During the interregnum, the Rector's Letter will feature letters and articles from a number of contributors.
This month, the letter comes from Ernest Orland, of St John The Baptist Church, Barnack

Richard Hardy’s Fundraisers
The Race Night held on 18th November at the Granary, Bainton, was a great success, 65 people attended the evening and raised a staggering £748.76 for Cancer Research UK. I would like to thank everyone who supported the evening.
My next fund raising activity is an auction of promises to be held during Bateman’s regular auction on Saturday 3rd December 2005 at the Exchange Hall, Stamford at 11.30am. “I have received great support from a number of local businesses and so far have promises of a flight in an aeroplane, dinner for four, tickets to Leicester Tigers v Barbarians rugby match, a signed authenticated photograph of Manchester United’s goal keeper, a car and chauffeur to take you to London for a day, a guided tour of Leicester City’s football ground, family pantomime tickets, afternoon tea for two, a full car valet, tickets to a POSH football game, a family bicycle hire, a Round of Golf for 4, a website design and a watercolour painting, where you chose the subject” . Richard Hardy

Download Richard's PRESS RELEASE [HERE]

Download the full list of Auction Promises [HERE]

Music at the Millstone Inn
The next session is on Tuesday December 6th at the Millstone Inn. Doors open 7.30pm for a 8pm start. Admission is free! Come along to sing or play or just to spectate! See www.acousticsessions. co.uk.

Carols by Candlelight
You are invited to St John The Baptist Church Barnack, at 7.30pm December 16th for a service of carols by candlelight, followed by mulled wine and mince pies in the Village Hall. All most welcome.

Fear Is A Liar a poem by Garth Lean
My parents knew Garth, an Australian writer, whose son Geoffrey Lean writes for the Independent Newspaper. Garth was a devout Christian whose childhood was dominated by the early death of his father from a heart condition and the knowledge that he had inherited the same condition from his father.
Garth wrote his poem while in England in the 1950s,awaiting pioneering open-heart surgery with no assurance of a good outcome, but Garth did recover and lived a full life. My mother passed Garth’s insights to many people over the years, living with uncertainty and trying to face down their fear:-

FEAR IS A LIAR, poisoning today with
fantasies of what may come tomorrow,
till every joy is clouded with a sorrow,
and dreading all, we leak our lives away.

If we have spouse or child, we fear to part,
or, longing, fear we wont attain, or,
snatching at it, even as we gain, we forfeit
the Heaven, the Harmony, the Heart;
But FEAR IS A LIAR!

TRUTH IS, God moulds our days in love
and with the same precision as
He makes wings for flight, or
petals fold within a sheath, or
shapes an eye for vision.
So, He makes us yearn for What is Right,
Then swift and sudden, hurls us our Delight.

Mary, Nora, and myself thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for your prayers and good wishes following my heart attack in mid September. Skilled and dedicated staff in the Health Service have put me back on my feet in record time. God bless you all ! Columb Hanna

Barnack Bridge Club
19th December Barnack Bridge Club Xmas evening 7.00pm. 30th January Barnack Bridge Club 7.15pm.

Local Singer-Songwriter is in the Final of the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards
James Chadwick, 19, from Ufford, has won through to the final of the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards to be held on December 9th at the Sage in Gateshead infront of an audience of 1700. James is one of just 6 finalist to be chosen from hundreds of hopefuls nationwide.
If you would like to hear extracts from the songs he sang at the semi-final in Kendal in October, please visit James’s website:
www.james-chadwick.co.uk and go to the listen page. Click on the tracks “Walking the Line” and “Down to the Ground Blues”. These songs were both composed by James.
Highlights from the final will be broadcast on the Mike Harding Show on BBC Radio 2 (88-91FM) at 8pm on Wednesday 14th December. The standard of all the finalists is incredibly high, so this promises to be a great show.
James recently left school and is now trying to make a living as a full-time musician. If you would like to show your support, please visit his website and post a message on his forum or email a message from his contact page.

Barnack Cricket Club
The Club’s Presentation Evening was well supported by both junior and senior sections. Despite a difficult playing season in which the first eleven were relegated in both Leagues there is much promise for the future. Four teams, at under 11, under 13, under 15 and under 17 had contested the local leagues and cup competitions, with the under 17’s finishing as runners-up in the Vogal Cup.
The John Henry Sindall Trophy for the outstanding player in the Youth Section went to Tom Hart, who was also the Club’s most improved player. The membership were delighted that Jocky Harris was in attendance to present the inaugural Jocky Harris Clubman of the Year Trophy to David Smith. The trophy has been renamed to recognise Jocky’s many years of outstanding service to the Club.
Chairman Bob Painter announced that we have been given an opportunity to become a “FOCUS CLUB” by the Huntingdonshire Cricket Board, which brings a great deal of support for growth and development, and adds momentum to the early stages of our proposed new clubhouse.
New players, particularly from the villages, will be especially welcome next season, and winter practice starts at Stamford School on Sunday evenings, from 7pm to 9pm, from January 8th. We could also use some additional help with our youngsters next season, so if any parents can spare a few hours a month it would be greatly appreciated. Details from David Smith on 740373, or Paul Hart on 740674.
Finally, a long-distance reminder that the AGM will be held at the Clubhouse on Monday January 16th, 2006.

Barnack School Christmas Bingo
7 pm, Wednesday 7th December, Barnack School Hall. Entry of £1 per adult and children over 11, under 11s free. Bingo books are 50p each.
There will be tea, coffee, squash and mince pies during the interval. Please note that this year there will be eight games only.
Come along for an evening full of fun and festivities – everyone is welcome.

Pink Themed Evening
Emma Jones would like to thank everyone who attended the ‘Pink Themed Evening’ held at The Millstone on Saturday 15th Oct, and for the generosity of the lovely raffle prizes donated. The evening was a superb success and I was able to send to the charity the amount of £790.00 which is fantastic. Thank you all once again.

Good News Van
The Good News Van will not be visiting Barnack during December, as the third Tuesday is too close to Christmas. However, the next visit of the van in Barnack will be at Margaret Durdey’s house, 12 Canon Drive on Tuesday January 17th from 10.30 until 12noon as usual. Everyone is most welcome to come for a coffee and a chat with friends, or to browse through the books, videos and tapes, which will be available. We would love to see you there. Do come and give us a try.

The Tucks Celebrate their Diamond Wedding Anniversary
Margaret and Sid (Tuck) are celebrating their Diamond Wedding Anniversary in December. A special Service in Barnack Church at 10am on Sunday 18th December is to be part of celebrations. Ithought that there may be friends who would like to join them for this special service and I know Margaret & Sid would be happy to see them. SMB

Barnack Baptist Church
December already! where has the year gone, it feels like we were doing these things only last week.
On Friday 16th December we are planning to go Carol Singing around Barnack, as with previous years, we will not be collecting money, we just want to
offer you a mince pie and wish you a merry Christmas.
Then, on Friday 23rd December, it’s our 2005 Charity Christmas Concert, 8:00pm in the Village Hall, we have a evening of music, poems, drama and
laughter (and mulled wine and more mince pies) that is sure to leave you brim full of festive spirit, ticket hotline...740017.
If you are interested in taking the ‘opportunity to explore some of life’s big questions’ daytime and evening ‘exploration’ sessions are being planned
for early 2006, please contact Julie Stanton on 749123 to register your interest.

Barnack and District Horticultural Show
Up to now no one has come forward to run the Barnack and District Horticultural Show next year. Therefore unless some one volunteers this month there will, unfortunately, be no Show in 2006. It has been running for a hundred and fourteen years, so it is a great shame, but it cannot run without some one to organise it. All the details for the organisation are there on disc with the exact timetable for jobs for each month. It only needs a small group to get together and the whole thing could be up and running again, so please do give it some thought. It is not a difficult thing to do and the Horticultural Show and Family Day does provide a good village afternoon and gives a great deal of pleasure to so many people in the middle of the school summer holiday. So, if you feel like having a go, please do contact June Woollard on 740276, who will be very willing to give you all the information needed.

The Barnack & Pilsgate Parish Plan
This was formally launched at the end of October. It is a most interesting document and is well worth reading. Many excellent photographs together with drawings and maps accompany the text. It will form a working draft for the Parish council for the next five years and stands alongside the Village Design Statement. Copies can be obtained from the Post Office in Barnack for £5.

Christmas Recital December 18th
Discantus will be singing a beautiful collection of Christmas music at 3.30pm, accompanied by Rowena Bass on Harp and Andrew Reed on Organ Tickets, including mulled wine £3 on the door. Download full details [HERE]

Affordable Homes
Following the Open Meeting held on October 17 to discuss affordable homes, a questionnaire will be delivered to every house in Barnack and Pilsgate during the next few weeks to ascertain whether or not there is a need for affordable housing within the village. In essence these homes would be for village residents or close relatives of village residents, who would be interested in part ownership as a means to getting on to the property ladder. It is hoped that all those who are interested will provide information.

Barnack Community Association
A little while ago, around the time of the Plant Sale at the Village Hall in May, one of the trays from the dishwasher went missing. This was a flat tray in bright blue used for loading the machine with cups or jugs. The person who borrowed it might not have realised that it was a valuable piece of equipment and we should be grateful if he or she could return it to the village hall, either leaving it outside the main entrance if the hall is locked, or returning it to Janet Farrer at the Post Office. Thank you.

Barnack Bowls Club
The winners of the October 200 Club draw were:
No 100 Mr Patrick Knights £25
No 22 Mrs L Womersley £15
No 11 Mr Robin Logue £10
and the winners for November were:
No 6 Mr Ray Hackett £25
No 38 Mrs B Knights £15
No 20 Mr Dick Ford £10

Marie Curie Coffee Morning
Many thanks to all those who supported the coffee morning at Abbots’ Barn, Southorpe on November 3rd.
We made the splendid sum of £502.25. The money will be used to help support the local Marie Curie nurses who nurse people with cancer at home at no cost to themselves or their families. Janet Thain

Barnack Methodist Chapel
We had a very happy celebration on Friday, 13 November, when the chapel was full for the wedding of Irene Drummond and Ken Wheeler. Irene has worshipped with us for many years and we wish her and Ken every happiness.
Although some of our friends were not able to join us at our November Coffee Morning, those who did helped us to raise £101.28 for our funds.
We look forward to seeing you at our December Coffee Morning which will take place on Saturday, 3 December at the usual time of 10 to 11.30 am.
You are also warmly invited to join us at our Carol Service on Sunday, 18 December at 2.30 pm and also for a cup of tea and a mince pie afterwards.

Carol Service at Bainton POSTPONED
The annual family carol service which was to be held in St Mary’s Church Bainton on Sunday, 18th December at 4.00pm, has been postponed.

Please note:
The service on Christmas Day is Holy Eucharist with hymns at 8.00am. The venerable D Painter, Archdeacon of Oakham will officiate. Shiela Bratley

Barnack Church Brasses and Flowers
I shall shortly be drawing up the rota for brasses and flowers for 2006 for Barnack Church. The job involves cleaning the brasses and, if you wish, putting a flower arrangement in church once a year and takes approximately two hours. If anyone would like to be included in this rota who is not already a kind volunteer please contact me on 01780 740387. My thanks to all those who already are on the rota, without your help our beautiful church would not be so welcoming. June Graham

The Children’s Society
Next month, January, sees the annual opening of the collection boxes which several of you are kind enough to hold and, through which, donate money to the Society. Last year we raised a really good total of £484.62 which was only slightly down on the year before. The Children’s Society does vital work with children at risk on the streets, disabled children, young refugees and children in trouble with the law. These are the children that are slipping through the net, for example a lot of organisations work with disabled people but none has focussed specifically on children. The Children’s Society shows care and love to all these disadvantaged children.
Please bring your boxes to church, if possible on the first two Sundays in January, or if this is not possible do give me a ring and I can arrange to collect from you. If anyone else would like a box to have at home please also give me a ring and I will let you have one. Many thanks on behalf of the children for all the help and support you give. June Graham, Hon. Local Secretary (01780 740387)

Found in St. John‘s Church
After the Royal British Legion Concert 12/11 - Miniature service medal with ribbon - Tel 740865

Ufford Ladies
We all enjoyed the entertaining talk about life on board the former royal yacht, Britannia, at our October meeting. Everyone is invited to come to join us and sing carols round the Christmas tree at our next meeting on Tuesday December 20th, starting at 7pm in Ufford Village Hall.
Coffee and mince pies will be served and there will be a raffle in aid of this year‘s charity, SHYP. Do come and bring your family and friends. Happy Christmas to all our members and friends.

Charity Coffee Morning
There will be a coffe morning at at The Acres in Barnack Tuesday December 6th 10am.

Quiz Night
Spot the village celebrities at Barnack’s favourite pub quiz every Sunday evening at the Millstone Public House from 8pm. A fantastic selection of lovingly cellared real ales and guest beers on offer along with sparkling lagers, fine wines, sodas and spirits all served in a most warm and friendly atmosphere. New teams are especially welcome. Cash prizes – what a way to start your week!

The Friends Of Barnack Church 200 Club
We have been helping to safeguard the fabric of the church for many years now. Why not think about joining? You can join as an individual member for just £5 or £7 for a family member. The 200-club subscription is only £15 a year with cash prize draws every month. Should you be interested in joining this most excellent cause and becoming a Friend of Barnack Church please contact Mr Martin Goodwin, 24 Bainton Road, Barnack. Tel: 01780 740145.
Alternatively, visit the Parish News website clicking on clubs and societies and then Friends of Barnack Church. The lucky winners for the October are as follows:
28 Mr W Harris £5
60 Mrs M Croft £10
64 Mrs E Young £20
Congratulations one and all.

Open Fellowship
The Christmas Party will be held on Thursday 8th December at Hasty Bank, Barnack at 7.30pm.

Marie Curie Charity
My grateful thanks to the kind people in Little Northfields who put money into the envelopes. £34 was collected for the Marie Curie Charity. Rose Porter

Donations for the Parish News
Funds for the Parish News are running quite low at present. If any club or society which has not already given a donation this year,would like to do so now, we would be most grateful. Please send donations to the Treasurer, Helen Fancourt at 3, Bainton Gardens, Bainton. Many thanks.

Royal British Legion
A busy month with door to door collecting, traditional Remembrance Services and our ‘Grand Concert’ celebrating the ‘Battle of Trafalgar’.
This year the Reverend Richard Paten officiated at our services on Sunday, November 13th at the Memorial and St. Andrew’s Church. We estimated that over 100 people attended these events - including 20 at the Memorial itself at 11 a.m. on Friday, 11th- good to see.
Transforming St. John the Baptist Church into the ‘Albert Hall’ on Saturday evening resulted in around 200 dignitaries, villagers and their friends enjoying another splendid performance by ‘Stamford Brass’ and supporting cast. Our new standard was trooped into church to the ‘Trumpet Voluntary’and the highlight of the show was the Band and their narrator’s presentationof the Battle of Trafalgar with impressive sound effects!
As an added bonus the Rutland Fine Arts Singers sang a selection of Nauticaland Songs from the Shows in keeping with the occasion. Their Susan Carling(mezzo soprano)’s rendering of ‘Rule Britannia’ with Band and audiencejoining in made a fitting finale to a memorable evening.
We are indebted to the Parochial Church Council for the use of the church,the Bell Ringing Team and a smart contingent of cadets from Stamford SchoolCCF (Naval Division) who added extra style to the proceedings, A substantialsum resulting from the sale of tickets and generous donations is muchappreciated and will be sent to the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Fund. C .D .C.

Big and better than ever!
The School’s annual Winter Fayre was big success again this year. We raised just over £1,500. There were lots of different stalls: from the tombola and white elephant to the ever-popular second hand toys, cake stall and, of course, Graham Dunn’s superb plants. The children had great fun luridly decorating biscuits, guessing teddy’s name and trying to find the treasure on the map, while parents and friends enjoyed some light refreshments. Pre-School also joined in and made almost £100.
A huge thank you to everyone who generously donated goods to sell, raffle prizes, tombola items and to all those who helped out on the day. The Fayre is organised by the BSA and all monies go towards helping the school with new equipment and treats for the children.

Barnack Wildlife Watch Club
November’s meetings were themed around waste, re-use and recycling. We played a brilliant game of compost tig to start. The children learnt what can be composted, what is needed to make good compost (sun, air, water, etc) and how much ends up in the rubbish bin if just one person in a group doesn’t recycle their kitchen and garden waste. We then had fun re-using ‘rubbish’ by making Christmas decorations. The children came up with some wonderful ideas and proudly took their decorations home at the end of the sessions.
In December we’re planning a Christmas party with a difference for the whole group. This session will be at Swaddywell nature reserve near Helpston on Sunday 18 December probably from 1 – 3pm (note the date change from that advertised last month) – but times are still to be confirmed. It promises to be great fun.
For more information about Barnack Wildlife Watch Club contact Jayne Lillywhite on 755527.

Please Note: Copy Date
Copy date for the JANUARY issue of the Parish News is early this month: Friday 9th December 2005 at 6pm


Bainton And Ashton Buttercross Club
Caroline Graham from UNICEF UK gave us an excellent illustrated talk at our November meeting.   This wonderful charity has working partnerships with most countries in the world and is organising a huge project working with mothers and children in the greatest need, particularly those areas where AIDS is rife.  
 Our December meeting is our party night - 7th DECEMBER 7-45pm and is open to all, so please put this date in your diary and come along and enjoy this special event.   Great company, good food, wine, a brain teaser or two and some ‘special entertainment’ will all be on offer, (remember last year?!)  There will be a finale of Carol singing to get us in the Christmas spirit, so we look forward to welcoming you. There is no charge but please give a donation to our charity on the night.  Can Buttercross members please bring a plate of savoury or sweet food for our table.
 Please note, there will be no meeting in January, but our AGM will be on February 1st at 7.45 in the Reading Room.   We look forward to welcoming new members and hope that everyone can bring along ideas for speakers and visits for our 2006 programme.  MG