The Link Magazine

Dear Reader,
By this time, much of the land around us has been ploughed, harrowed and drilled with seed ready for next year. For Harvest festival, the hymn declares,
'We plough the fields, and scatter the good seed…'

I would not waste seed I have saved, nor seed I have paid for, by scattering it in my garden vegetable plot where the pigeons are poised on the wires above. Seed would stand no chance at all.

Thousands of years ago, when people discovered the joys of staying in the same place, and stopped hunting and gathering in the forests, they had to contend with using the same patch of earth over and over again, depriving it of nutrients, and worse still, the fact that then as now, it is the weeds that grow more vigorously than the crop. Archaeologists tell us that these resourceful people invented a digging stick, its point hardened in the fire. With the holes for the seed in straight rows, the weeding in between could then be done by hoe or mattock. The dibber or dibbler was a later method of making holes into which to drop the seed out of reach of marauding wildlife (all except the burrowing kind). Making a groove with a drill coulter was only a short developmental step.

The broadcast sowing of seed persisted as well, but on the understanding that waste of good seed is integral to that time-honoured method.
God is very generous and whatever it is that we're eking out, calculating whether or not we have enough, He gives enough-and-to-spare, super-abundantly. The Hebrews called Him 'Jehovah-Jireh', the God who provides.

The income from this year's arable crops may hardly be worth the diesel and electricity to gather and dry them, but we can all do our part by paying a fair price for locally grown produce and taking an interest in where our suppliers source their raw foodstuffs. By our generosity, justice and above all, love for one another, we reflect God's being in the world today.

Linden Fletcher

Bible Readings and Psalms for our Sunday Worship taken from the Revised Common Lectionary. It is good to be sharing the reading of Scripture with Christians - both Catholic and Protestant - across the world.

6th October Green
Philippians 3. 4b-14 Matthew 21. 33-end Psalm 80. 9-17

13th October Green
Philippians 4. 1-9 Matthew 22. 1-14 Psalm 23

20th October Green
1 Thessalonians 1 Matthew 22. 15-22 Psalm 96. 1-9

27th October Green
1 Thessalonians 2. 1-8 Matthew 22. 34-end Psalm 1
Or the readings for Bible Sunday:
Colossians 3. 12-17 Matthew 24. 30-35 Psalm 119. 9-16

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Getting ready for Christmas?

In the next few weeks many of us will begin to buy extras for our store cupboards ready for Christmas.

Last year many of you kindly gave a thought, or several thoughts, to others who are not able to make these preparations so easily. I was able to take more than 3 car-loads to Ipswich Women's Refuge - made up of many different things. They need tins and packages of non-perishables -but some of you thought creatively and included toiletries and cleaning items, and somebody kindly donated a bike. These gifts were very much appreciated for use both over the Christmas period and also later in the year as families move to new homes.

I am appealing to you again this autumn, as you begin to shop for Christmas goodies, to add a little extra to your basket and collect the items until December - when they may be taken to any of the church services, or you may phone me on 01437 658522 to arrange collection.

Thank you. Mary Carter

Welcome to :
Cameron Kevin Harrison Gray, son of Kevin and Marion of "Tamella", Fiske Pightle, Willisham, who was baptised at Willisham Church on July 14th
Also to:
Katrina May Copping , daughter of Darren and Samantha of 5 Middlewood Cottages, Offton, who was baptised in Offton Church on July 28th

May they grow in faith

Congratulations to:
Philip Whitehead and Louise Steward who were married at Offton Church on July 20th and will live in Newmarket
Also to:
Mark Huckerby and Anna Dearlove who were married in Offton Church on July 27th; they are moving from London to somewhere in East Anglia.
Also to:
Tom Arnold and Sophie Fagg who were married in Somersham Church on August 24th and will be living in Suffolk for a few months
Also to:
Craig Buxton and Tessa Morgan who were married in Offton Church on September 7th

We wish all these couples long and happy lives together

Farewell to:
Philip Garlick, aged 81, who lived in Somersham for many years, whose funeral took place at Somersham Church on July 15th
Also to: Jack Greenaway, aged 78, of Somersham, whose funeral took place at Ipswich Crematorium on August 22nd
Also to: Daisy Brass, aged 90 of Willisham Tye, whose funeral took place at West Suffolk Crematorium on August 20th
Also to: Charles Alfred Johnson, aged 79 years, long time resident of Marshmoor Park, Offton, whose cremation took place on August 20th at Ipswich, and the ashes will be interred beside those of his wife in Great Bricett churchyard.

May they rest in peace

Hello,
I am sorry if you have not seen me this past month, but I had annual leave and also had to attend Soham. You will be pleased to know that the crime rate has continued to remain low, due to the fact that everyone is reporting anything they are not happy with - so thank you.

On Sunday 4th August, several of the Somersham youths had a visit to Stowmarket Police Station; we all had our fingerprints and photos taken and sat in a police cell. Many thanks to Colin Burrows and Wendy for organising the trip. I hope you all enjoyed it.

Warning: Travellers have been operating in the Flowton area, offering to do tarmac-ing, etc. Please don't allow these people to do any work for you as the price you agree with them at the start of the job will not be the price they want at the finish - usually a lot more. If you require any tarmac work, please speak to a local company that you can trust.

If there are any more sightings of a large cat in the Bricett area please let me know ASAP. I'm sure that now the fields are cut there will be more sightings.

Crime in July/August/Sept: Theft of 2 barrels from garden, 2 flower pots from garden, wishing well and tree, plants pots, damage to slide, house burglary - these all in Somersham. Thefts from gardens also in Bricett, Ringshall and Combs, items stolen from Ringshall church, attempted theft and criminal damage in Barking.
Due to the large scale of the thefts from gardens, Stowmarket CID became involved and persons were arrested and most of the property returned.

The eleven CCTV cameras in Stowmarket are all working now and are proving very useful. I will keep you updated as to how many extra offences have been detected due to their presence.

With the good weather that we have had recently, a reminder not to go out leaving doors and windows open to allow air in because it also lets in unwanted visitors. Two burglaries were suffered in Stowmarket when access was gained via insecure doors/windows.

For Sale: UV security marker pens -£1 Rape alarms -from £3.50
Movement activated shed alarms -£8

Thank you all for your help. Take care

PC 167 Diane Porter
01284 774341 Answer machine
01473 613500

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Dear Editor……….

After my comments in the Link in July about children playing in the road, I received a very polite, and neat letter from one of the children involved stating the precautions that they felt they had taken when playing on Monk's Hill. Well adults, and drivers, may have different views from those held by the children, but the reasons he gave for their choice of Monk's Hill as a suitable playground do need airing and I invite your comments and ideas for the children.

"………Where ever we are in Somersham we get complaints.
There is not anywhere else we can go in Somersham. Sitting on our lane we get complaints for being too loud. Down the field we can't do anything except football. We are too old for the play area. Thanks for reading.
Yours sincerely,
James, age 13 years. (Full name and address given)

Flowton News

We are back in our clean, beautifully decorated and repaired church once more - in plenty of time for the Harvest Thanksgiving on September 29th. I hope that you will come and join in the celebration at 6.30pm.

Now that we are part of a group of eight parishes the Reverend Linden Fletcher has devised a new rota of services which we are going to follow for the next 12 months.
For Flowton the services will be :
1st Sunday Evening Prayer 6.30pm
2nd Sunday Holy Communion 8.00am
3rd Sunday Holy Communion by extension 6.30pm
4th Sunday Family Praise 10.30am
5th Sunday See Link newsletter and church noticeboard

BABIES!
Mark and Nicola's tiny Bethany had to arrive very early, on 7th June, and both mother and baby have had to recover; we all hope it will not be too long now before Bethany is able to come home with her devoted parents.
Adam and Karina had their baby, Lauren, on June 16th and she is often to be seen around the village with her mother, quickly being introduced to the ritual of waiting for the school bus!
Joe and Sarah Watkins had to wait a little for Grace, for she knew where she was well off, but she was finally born in the early minutes of August 26th and is making excellent progress.

CHURCH SERVICES in our 8 linked parishes
Please be aware that service times and Sundays have changed -please check with a Churchwarden if you think that a mistake has been made in this listing.

October 6th Trinity 19

October 13th Trinity 20

October 20th Trinity 21

October 27th Trinity 22

Somersham Cycle Speedway Club

The good news in August was the return of Richard Williamson after injury, and his importance was highlighted as his 2 race wins helped the Stars hold Hawbush to a draw at Somersham. An excellent meeting and unexpected result as the Ilford based side are second in the table. Man of the match was Peter Mittell, who top scored for the first time, thanks to some fast gating and safe cornering. Unfortunately just as we were back to full strength, the injury jinx struck again, although not on the cycle speedway track. Peter Williamson was forced out of action after falling while training on the road, and now Gary Brown has broken a finger in a grass track crash.

Individually, Stars riders have ridden well. Andrew Mittell finished second in the British Junior League round at Bury Manchester, moving him up to fourth place overall, and Richard Williamson was third in the round at Poole. Steve and Barry Copping paraded the club's colours in the European championships in Birmingham, and although out of the points, picked up useful experience.

Less successful though was the Suffolk Under-16 series as Somersham finished in last place despite Andrew Turnbull making good progress. We were unable to field a full team at this level and it is a shame we have been unable to attract more Somersham youngsters into
the sport.

We are well ahead with our fixtures so will be filling the gaps with practice sessions throughout September.
Why not come along and have a spin?

you can contact us via (01473) 831474, e-mail ovalking@yahoo.com or take a look at the
new Somersham Cycle Speedway website:
www.btinternet.com/~SomershamCSC

SOMERSHAM WOMEN'S INSTITUTE

After our outing to Shrubland Park Gardens in July, we are looking forward to an afternoon tea at the kind invitation of Mrs. Bloor in her lovely home "Nettlestead Chase."
Ladies, why don't you come along to our next meeting at Somersham Village Hall 7th October at 7:30PM where our speaker will be Mrs. B. Blakesley on "Natural Skin Care"?

CONGRATULATIONS!

Congratulations to all you youngsters who have done so well in GCSE and A Level examinations, and also in your studies at higher levels.
Well Done. We wish you well in the next stage of your education or your progress into the working world.

Somersham Baptist Church

Back to the Classroom.

When you consider the media's treatment of the beginning of the universe, you could well conclude that the case was proven. You'd be surprised to discover that not all scientists agree with the common theory of Evolution. Our friends at Gt. Blakenham Baptist Church are hosting a seminar on the subject. Professor Andy McIntosh of Leeds University takes another look at the science behind the theories. Do come along and hear what he has to contribute to the subject. There is a Youth Night at Gt. Blakenham Baptist Church, and we are literally back to the classroom at Claydon High School the following day.

Children's and Youth Weekend
Saturday and Sunday October 19th and20th. Look out for more details soon!

Sunday Meetings.

Junior Church 10.45am Every Sunday for School Years 1-6.

Ladies Meetings
Women's Fellowship Friday 11th October.
Friends and Neighbours, 7.45pm Mon. 18 October.

Children and Young People (Held during term time)
Yr. 1-6, Wednesday Club 6.30pm.
Yr. 6-8 Quest Club Wednesday 7.45pm.
Yr. 9 on, 14+ Friday 8.00pm.

Fantasy Football League; if you have a team in the league don't forget the transfer night on Monday 14th October at 7.45pm. You can start to put things right tonight!

Christianity Explained; Six sessions, which deal with Jesus, Salvation and becoming a Christian, to find out more contact Mark.

Somersham Baptist Church, Chapel Lane, Somersham, IP8 4QE
Contacts;
Mark Newcombe 01473 831940
e-mail mark.newcombe@btinternet.com
Colin Low 01473 464833 or Edwin Mayhew on 01473 658100.

BALTIC TOUR BENEFITS CHARITY

All Frenchmen eat croissants for breakfast, and all Italians eat spaghetti for tea. I might well retort with these sweeping statements when I am told, "I bet it's easy cycling in Holland, because its flat and they have cycle paths. However, cycling across Holland in two days, including negotiating Rotterdam, one quickly discovers, that, unlike signs on roads, long distance signs for cyclists are rare. Few exceed a 10km range. It was the same a month later, travelling down the Jutland peninsular.

The purpose of the trip was twofold: one, to 'circumcycle' around the Baltic, and two, to support a charity. Both aims were achieved. This was a door-to-door circuit of some 4000km, June 6th -July 6th; Buxhall, Harwich, Holland, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Harwich, Buxhall. Thanks to Dawes, Michelin, Dunlop, Euromaps, Boots, Argos, Primark, Aarn, Brett Harris, Kodak and others, £500 was raised for Macmillan Nurses.

Briefly, I remember,
HOLLAND: lifting bridges, swing bridges, large and small ferry boats, canals and dykes, and ships seemingly floating over fields but actually sailing on embanked canals, higher than the land.

WEST GERMANY: wind-powered generators, splendid cycle paths parallel to, but separated from, the roads by trees and hedges, cobbled streets in many town and villages.

EAST GERMANY: villages unrestored from World War II

POLAND: smelly wood pulp factories, gas-powered two-cylinder cars, unlevel level crossings, mostly going nowhere, crumbling housing blocks, busy churches, gaily decorated shrines, and an eerie feeling in cafes and bars, of, we keep our heads down and mind our own business.

THREE BALTIC STATES: limited tourism, B&B and evening meal for under £6, horse and cart transport, storks nesting on any manmade structure sufficiently tall and slender, and precariously exposed enough, to make one expect the nests to be blown away by any breeze exceeding Beaufort zero. They will likely be there next year, Croaking frogs at dawn, shopkeepers calculating prices with an abacus, and men and boys of all ages and social standing, unselfconsciously carrying or sitting, holding posies of flowers.

FINLAND & SWEDEN: lakes and forests, many unmade-up roads, with luxury off-road vehicles a rare sight; log cabins, 'beware of moose' sign; and, are these northern Europeans more sociable than us, for where on narrow roads we have 'passing places', they have 'meeting places'. Surprisingly, the southern lakes, regularly frozen for two months in the winter, are at around 21°C in July.

DENMARK: (rain), Queen Margarithe II in the little village of Nibe (pop. 5000), (rain), and the very polite occupants of a squad car that pulled me over, (rain), on a 'bikes prohibited' road, (rain), when I had given up trying to find a (rain) cycle path, even vaguely where I wanted (rain). Then they led me off the main road, via a slipway (rain) more concerned about my safety and well-being than the queue of traffic building up behind them, and helped me find the route (rain) I wanted. Yes, it rained in Denmark.

Accommodation ranged from 4* luxury to basic make-your-own-bed. In one of the latter I found that a nectarine in a sock makes for a fair basin plug. I later discovered a thin slice of cheese to be even more suitable. In all cases bar one, the reception and attention I received was impeccable. The bike was never a problem, and frequently went across the marble hall, where the bell boy would lodge it in a spare room.

Initially, entrance to Estonia from Latvia was refused, and a detour to an alternative crossing was necessary. Over 100 maps would have been required for detail comparable to our GB O.S. maps, but just 18 had to suffice.

The land around the Baltic proved to be relatively unhilly; the steepest (but not the longest) gradients were on the final leg from Harwich to Buxhall. Jonathan Gray

Our thanks to Jonathan for another tantalising account of his travels.
Our congratulations to Jo and Jon on their recent marriage.

Somersham Church Notes

There is a report on the Summer Garden Party elsewhere in the magazine, but thanks again to everyone who supported it in any way; the final total was just over £500.

At the time of copy date the Harvest Supper has yet to take place, so there will be a report in November's Link. But once again many thanks to all involved.

The Christmas Bazaar will be on Saturday 30th November from 2pm in the Village Hall. All the usual attractions - more details next month.

Somersham Church Services
As from October, there is a change to the service pattern for Somersham, so please check at the back of the magazine.

Thanks to Joan & John Gibbons, who have bought a new kettle to use at the Church.

Somersham and District Gardening Club

AUTUMN PROGRAMME

OCT 14TH VILLAGE HALL 7.30PM
ROD LEEDS
'Bulbs for all year'

NOV 11TH VILLAGE HALL 7.30PM
JULIAN FLOOD
'Climbing Plants'

DEC 9TH VILLAGE HALL 7.30PM
Social evening

MEETINGS HELD IN SOMERSHAM VILLAGE HALL. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT Jeff and Sheila Welsh 01473 657345
Angela Shelmerdine 01473 831661, Angie Osborn 01473 831422,

Why not join us? New members are very welcome.


Somersham Parish Council

Village Good Neighbour Scheme
As part of the continuing work emanating from the Somersham Community Action Plan, one of the tasks is to explore the potential for establishing a village Good Neighbour scheme, to complement the existing good work of the Neighbourhood Watch scheme.

A Good Neighbour scheme can mean many things to many people. Therefore I am seeking the views of the residents of Somersham, both young and old, as to the types of services that could be required and more importantly delivered by the community itself.

Other villages have established similar schemes that:
· Provide the link between those villagers needing help and those who are willing to offer it.
· Are available as a safety net to all village residents, young and old alike
· Allow volunteers to give the time they choose, offering the skills that they are comfortable with.
· Lessen feelings of isolation and exclusion if friends and family move away.
· Can make the difference between retaining one's independence and seeing it slip away.

How do they work?
? Village residents form a small co-ordinating group to run the scheme.
? It is published in the village and a list of people willing to help is drawn up.
? Those in need of help contact the organisers.

With the best will in the world, family and friends cannot always offer appropriate help when it is most needed.
· Could you do with some help now and again?
· Could you offer some help at times that would suit you, using the skills that you feel confident with?

I would welcome your views, and if you feel you could benefit from or could contribute to such a scheme, please feel free to contact me at:

Chris Turnock: Turnockchris@hotmail.com or 01473-833837 or writing to 'The Pightle', Church Lane, Somersham IP8 4PN

Community Action Plan
· Street Lighting was discussed in the Community Action Plan questionnaire last year. This was brought up at the last Parish Council meeting after extensive research by one of our councillors. It was decided at the meeting that for the time being street lighting is not a viable option for the village. This will be continually reviewed, and you will be informed through this article of any developments.
· As you will have seen the pavement opposite Watering Close is being completed (or probably complete by the time you read this). The Parish Council thank the land owners for agreeing to the idea of the path and we also thank our County Councillor Ros Scott for providing money from her locality budget to pay for the construction of the path.

Overhanging Trees
It has been brought to our attention that there are a number of properties with trees, in their garden, overhanging the public footpaths. Please can people be aware that this can make it very hard for others, using the paths, to walk along them, and can also make it dangerous.

If you do have trees overhanging a public footpath or pavement, please ensure they are cut back to allow people to walk along the whole width of the path and that they are also cut to above 2 metres above the ground to allow people to walk under them.

Next meeting date
Wednesday 6th November 2002 at 7.30pm in the Pavilion.
Andrew Mayhew
Tel: 01473 834035

Somersham Football Club

We started training in mid July and each Tuesday evening so far has seen about 20 players attending. Let's hope this will continue well into the season - especially as the weather deteriorates.

We played 4 friendlies during August, losing twice to Claydon and their reserves, losing once to Bramford Road O.B. and beating them in the second match.

The league season started on Saturday 7th September with the first team travelling to Martlesham and losing 2-0. I understand we battled well against a good up and coming team, and hope we can improve in future games.

As usual during the closed season we lost one or two players, but have also signed on several more, mostly local youngsters, so we are still really building for the future. As I've said before, it will take time to build another strong club, but we think that we're doing the right thing in encouraging our local young players to achieve this. We may not be too successful this season, although we hope to do well, but if the present squad keeps together the benefits should be forthcoming in the next season or two.

We shall have matches most Saturday afternoons now throughout the season. Why not come along and support your local teams?

Finally, if you have any old water-based white paint we could use it when marking out the pitch. Please give me a ring on 831540 or drop it off at my bungalow. All gifts gratefully received.

Dennis Mumby

FLOWER & CLEANING ROTA

Offton Church News:

When you receive this October copy of The Link we will have completed our social and fund-raising events for 2002. In an earlier issue we wrote about the very happy weekend in June with the Festival in Church and the Open Gardens. Since then we have had the Barn Dance, Whist Drive and the SHCT cycle ride. The PCC wish to acknowledge and thank everyone who has been involved in any of these activities over the months - so many people - arranging helping and supporting. Thank you all. We hope that you have enjoyed it.

But life goes on!
This month the pattern of services changes:

1st Sunday
of the month - 9.30 am Holy Communion at Willisham

2nd Sunday 6.30 pm Evensong

3rd Sunday 10 am Family Service
usually with communion by extension

4th Sunday 11 am Holy Communion

5th Sunday See Link Magazine for time and place of services

There is a welcome for everyone at these services. After Family Service there is always a cup of coffee (or tea!) and squash, with biscuits, and time for being together.
We look forward to seeing you.

Red Cross Garden Open Day - Tollemache Hall.

It was a very successful day on 28th of July with lovely weather and lots of visitors enjoying themselves. The sum £801.50 was taken in aid of the Red Cross. Thank you to all who took part in making it
such a worthwhile event.

SOMERSHAM CARPET BOWLS CLUB

The Summer League has now finished and we are pleased to report a final position of second, narrowly beaten by Hadleigh.

We now look forward to the Winter League starting and to meeting new teams again, there being different teams in the Winter League to the Summer League. Once again, if anyone out there is interested in joining us give Bell or Keith a ring on 01473 831157 and we will look forward to seeing you.

Results for July to Sept 2002 Summer League

Neighbourhood Watch - Somersham

Congratulations to the 10 children from Somersham School who completed the Cycling Proficiency Course. After completing the final lesson, a 4-mile cycle in the rain with our Community Beat Officer Diane and myself, the children were presented with Certificates, ice cream and sweets.

That was the pleasant side to Neighbourhood Watch!

For those of you unaware of happenings in Somersham here are a few of the goings on:
In July, garden ornaments, flower tubs and shrubs were stolen from front gardens and driveways. 2 weeks later I attended CID in Stowmarket to identify recovered items -2 of the items were identified and returned to their rightful owner, but other people were not so fortunate.
Yes, the person who stole these garden items from Somersham and elsewhere has been apprehended and charged.

Also in July, criminal damage was carried out on the small children's wooden slide on the Playing field, and to the Pavilion where damage was caused to the extractor fan vents and to an internal fan which was pushed from its internal wall fixings.
In the early hours of August 5th the home of an elderly lady was broken into and her Pension was stolen from her handbag, a most despicable crime. I am working closely with the Police and CID on this crime.

As the dark nights approach, please be vigilant and report any suspicious persons or vehicles, including registration numbers, to me. There is a new dedicated Neighbourhood Watch telephone number available between 8am and 10.30pm. - 07931 322088

Parents, please note that if your children ride their cycles in the dark then they must have working lights front and back; if they don't they may cause and accident, or run the risk of picking up a penalty fine. Of course, this goes for adults as well.

Finally, I still see people walking on the wrong side of the road where there is no footpath -the correct side is the right hand side of the road, facing oncoming traffic.

Keep safe in the autumn and winter months:
Shed alarms £8 UV property marker pens £1

Regards, Colin C. Burrows Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator
Tel: 01473 830132 N/W mobile 07931 322088

WILLISHAM CHURCH NOTES

Church Fete
A full report of the fete can be found elsewhere in this issue of The Link. The actual profit on the afternoon and evening was £1008.76, a marvellous result. Thanks to everyone who supported us in any way.

Harvest Festival
Sunday the 13th October at 3.00pm The produce will be taken to the Salvation Army at Stowmarket, and gifts of food that can be stored, such as tins etc., are particularly welcome. We look forward to seeing you all at the service.

Service Pattern
As and from October, the pattern of services at Willisham church will be changing. We will, of course, keep you up to date with these changes, but please check with the list at the back of the magazine.

Family Bonfire Evening - Friday 1st November
Full details are in separate advertisement, however, if you are able to help on the day, please contact Frances Gilson.

Church Flower and Cleaning Rota
Thanks to everyone who has provided flowers and cleaned the church during 2002. It will soon be time to prepare the new rota, and if you would like to be included please let Frances Gilson know. This does not mean providing large arrangements, just flowers in two vases.