April 2007

Sunday 1 April 11.15am Family Service, at St Julian’s Chapel, Shoscombe School.
Palm Sunday
We return to the Parish Church – St James the Less, Foxcote for Easter and all
services will be there unless otherwise stated.

Sunday 8 April 11.15 am Holy Communion Reader: J Swift
Easter Sunday Acts 10 v 34-43

Sunday 15 April 6.00 pm Service for Ten Lamps Group at St Peter’s, Camerton
Easter 2

Sunday 22April 9.30 am Holy Communion Reader: T Matthews
Easter 3 Acts 9 v 1-6

Sunday 29 April 10.00 am Holy Communion for the Benefice at
St Peter’s, Camerton
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WHAT’S ON

Saturday, 28 April Coffee Morning, Orchard View
Saturday, 5 May Village Market
Saturday, 5 May Village Hall Party
Tuesday, 8 May Village Hall AGM – 7.30 pm everyone welcome
Saturday, 19 May FOSSA Barn Dance, Foxcote
Thursday, 24 May Parish Council AGM- 7.30pm in the Village Hall
Sunday, 11 June Cream Teas
Sunday, 23 September Harvest Festival, Foxcote
Saturday, 29 September Harvest Supper

BARN DANCE
SATURDAY 19TH MAY at FOXCOTE

FOSSA invites you to kick up your heels at the Foxcote Barn Dance. A chance to gather your friends round the hog roast, socialize at the bar and, when feeling brave enough, set to on the dance floor to the sound of The Rumpus Band and their expert caller.

Tickets cost £10 (includes food) and are available from Richard Holmes,
so please gather some friends and call 01373 834163 to get your ticket.

The Rector writes

Easter Day marks our traditional return to Sunday worship at Foxcote Church after the winter season in the School Chapel. Details of the Easter Season services are below. We enjoy worshiping in the school, but are also glad to ascend to the heights of Foxcote each year and celebrate the resurrection of Christ and the coming of spring.
On Sunday April 15th at 6pm Camerton Church will be hosting the regular Ten Lamps Group Service. By arrangement with my colleagues in the other churches of the Group we decided that this service would be the one when we would mark the 200th anniversary of the legislation that began the abolition of the slave trade.
I write began, because, as I am sure you are all aware, it took many years for the laws in many nations to outlaw the institution of slavery. Yet, despite this, it is probably true to say that there are more human beings in the world today who are caught up in systems that are little different from slavery. We will be reflecting on these things in our service. One reaction to this might me to think ‘ That doesn’t sound a very cheerful topic – I can’t do much about it - I might give that occasion a miss’. I hope that you will make an effort to come on that evening, not to be depressed, or to feel helpless in the face of evil, but to reflect on how we can reconcile our faith in a God of justice and hope with the realities of our world – both bad and good.
Easter is a festival of hope. It has its origins not in blind faith, but in a faith based on the experience of ordinary human beings. The friends of Jesus took a little convincing of the reality of his resurrection, and also that it did not mean that things would carry on as before. But since that time Christians, both as individuals and as communities, have experienced something that has transformed their lives in some way. For some this has been a moment of encounter when they Knew Jesus Christ for the first time, for others it has been a slowly growing understanding that Christ has always been with them, in a wonderful variety of ways. These ways do not exclude times of darkness and doubt, as well as light and truth. Varied too has been the response to God’s Spirit to which individuals and communities are called. The essence of Easter hope is the availability of God to all who turn to him in faith, hope and love. But we need to open ourselves to God with the minimum of our own agenda, and that is often a difficult thing to do. But if we can do so in some measure, we may discover a true spirit of liberation. It is not only those who are exploited in their labour that are enslaved, we often enslave ourselves to things that are, in the long run, unimportant and temporary.
Holy Week and Easter Services.
On Maundy Thursday we will join our friends at St.Mary’s Church, Timsbury for a service at 7.30pm. There will also be a service at that time at St.John’s Church, Peasedown if that would be more convenient for some.
On Good Friday the service will be at 10am at Camerton.
I plan to attend the Easter Vigil Service at the Cathedral in Wells. It starts at 9pm on Easter Eve, April 7. This is a very moving occasion and I encourage you to attend. If anyone wants transport to Wells, please let me know.
On Easter Sunday, April 8, there will be Communion Services at 9.30 at both Camerton and Dunkerton, and at Foxcote at 11.15. The Revd Peter Hazelton will preside at Camerton. The Dunkerton service will be a ‘child friendly’ service with Holy Communion. There will be no evening service at Camerton.

Kevin Tingay
THANKS to all who came and supported Carole Stevenson’s Coffee Morning last month. £112 was raised for church expenses.
Mrs Diane Key invites everyone to a Coffee Morning at Orchard View, Gullen Lane on Saturday, 28 April at 10.30-12 noon. Raffle and bring and buy. Proceeds for church funds.

THE CHILDREN’S SOCIETY thank the Shoscombe box holders for their collective donation of £200.10p.
During April there will be a door-to-door collection. The money will be helping to protect the childhood of thousands of children. Anyone wanting to help? Ring Jean on 434258.

Shoscombe Village Hall 100 Club

March 07 Results

1st Prize £115.00 L & P Bartlett Memory (10)
2nd Prize £35 Mike Hillier (2)
3rd Prize £35 Sue & Adrian McDonald (39)

The next draw will take place on Tuesday 10 April (about 9.00pm) at The Apple Tree
The Draw is preceded by a Meeting of the Village Hall Committee
at the Village Hall at 7.30pm. Everyone is welcome
Any recent newcomers to the Village who would like to join please contact
Elaine Renwick-Forster on 01761 431427
Hall Bookings Sally Kettle on 01761 432352

Village Market Update

Shoscombe Village Market was set up a year ago for villagers and other local people to use to buy and sell. Many crafts people have used the market to sell their goods, bric-a-brac and second-hand goods have been offered. Mr Bon’s fabulous chocolate patisserie has been a constant temptation, and occasional events such as the plant sales last spring, and the visit by Father Christmas in December have brought in the crowds.

It has become apparent that occasional markets would probably work better than monthly events so the next market will be on SATURDAY 5 MAY between 9.30 am and 12.00, and will include plants for sale. Please come and support the event, and if you would like a table to sell some of your own goods, phone Elaine on 01761 431427. Tables cost £3.
Next market Saturday 5 May including plants
Parish Council News

Could I first apologise for the lack of Parish Council news in the last Newsletter, the meeting had to be postponed and we missed the deadline!

We have asked Sutcliffes, the play equipment company, to install new swings seats in the play area and some repairs will be taking place over the next few weeks. We would like to get it all up together in time for the warmer weather.

The Wellow Roundabout site continues to enlarge with the beginning of the building of the new clinic. It was reported to me by a parishioner a few weeks ago that Mercedes had taken to parking a promotional car on the grass verge by the roundabout. The general feeling was that this could be the thin end of the wedge and they asked me if I could look into it. I rang planning who asked me to put it in writing, which I did via email. I have received an acknowledgement but as yet no more detail. Having said that, the car ‘miraculously’ disappeared and has not been seen since. It seems they do not have permission to park a car on that verge and especially not a promotional car as this is advertising. We will keep our eye on the situation.

Mr. Scott of Single Hill has offered to have a small Safety Mirror on his land to help drivers who wish to pull out on the blind corner opposite his house. Traffic and Safety do not routinely put these in any more but are happy for us to do it if it is on private land.

The problem of large articulated lorries coming through the village and getting stuck was discussed at the February meeting and I have since written to both B&NES and Hemington Parish Council requesting signs to be installed warning drivers of the unsuitability of our roads. B&NES have responded quickly and positively to this issue. They agree it is probably SatNav sending them down here and say that when the proposed signs go up this will then be logged with SatNav and will prevent this happening again. The trouble is they can come down from the other end via Hemington which is why I have written to them as well. I have asked the clerk to make a similar request to Mendip Council requesting warning signs.

I have asked Mr. Roger Hobbs to deal with several issues over the last few weeks and they are: – fallen trees on the Cinder Path, large pot-holes in Green St, a large pot-hole along Braysdown Lane, the pull in on White Hill (very muddy and slippery when it is wet), the gouged out bank at the top of the turning to Stoney Littleton and I also asked for the removal of an old roadworks sign along this road that has been there for months. He has also repainted the white lines at the end of the cycle path by Paglynch as they had become eroded.

We are thrilled with the work that has been completed on the Village Hall. The inside is all freshly painted and the probation people have also made a wonderful job of the ramp and railing outside. Many thanks to them.

As you may have seen, the telephone box in St. Julian’s Road is keeping up with new technology with the capability of now being able to send both texts and emails from there!

Lastly, there are to be local and parish elections on the 3rd. May. I have put notification in notice boards around the village.

As always call me if you have queries or concerns. Jean Fossaceco – Clerk to the Parish Council (431068)
The next Parish Council Meeting is on Thursday, 24 May at 7.30 pm in the Village Hall. This will be the AGM to which everyone is very welcome.
PARTY TIME
A very big thank you to all the people who came to the Shoscombe Village Hall Party. You all made it a great night; nice to see so many villagers dancing the night away. The band rocked and DJs “did it large”; fantastic light show. In fact it was such a good night, we have decided to have another one on Saturday, 5 May. It will be called “Here comes Summer”. It will have a Caribbean feel as we have a brilliant Reggae band called “Longshot”, dress code “Typically Tropical” – let’s get out the loud shirts and tropical skirts, grass ones if you want, but most of all we want everyone to have fun. Let’s bring on the summer!
Thanks to everyone who made it such a good party – Harry

“Here Comes Summer”
at Shoscombe Village Hall on 5 May

Reggae Band – Longshot
Plus DJs
Bar
Tickets £5.00 on door only
Dress code “Typically Tropical”

COME EARLY TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT
OVER 18 ONLY

Cradock & Son Country Feeds
Free Delivery
All Animal Feeds including horse, dog and chicken feed.
Also horse livery available.
Please ring Amy on 07812 636272
Or
David on 07977 262072 for details or orders

STOP PRESS – Just to let you know that as from now this Newsletter is being produced by Sue Baillie, Sally Kettle and Jackie Withers. Many thanks are to be given to Sue Harrison and family for the sterling effort they have made in producing the village news over the years. In time we hope to make a few changes to the format and would welcome any suggestions from both young and old about what you would like to see included. Please email shoscombenews@btinternet.com. Please note new email address.

ADD BEREAVEMENT REGISTER TO MAY NEWSLETTER
The SHOSCOMBE NEWSLETTER has a monthly circulation of 250 copies, delivered to every home in the village, by volunteers from our community. Items for the May Newsletter to Elmleigh or letterbox at 46 Single Hill or to shoscombenews@btinternet.com by 21st April. Please note new email address.

May 2007 Newsletter
JUNE 2007 Newsletter