Recent and some less recent but significant events in the Church
St George's Annual Plant Sale and Coffee Morning 21st May 2022
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An annual event in the church is the Spring sale of bedding plants, which attracted a very large number of people this year again. We raised the astonishing sum of £1780, a record and a remarkable achievement given all the other financial pressures on the community at the moment. The sale was organised, as in previous years, by Gillian Irvine, aided by a impressive coterie of helpers who willingly gave of their time on Saturday Morning. The church would want to say a big thank-you to everyone involved.
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The flowers for Easter Sunday were spectacular this year - some photographs taken by Mrs Joan Cooper are shown below
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Early Spring Coffee Morning 2022
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The church held an early Spring Coffee Morning which raised the excellent sum of £872.10 for Church Funds. The photographs shows the variety of stalls, with every stall kept busy during the morning. The kitchen was also busy the whole time serving customers who were clearly delighted to be out and about again after the Winter weather and the way in which Covid had put a dampener on social life in recent times.
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Return of Musica Johannis to St George's for a Christmas Concert
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Friday December the 17th saw a welcome return to St George's of the very talented group Musica Johannis from Newcastle, whose concert raised £500 for Marie Curie. The programme was a varied one with the audience expected to sing two well-known carols whilst Musica Johannis sang a number of carols composed or arranged by composers as varied as Bullard, Chilcott, Watson, Rutter and Thomas Hewitt Jones. There were also arrangements of two very familiar works by Leroy Anderson and Irving Berlin, culminating in Rutter's arrangement of "The Twelve Days of Christmas". A hugely enjoyable programme very well attended and received.
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The Christmas Social returned to St George's after two years to a sell-out audience.
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The Christmas Social is an annual introduction to the Christmas season at St George's, and is usually based rather loosely on local legend and/or well-known stories. This year we used a script written by Jared Johnson just before his untimely death and we were delighted when Margaret Johnson gave us her permission to use it to honour Jared's long association with the Thespian world. The show was based (sort of) on Dickens' great story of the Christmas Carol and the redemption of Ebenezer Scrooge, played on this occasion by our minister Rev. Julian Sanders, who is shown in the first picture with Marley's ghost, played most convincingly by Shirley Forster. Below, first row from left to right: Joann Evans who directed the show, and narrated the action, and the cast in full voice; on the second row the rather un-Dickensian and very villainous sisters of the young Scrooge and the band supporting the cause; on the third row are some of the indispensable drinks team and the highly versatile Shirley now playing the part of the ghost of Christmas Present. Audience participation was enthusiastic with boos, hisses and cheers reaching to the rafters. A great night out to cheer everyone up.
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The ever-popular Lunchtime concerts are back
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We are delighted to welcome the relaunch of the Lunchtime Concert series organised by Gillian and Ken Irvine. The first of the Autumn series featured the Virtuoso Jazz Trio, who are always warmly received by the audience and the second concert featured Jessica Graham (violin) and Rachel Jeffers (flute) who were accompanied by Ken Irvine and gave a delightful concert in October. On November 17th we will welcome some of the very talented pupils of David and Jennifer Murray.
The plant sale - May 2021
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A sign of returning normality was the plant sale on May 29th. We thought to hold it outside to minimise infection and to allow more control over numbers. In the event the weather was kind to us and visitors were content to wait if the garden became too full. It was a wonderful reminder of all that we had missed.
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The new doors to the church were installed in July 2020
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After much discussion, the church resolved at a church meeting to install new glass doors at the front and to re-model the vestibule to make a more welcoming entry point for worshippers. The results are shown in the attached pictures, with photographs taken of the new church interior, the newly-moved Methodist Window, and the front doors from outside. In addition, the old wooden doors have been retained and used to make a new external chair in the garden.
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World Day of Prayer 6th March 2020
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The World Day of Prayer, previously known as the Women's World Day of Prayer was held in Morpeth Methodist Church on Friday 6th March. The St George's orchestra supplied most of the music for the occasion, ably led by Harriet Gilfillan and the service was written by the Christian Women of Zimbabwe. The service was followed by a wonderful tea in the hall.
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Air Cadets' Service 2nd February 2020
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The church was delighted to welcome the Morpeth Air Cadets to their annual service in St George's. There is a long connection between the Air Cadets and the church; the previous minister, Revd. Ron Forster, was their chaplain for may years, and the connection is maintained through Revd. Alison Mills, a church members and the minister at St Mark's, Amble. During the service, the Air Cadets renewed their vows and read the lessons.
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Christmas-Tree Festival 2019
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The Christmas Tree Festival organised by the Multiple Sclerosis Research and Relief Fund took place in St George's Church again this year on the 6th and 7th December. As always the trees were dazzling, showing a phenomenal level of creativity in the community; some of the trees are shown in the photographs courtesy of Gillian Irvine. In order the trees are from: Sunshine pre-school Nursery; Morpeth Camera Club; St George's Junior Church; Goosehill Nursery; Lavenders Blue; Wetherspoons; Mid-Northumberland Chorus; St George's Church; Morpeth Flower Club; Henry Dancer Days Children's Cancer Charity; The Office Pub and The Morpeth Lions.
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The induction of our new Minister, Revd. Julian Sanders 2019
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St George's Church turned out in force to welcome its new minister, Revd. Julian Sanders on his induction. The photographs (all courtesy Gillian Irvine) show Julian describing his call, showing the gift of the church, a Northumberland tartan stole, the orchestra playing for the service, the tea afterwards in the upper hall, Julian with his three sons, Julian being greeted by Revd. Anthony Oakley from Morpeth Methodist Church, and Julian with the Moderator, interim Moderator, and the church secretaries of St George's Morpeth, Widdrington and Great Bavington.
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Easter Day 2019 - A Celebration of Easter and two Baptisms and Confirmations
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Easter was a very special occasion this year; not only was the church looking spectacular with flowers arranged by the Flower Committee under Dorothy Luke, but we also celebrated the baptism and subsequent confirmation of Josh and Martin Benkhabeb-House.
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Country Dance Club March Meeting 9th March 2019
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There was an excellent turn-out of about 30-35 people for the March CDC, with several new folk attending for the first time and with 10 Ceilidh Band members playing.
Future CDC dates for the whole of 2019 are: 6 April, 4 May, 14 Sept, 19 Oct and 9 Nov. Sessions are from 7.30 to around 9.30/9.45 and are suitable for all ages - no previous experience is needed because all dances are walked-through and then "called". Cost is only £1.50 per session for adults and children are free. On 28 Sept we also host the Annual Christian Aid Ceilidh. Tickets for this cost £5 (adult) and £2.50 (child). This event has a paying bar and a raffle to raise money for the Charity. Contact Jared Johnson on 01670 514610 or email jared-marg@hotmail.com for further details. |
February Tea-time Talk
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On February 28th Dr Hilary Hamnett gave a talk entitled "Nerve Agents in the News" which was attended by a substantial audience who were fascinated by the stories of recent poisonings in the UK and elsewhere. The photographs show Hilary lecturing and relaxing afterwards, as well as the intense discussions taking place over tea after the lecture.
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Christmas Toy Service
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The Christmas Toy Service gives an opportunity for the congregation to present gifts to children who might otherwise go without. Before the service the Christmas Angels were assembled, during the service the young people presented and the orchestra played, afterwards the banners of the uniformed organisations were taken out and all the presents prepared for distribution.
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Sunday Nativity Blessing 8th November
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A very beautiful knitted nativity set was presented to the church on Sunday and blessed. The most remarkable, and a fine example of knitting skills, was the camel, which proved a great attraction after the service. Photograph by Joan Cooper.
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Harvest Festival at St George's Church
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Harvest Festival at St George's was held this year on 23rd September led by Mrs. Margery Tate and with the singing led by the church orchestra. The congregation was joined by Rainbow and Brownies who sang a song and the congregation sang a new harvest samba!
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St George's Summer Picnic and Ceilidh
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St George's held a Summer Picnic and Ceilidh which was attended by a grown-ups and children in equal measure, the latter making up in enthusiasm what they may have lacked in precision. The evening started at 5.00 pm with a picnic outside in the sunshine; the SGURC Ceilidh band announced the second part of the evening. The children were still full of energy, the grown ups a little less so, but who can resist a "come on" from a little girl in her party frock when the dance was called or a teenager about the age of one of my granddaughters who said "you're still agile " when the Cumberland square eight was called. Here are some photos from Joan Cooper: we hope you can feel the fun.
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The Younger Generation at The Knitter and Natter Group
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The younger generation are as anxious to help as the older ones; the ;icture on the left shows grandma and helping the grandchildren to start to knit, and on the right a young visitor to the stand at the Morpeth Gathering also tries her hand.
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Soup and Pud Lunch with the Knitter and Natter Group
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The lift at St George's needed major repairs recently and many groups have set about helping to raise funds to pay for this. On Wednesday April 4th, the Knitter and Natter group held a soup and pud lunch and the pictures show some of the guests enjoying the occasion.
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St George's Annual Toy Service and Blessing of the Angels
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The Annual Toy Service and Blessing of the Angels took place on Sunday 3rd December at St George's. The toys will be collected and wrapped by Joan and Robin Cooper and other members of the Morpeth Lions Club and distributed to children through the Children's Support Team in Ashington, who identified the children most at need. Morpeth Lions Club would like to say a big Thankyou to all those members of the congregation who donated toys and cash at the Sunday Toy service. We have lots more toys and clothing etc. than needed for the initial children. However, the Children's Support Team workers have many other children that will benefit from these extras that we will give them.
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St George's - a previous Christmas Social
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The Annual Christmas Social at St George's was held on Friday evening 1st December, directed by Joann Evans supported by a cast that made up in enthusiasm what might have been lacking in the terpsichorean arts. The theme was the seasons and the music hall: numbers included "I do like to be beside the seaside"; "Some enchanted Evening"; "Daddy wouldn't buy me a bow-wow"; "Burlington Bertie"; "I Love to go a-wandering"; "Nobody loves a Fairy when she's Forty"; "Here we go a-wassailing"; "The twelve days of Christmas" and the "Zither Carol". The kitchen provided an excellent meal and the Hall was a sell-out for the occasion. It was a great get-together.
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Annual Church Autumn Fair 2017
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The annual church Autumn Fair place on Saturday 7th October in the morning, and as always was well-attended with the home-baked stalls proving particularly attractive. Some of the stalls are shown in the photographs as well as the scene in the hall during the fair.
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Christian Aid Ceilidh
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Saturday 14th October saw the St George's Ceilidh band in full flow at a Ceilidh in support of Christian Aid. The caller was Jared Johnson and a great deal of fun was had mastering the traditional dances of Northumberland.
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50th Anniversary of the Ladies' Coffee Club
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The Ladies' Coffee Club celebrated its 50th Anniversary with a tea on Friday 13th October in the Church Hall. Lots of memories were exchanged, photographs of the 40th Anniversary exhibited, and some of the original founders of the club reminisced about its early days. The photos are courtesy Stephanie Robson.
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Ron Forster's Retirement Service
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Ron Forster's official retirement service took place on Sunday 23rd July with former Synod Moderator Liz Mullen preaching the sermon and the band playing de-do-ron-ron (amongst other pieces). Afterwards a retirement cake was presented to Ron and Shirley, showing the pair in traditional dress at the last Morpeth Gathering. Ron was asked to make the first cut, revealing a highly multi-coloured cake
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Garden Party at St George's URC
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The Church garden party took place on Saturday 22nd July, though this year we retreated to the church hall owing to the weather. The hall was filled to capacity, the band serenaded us all and conversation was highly animated! Extra tea was needed in prodigious quantities and Ron and Shirley Forster were present to receive our best wishes. Pictures from Gillian Irvine.
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Junior Church Graduation 2017
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On July 16th The Junior Church broke up for the Summer and made a presentation to the congregation showing a montage they had constructed. It is also the last Sunday for Shirley Forster who has led the Junior Church for many years and who is now stepping down. A presentation was made to Shirley as well as to all the Junior Church members to say a heartfelt thank you for all her hard work. Some pictures of the final presentation are shown courtesy Stephanie Robson.
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Farewell Ceilidh for Ron Forster
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On 8th July the Church Hall saw a great evening of dancing and a marvellous buffet to celebrate the nineteen years of Ron's ministry at St George's. The photographs show both Ron and Shirley and some of the dancers, as well as one of the two bands playing that evening. Photos from Gillian Irvine.
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Installation of new chairs in the Church
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Thursday 15th June marked a major change in the appearance of the church. We installed a set of 150 new chairs, after spending a week removing the old pews and cleaning the carpet. The pictures show the new views from the pulpit and some of the helpers.
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Away Weekend at Windermere 5 - 7th May
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The Church organised a weekend away in the first weekend of May to prepare for the departure of our minister Revd. Ron Forster and to enjoy spiritual renewal with the recently retired moderator, LIz Mullen. The two photographs on the left show the garden at the Windermere Centre and some of our group awaiting lunch on Sunday morning.
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The programme for the weekend had us watching the film 'Whistle Down the Wind' on Friday evening, a still very thought-provoking drama starring Hayley Mills, with a marvellous performance by the child actor Alan Barnes. On Saturday, Liz led a discussion of the film that broadened out into a very interesting set of reflections by members on the role of the church. On Saturday evening, after dinner (left above) Taffy Thomas gave one of his inimitable performances as a story-teller (above, centre) and then we got ready (above right) for a quiz, that was won handsomely by the team shown on the left. Many congratulations to them!
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The Morpeth Angels
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For the last two years,members of the church and their many friends and relatives outside, have knitted little angels; these are blessed and then distributed to local shops and businesses and also left in highways and byways to be picked up and taken home to remind us all that Christmas is more than a secular festival. Some of the (more than 400) angels are shown in the photographs, one in Korea!
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One of the angels was found on a Christmas Tree and one in the woods, shown also in close-up. There have been lots of comments on FaceBook about the angels; those finding them have said how much it means to them: "Thank-you for my lovely angel ,found it on Lady's Walk whilst out walking"; "Found my lovely angel attached to a tree on our way out of Lancaster Park this morning! How delightful. Our little girl was very excited"; "Big thank-you to Ron Forster and his knitting elves for brightening up a grey Monday morning.. Look out for this one’s friends dotted around the town, you might be lucky enough to find one"; "A wonderful gift from St. George’s Church I found on my doggie walk. Feeling quite blessed! A welcome little angel for my granddaughter now safe and sound on my Christmas tree."
Joint Carol Service
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Every year, St George's Church Morpeth hold a joint Carol Service with Morpeth Methodist Church. This year the service was held at St George's and a specially convened choir sang three pieces: an old Appalachian Carol ("I wonder as I wander"), and two songs by Warlock and Singer. The Service also had severn congregational carols and bible readings, as well as two other readings: one specially written by Revd. Stuart Brock and the other the "Journey of the Magi" by T.S. Eliot. The photograph shows the congregation in fellowship after the service was over.
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Cradle Roll Service
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Every three months St George's Church holds a cradle-roll service inviting all children recently baptised in the church, together with their parents, to come along for an hour of play and fellowship. The photograph shows a rather magical scene as the first Christmas was re-enacted for and with the children and the adults present.
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Church Nativity Play
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Each Year St George's Church Morpeth and Morpeth Methodist Church jointly organise a Nativity Play. This year the play was performed at the Methodist Church with children from both churches taking part; the photogaph on the left shows the scene during the rehearsal and the photograph on the bottom left the actual performance with the Revd. Ron Forster, our minister, presiding. The Nativity play was accompanied by the St George's orchestra who are shown in festive garb in the photograph below.
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Light in the Darkness Service
Each Year the Morpeth Funeral Directors, Jacob Conroy and Son, in association with St George's Church organises a service to bring together at Christmas those who have lost a loved one in the recent past. Each person attending is invited to light a candle in memory of their loved one, and the photograph shows the communion table with the candles lit at the end of the service. The service on this occasion was conducted by Revd. Ron Forster with prayers said by the Rector of Morpeth, the Revd. Simon White. The order of service is available below.
Junior Church makes the Christmas Crib Figures
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Our Minister involved in the Community
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The Revd. Ron Forster has been heavily involved in Community activities throughout his ministry here at St George's but this week was very special. On 22nd May Morpeth Town Football Club played Hereford FC at Wembley and Ron is shown in the picture having blessed the shirts of the players. The remarkable double rainbow may have been a favourable response from on high, as the Morpeth team won 4-1 in a thrilling match. They will parade with their trophy on Morpeth Fair Day 12th June, when the whole town will welcome them back. Three days later, at a ceremony in the Town Hall on May 25th, Ron was unanimously elected Deputy Mayor of Morpeth with Shirley, his wife, as his official consort to general acclamation. This was a popular appointment and a tribute to the affection in which Ron is held in the town.
Ron can be heard on BBC Radio Newcastle talking about the Team The segment on Morpeth AFC starts at 01:48:26 in the link. Picture courtesy Councillor David Clark. |
Twenty Years of Ministry Celebration for Suzanne
Suzanne Hamnett, one of the ministers associated with St George's Church in Morpeth, was ordained in 1995 after three years study at the North-East Oecumenical Course and she celebrated 20 years of ministry on 27th December at the church.