Parish Jottings

Coronation Celebration

It’s a long time since we had a coronation, so on Sunday May the 7^th, the day after the Coronation, it is only right and proper that we mark the Coronation of King Charles III with suitable celebration. After the morning service on Sunday May the 7^th, as well as the normal tea / coffee and biscuits / cake, we will toast the new King with, for those who want it, a glass of Prosecco and some savory nibbles. Trinity at Four will go one better and enjoy a Bring and Share supper after the afternoon service, to which members are encouraged to bring a friend to join in.

Easter Trail

The Easter Trail on Good Friday morning was again a resounding success. Some 115 children (so many we ran out of Easter eggs) and a similar number of adults passed through the church grounds to hear the Easter story. It is safe to say that many of these families would not normally have attended a church service. Thanks are due to Peter Greenman for putting this together.

CAP Henley Debt Centre

One of the outstanding achievements of last year was the setting up of the Henley Debt Centre to provide our area with the wonderful debt help service of Christian Against Poverty. This is a free service which gets alongside people struggling with unmanageable debt and helps them on the path to becoming debt-free. Debbie Bruwer is the Centre Manager and volunteer benefit holders have been recruited from the four churches who support it (Trinity at Four, Saint Mary’s, Christchurch and d:two) to work with individual clients alongside Debbie. The latest move is to set up a Job Club to help local people obtain employment and so boost their income. A Job Club Manager is to be appointed working up to 8 hours a week. A brilliant initiative.

Dogs in the churchyard

You will have noticed how good the churchyard has been looking this Spring, with daffodils, primroses, cowslips and many other lovely wild flowers. You may also have noticed how many people now use the churchyard to exercise their dogs, sometimes on a lead, sometimes not. One day recently, while collecting litter, I picked up half a dozen or so plastic bags of dog poo. At one time dogs were not allowed in churchyards for obvious reasons and some years ago we had a notice saying “no dogs” which was stolen. Personally I don’t mind responsible dog owners bringing their pets into the churchyard, preferably on a lead, if they pick up after them and take it home. I’d like to know what other church members think about this. Should we discourage dogs in the churchyard?

Postbox Topper’s in Henley Town Centre