• The Front Page
• Message from St Andrew's
• Message from the Baptist Church
• Message from Girton Glebe School

The Front Page.

A VERY BIG THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to the Grand Day Out

I think everyone will agree that the Grand Day Out to celebrate the official opening of the Pavilion on Sunday September 10th, was a great success.  Over the day as a whole well over 1000 people, mainly Girton residents, turned out.  The weather was brilliant, and several people commented that ‘God must like Girton’.  On that note, our first thanks should go to the people who attended Evensong at St Andrews and had to cope with the noise still coming from the band tent.  Sorry, and thanks for not complaining!

The event could not have happened without the support of many residents and organisations, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them through these pages.  Thanks to Kevin Bonnett, Noel Knights and Penny Knight who worked so hard to get the Pavilion finished and in good shape for the opening, and to Jenny Knights who galvanised Parish Councillors to provide food for the Reception.  Particular thanks go to those people who turned up as visitors to enjoy the day and got roped in to looking after stalls or selling programmes and draw tickets.  Among that number were Janet Sheard, Rose and Dave Murphy, Ann Bonnett, Sue Baggaley, Alan Galbraith, Bill Parnwell and wife, and Eustace Bullman.

The standard of entertainment throughout the day was very high.  Most of those taking part did so without any payment, and spent a lot of time sorting out sound systems and the like.  Particular thanks go to Andy Thurston, who not only came with us to collect the PA system for the bands, but also worked hard to set it up, and was the bass guitarist in 'Spacehopper'.  Everyone is still buzzing about them and the Samba Band - if any of the bands ever need a reference I think we can provide a thousand. 

Thanks also to all the other bands and performers.  We particularly appreciated the ‘Keep Fit Blues’ from the Dr. Novelty Band, in which the lyrics were clearly specially adapted for the day.  It was lovely to see such a strong squad of singers from the Glebe School; thanks also to the school for the loan of their chairs and the opening up of car parking facilities and use of the drive for lining up the parade.  It is difficult to single out particular performers because the standard was so high, so thanks to everyone who took part.
Many thanks, and apologies also, to Tricia Parry at the Curtain Workshop; thanks for making the fetching sashes worn by the Pavilion Quiz Winners and apologies that her name somehow dropped off the acknowledgements in the Programme. 

Ann and Andy Bonnett at Ab creative were fighting deadlines and last minute programme changes in their efforts to complete the design work and printing of the programmes, so special thanks to them.  Thanks to Mary Rodger who did a brilliant job setting out the display in the Pavilion, and to Bill Parnwell for loaning his photographs.

Peter Graves Florists supplied the lovely bouquet given to Helen Smith and Fulbourn Manor Nurseries have given us a financial contribution to the event.  Thanks to both.

Special thanks go to members of the tennis club, who in addition to having activities running  throughout the afternoon, did all the electrical work to bring light and power to the Marquees, and were still clearing up at midnight on the day. 

Finally, we still have a few commemorative mugs left at £2.75p each.  Several people said they wanted some but could not carry them on the day, so please get in touch if you want any.  The programmes are also commemorative, with pieces and photographs on the Pavilion development.  These are now available at the reduced price of 50p.

Lyn Bonnett ,Grand Day Out Organiser. 
email: lyn.b@ntlworld.com
 

Message from St Andrew's

It is often said that the world is becoming a smaller place. Speed of travel, satellite communication, TV, the Internet, all help us to see how others are living. Some have said that it's like living in a "global village". Let's pause for a moment and take a look at our global village. It's hard for most of us to imagine what 5 billion people would look like taken together, so let's think instead of just 10 people to represent the whole 5 billion.

Amongst these ten representative people, how "wealthy" are the people in our global village? It may come as a surprise to us to know that about half of the village's income goes to just ONE person! - and the other half is divided between the remaining nine. FIVE of us in our village don't have enough food to eat, go to bed hungry every night, and live below the poverty datum line.

Just about every adult in Girton can read and write. How many can do that in our global village? Well, if we handed around ten newspapers for people in the global village to read, it's very likely that seven of them would hold their newspapers upside down (except that the pictures might give them a clue as to the right way up.)
Of course, there are also houses in our village. Some live in well-built house of brick and mortar, but how many in our global village live in sub-standard housing, made of wooden crates, corrugated iron, cardboard and newspaper?

We would need to ask the seven who held their newspapers upside down, plus one more, to open their newspapers over their heads to fashion a temporary shelter. How many people in our global village have a university education? If one person sticks up a hand that would be about proportionately right. Not even one whole person, but ONE TENTH of one person, has a university education. (NB - You can only do this kind of analysis with statistics - don't try this at home!)

We can see from all this that the harvest of resources in our global village are not spread very evenly. ONE person in the village earns half the village's income; two live in good housing. Not even one of them has a university education.

One of the things that we are reminded of at Harvest Festival is that the fruit of our lives is the most important harvest that we can bring to God.

We can choose the kind of harvest that our lives will bring, because the harvest that GOD requires of each one of us is this:

"He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6.8)

Rob Mackintosh
 

Message from the Baptist Church

Although athletic standards have increased over the years, the principles are still the same.  As saint Paul noticed when he wrote to the Corinthian church nearly two thousand years ago, "Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training".  He used the analogy to encourage the church in Corinth to continue to follow Christ and not to give in.  Athletes compete now to win medals.  In Paul's time the prize was a laurel crown, something that decayed and would not last.  The prize for the Christian though lasts for ever and is available to all who finish the race - eternal life with Jesus now and in the life to come.

But there is something else in the Olympics that encourages the competitors to put in that extra ounce of energy and determination.  The atmosphere and the crowd lift them to new heights.  Even from my armchair seat I have felt my palms sweat as gymnasts have gripped the rings or swung on the horizontal bars.  A few times some competitors have missed when flying from one bar to another, and I in my seat have missed a breath for them while the audience has gasped and then applauded as they have stood up and jumped back on.  The crowd cheer and encourage the athlete and we too in our lives need that encouragement from others.  Recently I have been researching the early history of our Baptist Church and have discovered something about the men and women who started the cause here and maintained it through difficult years at the end of the nineteenth century. 

They are no longer with us, but the prayers they prayed then are still being answered in the church of today. 

They are part of that great "cloud of witnesses" whom the writer of the letter to the Hebrews tells us have gone before us and are now encouraging us and cheering us on.  Like saint Paul, that writer in the Bible was also familiar with the games.  He tells us to throw off everything that would hinder us, to take note of the spectators urging us on and to run, "with perseverance the race marked out for us".
Phillip Staves

Phillip Staves

Message from the Girton Glebe School

Our public performance started early this new academic year, with at least 100 children taking part in the Pavilion Opening.  As a school, we were very pleased to be asked to take part in such a wonderful whole village event and to have an opportunity to display the children's musical and sporting skills. Thank you to Lyn Bonnett for organising such a splendid event and including our school.

We have welcomed 27 new children into Reception and several other new families have joined elsewhere in the school.  We have retained the same staff as at the end of last term, as Mrs Stevenson is still recovering at home following the death of her husband in the summer.  On her behalf, I would like to thank everyone who sent their good wishes, I know that they were all very much appreciated.

Two requests to end with.  Firstly, do you have an unused recorder hiding away in a cupboard? If so, the school would be pleased to make use of it.  Secondly, would anyone like a stone sink? We have a spare one free to anyone who can collect.

Happy New School Year to you all.

Susan Baker, Headteacher