This year our Service of Remembrance at St Michael’s Church on Sunday 12th November takes place in the late afternoon at 5pm. The Sawtry Branch of the British Legion will be in attendance, and the service will be taken by Revd Mandy Flaherty. Before the service, the restored Roles of Honour will be re-dedicated. These were subject to water damage as a result of the lead theft from the roof.
There will be no morning service.
We are fortunate in having a willing team of people who regularly mow the churchyard. However there is a limit as to how close the mowers can get to gravestones and the church building. So we need someone who can devote some time to strimming around the gravestones etc. in the churchyard. If you can help please contact either John De Val (293417) or Michael Keck (293357).
The Tuesday morning services of Matins on 8th, 22nd and 29th August are cancelled – services will resume again in September. However the scheduled service of Holy Communion will take place on Tuesday 15th August at 8am.
The Induction of Revd Mary Jepp took place at Holy Trinity Church, Kilmarnock on Thursday 15th June. A number of people from the Benefice travelled north to attend.
The church was packed for the service taken by the Bishop of Glasgow & Galloway. Besides Mary’s parishioners and members of other churches, the Provost (Mayor to you and me) of Kilmarnock and the local MP attended. After the service, there was an amazing spread in the church hall attached to the church, and we ‘Sassenachs’ were made to feel very welcome. We were left in no doubt as to the warmth of a community in very different surroundings from ours, and feel Mary and Mike will be very happy in this new chapter of their lives.
The two pictures reflect two aspects of the evening. The first might be said to show the formal Mary, with the Bishop. The second shows the real Mary with two of her new parishioners.
Michael Keck
The Revd Mary Jepp’s final service took place on Sunday 21st May at St Michael’s Church. The service was one of Choral Evensong. We were delighted to welcome back “Divers Voyces” to lead the music, and they sang settings by Bruckner, Morales, Holst and Peter Phillips. The organist, appropriately, was Paul Herring, one of Lois Jordan’s sons.
Before the service Mary re-dedicated the organ in memory of Lois, whose legacy paid for the additional work to be done. After the service, Mary Read made a presentation to Mary of a book on Icons and a cheque for £450. After the presentation, the two Mary’s were seen dancing down the nave together like the conclusion of a Morcambe & Wise Show. An appropriate ending, which highlighted the joy and happiness that Mary Jepp brought to her ministry in our community.
We wish Mary and Mike every success and happiness in the latest chapter of their lives, about to start in Kilmarnock.
Michael Keck
We have heard the sad news of the death of Bernard Foster. Known as “Bocky” to most people in the village, he worked in Trolove’s butcher’s shop in Main Street for many years. Our thoughts and prayers are with Betty and the family at this time.
There will be a Service of Thanksgiving for his life on Monday 12th June at 12 noon in St Michael’s Church.
Michael Keck
José Hopkins (Diocese of Ely Organ Advisor) will give a short talk about the organ builder Denman of York, following which Stephen Barber (Kings Cliffe Parish Church) will give a 50 minute recital demonstrating to advantage the work recently completed on our own organ.
Light refreshments
Free Admission – there will be a retiring collection.
Work is in progress on the Denman organ in St Michael’s Church to achieve what might be termed “the completion” of the instrument. When the organ was built in the late nineteenth century; like today, money was obviously tight for the then congregation (nothing changes!). Accordingly certain things weren’t included, and this work seeks to remedy those omissions.
The work – being carried out by E J Johnson & Son (Cambridge) Ltd – has three elements:
It is with thanks to Lois Jordan for her legacy which has enabled this work on the organ to be carried out.
We welcome back Divers Voyces with their Music Director, Jeremy Jepson, to lead the music at this service.
The Introit will be by Anton Bruckner (Locus isti), and the canticles sung to settings by the 16th century Spanish composer Christòbel de Morales and Gustav Holst. As Ascension Day falls in the following week, the anthem will be Ascendit Deus by the Elizabethan composer, Peter Phillips.
During the service the latest restoration work on the organ will be dedicated in memory of Lois Jordan. We are delighted that Paul Herring (Lois’s son) has kindly agreed to play the organ for this service.
This will be the Revd Mary Jepp’s final service before her departure to Scotland. After the service there will be refreshments, giving an opportunity to say farewell to Mary.
Service starts at 6pm.
At St John’s Church, Little Gidding, the restoration of the fabric at the east end has been completed with the provisions of new stonework. The three windows in the nave have been fully restored. This has been financed with generous donations from the United States, the Friends of Little Gidding and, appropriately, from Judith Hodgson in memory of her husband, Revd Tony Hodgson. Other minor works to the fabric of the Oratory, and the wooden arch in the nave have been completed. Work on securing the lectern will start shortly.
Work to be carried out in 2017 include the restoration of the text over the west door, and the treatment for woodworm (where applicable) to any woodwork in the church.
The one major project outstanding is the rehanging of the church bell (cost c.£7000) and that is being deferred for the moment.
Aerial view of St John’s in Little Gidding
Moving to St Michael’s Church, in the early part of the year, the ‘window lights’ in the spire were repaired to stop the ingress of jackdaws into the bells.
Repair to ‘window lights’
Video of church roof repair in progress
However 2016 was dominated by a virtual re-roofing of the church. The collyweston roof of the chancel has been totally restored, and a new ceiling installed in the chancel. Shortly some of the lighting in the chancel will be upgraded.
Repair of Collyweston roof at St Michael’s Church, Great Gidding
St Michael’s newly restored roof
Moving onto the areas where the lead was stolen, the south aisle roof has been restored using lead, whilst the north aisle roof has been restored using terne-coated stainless steel. At the same time the opportunity was taken to repair some small fissures in the lead on the nave roof which had been identified by the Quinquennial Inspection. Finally a roof alarm was installed to provide protection as well as to ensure total insurance cover. The water downpipes of the church have been painted with ‘anti climb’ paint, and appropriate notices erected.
New terne-coated stainless steel roofing on north side
Thus the church is now watertight for the foreseeable future. None of this would have been possible without the generous financial support of the Government backed ‘Listed Places of Worship Roof Repair Fund’, for which the church authorities are very grateful. Equally the paperwork & project management associated with these two roofing projects has been enormous, and all this was successfully navigated solely by John De Val, to whom an enormous debt of gratitude is due.
Internally, water damage was confined to the north aisle. The prompt action of John De Val and Bruce Jordan saved the organ from major damage, and the instrument has now dried out and emerged unscathed. The two illuminated wall memorials were water damaged and are now being restored by a paper specialist. The walls of the north aisle will need some re-plastering and re-decoration and this will be carried once the new church architect is in place. All this work is covered by insurance.
New roofing being installed on the north side
Many other people within the community have given support in many differing ways, and we would like to express our deep thanks for that support during a very difficult year.
Finally, I include the maintenance of the churchyard within this report and would like to thank the Friends of St Michael’s Church, and our grasscutters for all their hard work and commitment.
Earlier in this report, reference was made to a new church architect. In September, Canon Julian Limentani of Marshall Sissons retired as the architect to both of our churches, although he kindly kept an eye on things until the roofs were completed at the year end. Our thanks to him for his forty plus years in the post. Once a new architect is appointed shortly, his two immediate tasks will be the movement on the north side of the chancel arch and the restoration of stonework at the tip of the spire and the weathervane.
In conclusion, the church can be said to be in good condition.
Michael Keck
Please join us for this short service, marking the events of the Last Supper of our Lord.
Maundy Thursday 13th April at 9.00pm
St Michael’s Church, Great Gidding
