paper, metal and plastics items for

recycling. If these items were collected

separately residents would need additional

bins or containers so that they can

separate the items.

Garden Waste

The Council provides a free seasonal

garden waste collection service which

operates from April to the end of October.

The Council is not legally obliged to collect

garden waste and not all residents use the

service which is costly to provide.

Challenging budgetary pressures could

mean that in the future that a charge will be

made for residents to use the service. The

cost of the service would be £30 to £35 per

year. This would include the provision of a

standard size (240 litre) wheeled bin which

would be collected fortnightly all year.

New Hooe Lake Quarry Plans

Barratt David Wilson Homes have applied

for planning permission (14/02107/FUL) to

amend the planning permission granted in

13/00061/FUL to provide 6 additional

dwellings with minor changes to the layout

and house types within the northern section

of the Hooe Lake Quarry site.

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