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A community newspaper for everyone in Sowerby organised by St. Oswald's Church and Sowerby Methodist Church. No. 5 December 2009

Let’s go back in time to the1960s,Where mods and rockersroamed the streets,The rockers with their bats,And mods with their hats,They’ve both got theirdifferent music,But all these young onesdon’t see the difference.Mods have The WhoWith “Tommy” the “PinballWizard”.Rockers have Led Zeppelin,And Jimmy Page with hisskills.Mods have The Jam,Walking around just beingcool.Rockers have The RollingStones,With Mick Jagger with amouth like a mountain.

Mods have The Beatles,Shouting out “Help” and“Hey Jude”.Rockers have Jimi Hendrix,And a guitar with flames.Mods have John Lennon,Imagining peace andharmony.Rockers have Guns ‘N’Roses,Slash, Axel and the rest.But the best band ever,Is my mod band WildGorillas not wearing leather

Jake Varley with his prize and his year 6teacher Alison Coomber.

Poet in the making

A YEAR OLD ALREADY!This is Edition 5 of so the news-paper has already been running for over ayear. Our vision was to produce somethingnew, a quarterly newspaper for the communi-ty. As well as the editorial team, we have near-ly fifty volunteers organised into nineteenteams who deliver each edition out into Sow-erby. Thank you to everyone involved.

Looking ahead, we seek your help in threeways. We would welcome writers who couldfurnish with an occasional arti-cle. Secondly we would appreciate your ideason subjects – interesting people or places etc –which could be the basis for future articles.And thirdly, having already made donations toMandDET, The Neil Project and the new Sow-erby Luncheon Club, we can give financial sup-port to other suitable Sowerby initiatives andwould welcome your enquiries.

Whether you offer to write, have ideas forsubjects or feel you have a case for fundingplease contact the Editor ateditor@sowerbynow.org.uk or write to the Ed-itor c/o The Sowerby Parish Council Office at 3Sowerby Road. Above all, keep reading andenjoying and, if you feel in-clined, give us your views and suggestions forfuture improvements.

Sowerby Primary School continues itssuccess with one of its year 6 pupilstaking the top prize as best poet in theYoung Writers ‘poetry explorers – poemsfrom England’ competition. Each yearpupils submit poems to the nationalYoung Writers awards to showcase thenation’s best poets and most creativewriters.

Two years ago Sowerby won the prize forthe Yorkshire and Humberside region andlast year over 31 children from the schoolhad their poems selected for ananthology of Yuletide Rhymes. This yearJake Varley (year 6) was chosen as best

poet in ‘Poetry Explorers – Poems fromEngland.’ His poem ‘My Poem of Music’was nominated overall winner; hereceived an impressive Staedtler writingset and the chance to see his workpublished in the anthologies which areheld in the British Library’s nationalarchives.

Head Teacher Jean Yendall says "we areimmensely proud of Jake, he has doneincredibly well considering the thousandsof poems submitted from all around thecountry. His poem was very special andwe are so pleased that his talents havebeen recognised in this competition".

� Saturday 19th December - Steve Jeffries� Saturday 6th February - The Wigglers� Saturday 20th February - The Prowlers� Saturday 6th March - 70's & 80's Disco� Saturday 20th March - Martin Gough� Saturday 10th April - Steve Jeffries

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Harry Harris

Browse over 2 floors of books, cards, prints and stationery

Enjoy our welcoming espresso coffee bar serving delicioushomemade cakes

Meet our friendly and knowledgable staff able to recommendbooks for all ages

Try our free ordering service

Ask about our regular author events and free storytime sessions.

79-81 Market Place, Thirsk Tel 01845 524353

Neil Dalby lost his courageous fightwith leukaemia when he was nineyears old. The memory of his posi-tive ‘can do’, unbeatable attitudebecame the inspiration behind TheNeil Project.

Neil spent years in and out of StJames Hospital (Jimmys) in Leeds orbeing cared for at home. All of thisput immense pressure on Neil’sfamily. “An experience like this is life

changing, disruptive and utterlystressful” said his father Andrew.“Other children in the family canbegin to feel neglected, one parentmay have to give up work, incomeplummets and with a parent elect-ing to stay in hospital for long peri-ods the pressure of separation isintense. But we were among thelucky ones being a strong, unitedfamily with friends around us aswell. Others are far less fortunate.”

Against this background The NeilProject was born. It aims to helpfamilies with a child receiving treat-ment for cancer or leukaemia byproviding days out, for the family tobe happy and have fun all togetherfor a change.

The trust started in 2005 and organ-ises trips to places like Flamin-goland, Lightwater Valley and theBlackpool Illuminations. Families areidentified and contacted by the staffat Jimmys. The outing is for thewhole family and everything is paidfor by the Trust - transport, food,tickets. The Neil Project has alwaysbeen generously supported by Sow-erby Methodist Church, The Lions

and the West Yorkshire Police Band.The profits from a charity auction atOswald’s Restaurant in Novemberhave been promised to the fund.

Getting money is essential but notthe most difficult part of The NeilProject. The hard bit is managingand running the trips, and withplans to extend The Neil Project tochildren in Newcastle the need for‘help on the day’ is increasing. TheNeil Project asks for help in threeimportant ways. It needs a Treasur-er; so if you are organised and goodwith money please consider holdingup your hand. It needs one or twovolunteers to accompany outings –tour managers or couriers for a bet-ter description. And it can alwaysuse more money. If you can fundraise or just feel generous, thisproject is a really worthy cause.

Andrew Dalby will happily explainmore about The Neil Project andwould love to hear from you. So callhim on 01845 525693 or email himat:

neilproject@tesco.net

A Turner ElectricalDomestic Commercial Retail Agricultural

Tel: 01845 522364 Mobile: 07726 456 536agturner@aturnerelectrical.co.uk

Free quotations, no callout fee, re-wires to tiny fixes,no job too small!

Electric gates, architectural and decorative lighting, garden lighting,air conditioning, CCTV, free design advice.

Call NOW for a quotation.

Inst. LightingEngineers

A NOTE FROM THIRSK CARERSDear Editor,Recruiting volunteers is never easy,and there is no one way that attractsvolunteers better than others. Wespend a lot of money on publicisingour projects, and repeatedly get noresponse.I was delighted recently to find thatan article in your newsletter was notonly read by many people with whomwe have contact but a lady came to usas a direct result of reading SowerbyNow.So to you a big thanks and to all thoseout there contemplating putting in anarticle I say go on DO IT!Gill BurnThirsk Carers Support.

INSPIRED BY NEIL – YOU CAN HELP TOO

Sowerby Music is among the smallestmusic promoting societies in the coun-try in terms of its local population butamazingly it has developed the biggestprogramme for young people organisedby any music society in the entire coun-try. A programme called

Thirteen years ago the Society started totake professional musicians into all thelocal primary schools for concerts andworkshops in order to give these rural children experiences of musicwhich larger schools in towns and citiestend to take for granted.

This has developed to the extent thatnow 9 selected sets of musicians work

annually with 3,600 children in 37schools. Schools through the Vale ofYork ranging from Huby in the south toSwainby and Potto in the north andwhich include two special schools.

In addition Sowerby Music organisesworkshops for teaching staff, educa-tional visits to The Sage Gateshead and,most recently, has initiated a series offree children’s concerts on Saturday af-ternoons. These are in Sowerby underthe banner.Sowerby Music also has a policy of ad-mitting children without charge toits mainstream concerts in St Oswald’s

Award sponsors some of the most tal-ented local young musicians throughtheir specialist musical training.

Virtually all of this extensive activitywith children which costs around£15,000 a year is funded by SowerbyMusic’s own members through its Pa-tron Scheme.

To find out how to supporteither contact Kevin Gillespie on

01609 780063 or visit:

www.sowerbymusic.org.uk

Small society delivers big achievements

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Details from 07980 712966 (8 till 8 every day)excursions@johnsmithandsons.net

or pick up a programme fromJohn Smiths service buses around town or

Thirsk Tourist Information Centre (who also takebookings)

JOHN SMITH & SONS LTDThe Airfield, Dalton, Thirsk, YO7 3HE

The Thrill of ChristmasO come all ye faithful has got to be one of my favourite Christmas carols! That’s probably because it’s usually the lastcarol sung at the ‘Midnight’ Service on Christmas Eve, by which time it’s just after midnight, and we can sing thatglorious final verse, Yea Lord we greet thee, born this happy morning! It’s a spine-tingling moment as we celebrateonce more the birth of the baby who came to bring joy to the world.I love it too because of the very first line – O come all ye faithful. I’m never quite sure what you have to do to qualifyas ‘faithful!’ I guess in the olden days you had to come to church a lot, but that’s not how I interpret it now. For methe joy of that ‘Midnight’ service is that it seems like the whole village turns out. Of course that’s not how it is – wecouldn’t fit everyone in if they did! But as people come streaming through the doors, it’s a reminder that God and hischurch are here for the whole community.For several years now we have been holding joint Anglican/Methodist worship at St Oswald’s on Christmas Eve. Itseems so appropriate – on this most holy night – for us to worship together as Christians in Sowerby. For the firsttime this year there will also be a joint Family Service on Christmas Day – held at Sowerby Methodist Church at10am.Elizabeth and I hope that all will feel welcome to some or all of our services over this Christmas period. We wish youa very peaceful and joyful time.O come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.With our love and prayers,

Rev Nicky Carnall Rev Elizabeth ClarkParish Priest for St Oswald’s Minister of Sowerby Methodist Church

4pm Christingle Service

8am Holy Communion (traditional)9.30am All Age Carol Service with Children’s

Presentation6.30pm Service of Lessons and Carols

4pm Crib Service11pm ‘Midnight’ Communion with Carols

8am Holy Communion (traditional)

9.30am Holy Communion with Carols

10.30 am All Age Worship for Christmas6.30pm Carol Service

Joint service at St Oswalds

10am All Age Worship for Christmas Day (childrenbring a present to show us)

CHRISTIAN AID’S BIG CHRISTMAS SINGThis year Christian Aid’s carol singing in ThirskMarket Place will be part of its now nationwideBig Christmas Sing. It started last Christmas herein Yorkshire, and it was such a good idea it’s beingtaken up across the UK. The aim is to raise over£100,000 for people living in poverty round theworld.

It’s important we raise as much as we canbecause the national Christian Aid Week resultwas down by 12 per cent. Last year our carolsinging raised £102. On a very wet morning 35people came. The year before we had 45.

(Paul Rathbone, Thirsk Christian Aid Group, partof Churches Together in Thirsk and District)

Carol Singers in Thirsk Market Square2008

If you listen very carefully as you walk downFront Street, you may just hear the gentle whirrof a sewing machine or the sound of pinkingshears. If so, you are probably passing RosalindGreenwood’s house where she makes dresses,trousers and tops.

Rosalind has been sewing since a young child,gaining early experience on her mother’s handoperated sewing machine. She has always en-joyed making things and during her studentdays supplemented her income by making vel-vet jackets for a smart Oxford boutique.

A trained teacher and a qualified art therapist,Rosalind started her Bfrocked business in Sow-

erby using all the skills inherited and developedover the years, and now plans a sewing class foradults this spring at Rural Arts in Thirsk.

So, if you are looking for clothes with a personaltouch made right here in Sowerby, contact Ro-salind on 01845 522236 or email her on:

rosalind.asyoulikeit@tesco.net

BACK TO BASICS FORCHRISTMAS FUND-RAISER

You may be taking your kids to the cinema tosee the new cartoon version of

, or to see Tommy Steele inat Manchester or Bradford, but when

he set his sights on fund-raising for Thirsk Clock,David Tucker decided to do just what CharlesDickens did - give a shortened public reading ofthe original story from 1843.“I had the idea when I discovered a copy of theedited version Dickens used,” said David, wholives in Sowerby. “and found out about the workof Thirsk Clock. Dickens gave his readings toraise money for mechanics’ institutes and theHospital for Sick Children in Great OrmondStreet, so it seemed just right to do it for ThirskClock, a youth café and community centre at theheart of services for teenagers round here. Hun-

dreds of young people go there and last Christ-mas it even provided hot meals for those wholive on their own.” Staff at Thirsk Clock provided47 hot lunches on Christmas Eve 2008 and afurther twelve on Christmas Day itself, cookedat their premises in the Market Place. They puttogether 25 food hampers for young peoplewho live on their own, and helped some ofthem with the cost of gas and electricity overthe Christmas period. All told, they providedover one hundred hot meals. David will com-plete the image with period costume, includinga frock coat from the Theatre Royal York ward-robe department. “Local businesses are spon-soring some of our production costs, so almostall the ticket price can go straight to the Clock,”he added. As well as the public reading, David

will be reading a shorter version to primaryschools in the area. “Some schools have Victori-an Life projects this term, so I can show thechildren the 19th Century equivalent of tv en-tertainment.” The public reading will be on Fri-day December 11 at 7.30pm at St Oswald’sChurch, Sowerby. Tickets are £6 (children under16 free). Enquiries to david@tucker3.plus.com

Staff at ThirskClock

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Short articles and photographs about interesting people or upcoming events in Sowerby are welcome and can be submitted to editor@sowerbynow.org.uk If you are interested in advertising in Sowerby Now please contactadvertising@sowerbynow.org.uk Both the Editor and the Advertising Manager can also be contacted by writing to Sowerby Now! c/o Sowerby Parish Council, 3 Sowerby Road, Thirsk, YO7 1HR. The Editor, the Advertising Manager and the Pub-lishers of Sowerby Now! are not responsible for any errors or views contained in advertisements or in the copy.

Dec 1, 15, Jan 5, 19, Feb 2, 16 and March 2, 16, 30

Dec 5, Jan 9, Feb 6 and March 6

DECEMBER5th Sowerby Music – 7.30 St Oswald’s Church

Andrew Rees (tenor) & Darren Jeffery (baritone)£12 in advance from Thirsk bookshops, £13 at door(Peter 518001)

8th Sowerby Flatts Bowling Club is holding a Domino Drivein Thirsk & Sowerby Institute, 7.30, entry £1.50. Everyonewelcome.

9th The Famous Coffee Morning 10am – 12, SowerbyParochial Hall £2.50 for coffee & pastry also cake stall andtombola (Alzheimers Day Centre 526169 – Mon, Tue & Thurmornings)

11th What the Dickens – a reading of Christmas Carol in StOswald’s Church at 7.30pm. Admission £6.00. Unders 16sfree. Tickets from White Rose Bookshop, HambletonBooks and Thirsk Clock. Proceeds to support Thirsk Clock.

12th Christmas Craft Workshop for 5-11 year olds. Seeinformation elsewhere in this edition.

12th Christian Aid Big Christmas Sing at 11am in ThirskMarket Place

16th Sowerby Luncheon Club - no lunch but Carols in the Hall at2pm. Everyone invited

22nd Carols around the Christmas Tree 7pmJANUARY16th Calling All Kids! Chaconne Brass 3pm Sowerby

Parochial Hall. Children free, adults £3. Tickets at door(Graham 597058)

16th Sowerby Music – Chaconne Brass 7.30 St Oswald’sChurch £10 in advance from Thirsk bookshops, £11 atdoor (Peter 518001)

27th Sowerby Luncheon Club at noon in the Parochial Hall(Eleanor 577065)

FEBRUARY13th Calling All Kids! Hannah Marcinowicz (saxophone)

3pm Sowerby Parochial Hall. Children free, adults £3.Tickets at door (Graham 597058)

13th Sowerby Music – Hannah Marcinowicz (saxophone)& Daniel Swain (piano) 7.30 St Oswald’s Church £9 inadvance from Thirsk bookshops, £10 at door (Peter 518001)

24th Sowerby Luncheon Club at noon in the Parochial Hall(Eleanor 577065)

MARCH13th Sowerby Music – Compagnia d’Istrumenti, 7.30 St

Oswald’s Church, £12 in advance from Thirsk bookshops, £13 at door (Peter 518001)

24th Sowerby Luncheon Club at noon in the Parochial Hall(Eleanor 577065)

Mrs Iris de Wet 3 Sowerby RoadClerk Sowerby

ThirskNorth YorkshireYO7 1RE

Tel/Fax: 01845 574021Email: clerk@sowerbypc.entadsl.com

ChairmanCllr. Mark Robson Tel: 07711 525287

Office Opening HoursMonday 12.45hrs - 13.45hrsWednesday 17.00hrs - 18.00hrsThursday 12.45hrs - 13.45hrs

Council MeetingsSecond Thursday of the month,19.30hrs in theannexe of Thirsk and Sowerby Town Hall.

Members of the Public are invited to attend and aregiven ten minutes before the start of the meeting toraise any matters.

Who are your Parish Councillors?A list is displayed on the Council's Office door.

News From Sowerby Parish CouncilRevised Opening Times for Play Area. 9am until dusk every day.Web site. Apologies to those who tried to find our site. Theproblem was with HDC, the host; however,we are pleased to saythat we are now back on line. Google search for Sowerby ParishCouncil.

Carols around the Christmas Tree. December 22nd at 7pm. Comealong and join us and Father Christmas for the annual carolsinging around the tree on the Green. Soup courtesy of Oswald’sRestaurant afterwards.Flatts Changing Room. Sowerby Parish Council is pleased to havebeen able to help the refurbishment be completed, along withThirsk Town Council.Displaced Parking Issues. Please let us know if there are problemsin your neighbourhood as a result of the new parking restrictionsand drivers leaving their car in the vicinity of your propertycausing you difficulties.Street lights not working? Please phone Hambleton DistrictCouncil on 01609 779977 with the number of the lamp post andthe street name.Work to roads on the Greens. Repairs to the footpath outsideManor Farm and The Old House and to other parts of theroadways have been delayed through no fault of the ParishCouncil. The contractor is not able to work at the moment so thework will have to be re-scheduled.Christmas Greetings to all our Parishioners and very best wishesfor a happy and contented 2010.

St. Oswald’s Church & Sowerby Methodist are holding a Christ-mas craft workshop for children aged 5-11. It will be held inSowerby Parochial hall on Saturday 12th December 10.00-12.00noon. There are limited places so please book early. If youwould like your child to come please contact Pauline Aldersonon Thirsk 523795 or email Pauline.alderson@btinternet.combefore 7th December. The cost is £1.50 per child.

As with all charities, Holy Rood House relies on the goodnessof others to help with the day to day running of the house.We are grateful to our many volunteers who have worked sohard to make Holy Rood a welcoming space for local peopleand for folk from far and wide. “I meet so many differentkinds of people here', said Katy, and I discovered that one ofthe guests was from the village where I was born. It's a smallworld!”

There are many different areas of life at Holy Rood to whichyou could contribute. You may have gardening skills, or

would enjoy cutting the lawn in the summer or grooming thepony. You may be a masseur or an artist, a cook, an ITspecialist, a librarian.

You may have recently retired to Sowerby and want to useskills that you didn't have time for when working, or perhapscontinue using the skills you developed in your workinglife. You may be working part time and have a few free hoursa week to offer somewhere else. Perhaps you are looking fora community and a sense of belonging; whatever your situa-tion, there may be something you would like to contribute tothis special place in the heart of Sowerby. Whatever yourage, young or old, do contact us on 01845 522580 and ar-range to come and look around. Have a peep at our web-siteand get an idea of what we do and who we are:

We would be delighted to meet you.

Volunteering at Holy Rood House