The Village Magazine for Point & Penpoll INFORMATION INFORMATION From Penpoll Methodist Church Village Activities Hire of Rooms

(All held in the chapel) Penpoll Methodist Church Meetings, functions, parties etc Issue No 31 WI: 2nd Monday in the month contact Bridget 862662 Christmas 2009 2.00pm: Sally Brocklehurst 864717 Mobile Library Coffee Stop: 1st Friday in the Saturdays—fortnightly month, 10.00—11.30am; except Jan Penpoll Bridge & Point Green Sale of coffee, cakes, preserves etc Home Library Service Lunch Club: one Wednesday Angela Spurgin, Truro Library each month, dates vary. Contact 0800 032 2345 (freephone) Betty 863902 / Bridget 862662 enquiryexpress@cornwall.gov.uk

Corlink ROCKs—Right On Church for Taxi service to nearest Kids: every Sunday 10.30—11.30 appropriate bus route am in the school rooms Sept— Tel: 0845 8505556 June. Contact Penny 862624 www.cornishkey.com

Bus Service B*olders —8-16 year olds. www.truronian.co.uk Times vary. Contact Kath 864415 01872 273453

Village

Café Church —every Sunday Point Quay Association 10:45-11-30 am Sept-June (11-18 Tez Smith 865413 years). Contact Vicky 864729 www.pointquayassociation.org.uk

Restronguet Creek Society Parish Office Antony Lane 870123 Opening Hours View www.restronguetcreeksociety.org Monday 9.30 am—12.30pm Wednesday 1.30 pm—4.30 pm Friday 9.30 am—12.30pm Village View Editors

Ewan McClymont 862624 At other times please leave a Tez Smith 865413 message — 863333. Nicki John 864750

Printed by Mid Cornwall Printing

16 considered mentally ill and be admitted to Message hospital for stabilisation. Or perhaps the police would take him away for being a dis- From... orderly vagrant. He was waiting for Jesus, calling people to repent, preparing the way. Dear Friends, The message of the birth of Jesus ‘Teenage pregnancy rates go back up,’ so was first heard by outsiders. The first people the papers say. Earlier this year we heard of to be told that Jesus was born were a group a young lad who became a ‘dad’ at 13. of lowly shepherds at work. Today it might ALMOND’S There are numerous reports of similar inci- be refuse collectors, or those who clear the Maintenance dents. Youth homelessness figures are MOBILE NEWSAGENTS drains or sewers. God came to the common Repairs falling but at least 75,000 young people are TEL. 01872 870477 people – not people that you would expect Renovations still at risk. Which occupations would you to be given the message first, but God knew Extensions consider to be the dirtiest? Refuse collect- what he was doing. And, very much a part NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES ing? Cleaning out sewers? Clearing up after of our nativity plays are the Wise Men. We DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR recent flooding? Shepherd? I’m not going admire them for their perseverance. They WE PROVIDE A FRIENDLY AND EFFICIENT SERVICE—WHATEVER THE into the incidence of mental illness, or, in- listened to God. We know they were foreign- WEATHER, 364 DAYS OF THE YEAR deed, immigration. “What has all this got to ers but not the colour of their skin. They Tel: 01872 862361 do with Christmas?” you may well ask. eventually found him, and they responded 01209 716411 PLEASE CALL TO DISCUSS YOUR Some will know but Let me remind you of with their gifts and their joy. God used peo- REQUIREMENTS some of the people in the Christmas story. ple from other countries, strangers, to show Mary and Joseph, shepherds, us the way. They were welcome. Racial John the Baptist (not in the Christmas story) prejudice is still rife in our country today. called by God, to ‘Prepare the Way’ for Je- These are the characters of sus, and the Wise Men. Jesus was born to Christmas that is more than story, it is fact. Mary, who was engaged to Joseph. We, They help us to prepare for the arrival of David Vowles popularly, make her an unmarried teenager. Jesus, the ultimate outsider/insider, for Interior and Exterior We hold up our hands in horror but, not only whom there was no room at the inn for his Computer Training was she pregnant before marriage, but this birth, but there was room on the cross for Painting and Decorating couple were also homeless. Yet Jesus his death. He would be heralded by a mad Christ, Saviour of the world, was born to a For friendly, professional man, born to an unmarried girl, born some- The Old Counthouse couple who were not married. There wasn’t where pretty rough, visited by lowly shep- help with: room at the inn, so Jesus was laid in a man- herds, adored by Wise Men, servant of all, Creegbrawse ger. The greatest event in history took place King of Kings. Welcomed by those whom St Day in the most awful conditions. A far cry from we shun. Christmas above all, shows the E-mail, Digital Cameras, the hygiene and the warmth of a maternity world upside down, when outsiders lead the Internet, Windows, Word, Cornwall hospital, and it happened to a young, un- way. Excel etc. TR16 5QF known, unmarried girl. “I am the Lord’s ser- I wish you all a Very Happy & Blessed vant, I will do whatever he wants”. Christmas, and rich blessings for 2010. With Halfway through Advent we usu- love, Call Ian on: Tel 01209 822575 ally go back a bit in the story and consider John the Baptist. Straight out of the wilder- 01872 870702 ness unwashed, unkempt, a loner, crying out to the people. A cousin to Jesus, he had Reverend Margaret Barnes surely flipped. Today he would probably be

2 15 Telephone Box page 4 Memory Lane 9 GARDEN SERVICES WI 5 In Memoriam - Arthur Cope10-11 PQA 5 In Memoriam - Ralph Bird 11-12 B*Olders 6 Night Sky 13 All basic garden Chapel History 7 Adverts 13-15 needs undertaken Concert and Nativity 8 Local Information 16

Grass Cutting, Hedge WHAT’S ON AT PENPOLL METHODIST CHURCH Trimming, Strimming, Ground

Clearance, Fencing and December Pressure Washing of Paths Fri 4 th Christmas Coffee Stop, 10.00 – 11.30am and Patios Wed 9 th Lunch Club 12 noon Friendly, prompt and Fri 18 th Charity Christmas Concert by Syd Mitchell and Friends polite service at all times 7.30pm followed by supper Sun 20 th Carol Service 10.30am Tel. 01872 870400 Nativity 6.00pm th Mob. 07974 563857 Thurs 24 Midnight Communion Service with the Revd M Barnes, BA, BTh, 11.30pm Fri 25 th Christmas morning service at Feock Methodist Church, 10.00am Sharon Thomas January Fri 1 st NO Coffee Stop Ladies Mobile Wed 13 th Lunch Club 12 noon Hairstylist Sun 24 th Chapel Anniversary service led by the Revd Dr John Johnson 10.30am. Lunch for all. 25 years experience

February Tel. 01872 862 361 th Fri 5 Coffee Stop 10.00 – 11.30am For an appointment Wed 10 th Lunch Club 12 noon

If you would like to March Fri 5 th Coffee Stop 10.00 – 11.30am advertise here Wed 10 th Lunch Club 12 noon please contact: Sun 14 th Mothering Sunday – Café Church style service 10.30 – 11.30am Nicki John

01872 864750

14 3 In very ancient times the Sun Red A Winter’s Sky appeared in front of Capricorn around our Shortest Day. Because that day Green Icon At Night always also marks the time when the Should Bill Bryson ever wander The planet Jupiter can easily Sun is overhead at noon on the South- past Point Green, en-route to the post be found as the brightest object in the ern Tropic, this explains why that line box to dispatch another fuming missive current night sky, being about one hand- came to be called "The Tropic of Capri- to the editor of the Daily Telegraph on span (held at arm's length) above the corn". By the time the Magi were seek- the plight of rural England, then he’d horizon around 6pm if you look to the ing the Christ Child, the Sun appeared probably be aware of the Green’s asso- South West. The Moon will be close to adjacent to, rather than in front of, Cap- ciation with Battersea Power station and Jupiter on the 21st and 22nd of Decem- ricorn on our Shortest Day. Twenty Liverpool’s Anglican cathedral. In the ber. Jupiter is currently at the top left of more centuries of Precession mean that bottom right hand corner of the Green procure the box from British Telecom for the faint constellation of Capricorn, the Sun is now well clear of Capricorn at stands a diminutive design icon, the K6 the nominal sum of £1. The PQA has whose main claim to fame is to be a this time of year, hence we can see this GPO telephone box, which like the agreed to maintain the box in addition to constellation of the Zodiac. This means constellation well after sunset on De- aforementioned brick and sandstone the orchard and quay. the Sun appears in front of it at some cember 21st. On this date the Sun is monoliths, is a work of Sir Giles Gilbert In the winter, the telephone point during the year, the timing of this also overhead at noon on a line which is Scott. The ‘Kiosk No 6’, introduced for box acts as the village lighthouse, pro- event slowly varying over a roughly still called The Tropic of Capricorn, even King George V's silver jubilee in 1935 viding a cosy focus during the months of 25,800 year cycle caused by a phe- though the alignment which gave it that was deployed in virtually every town and daylight saving. Once the phone is re- nomenon called Precession. name no longer applies. Neil Rundle. city in the UK and can be seen on the moved, the question of what to do with streets of Malta, Gibraltar and Bermuda. the box arises. Perhaps we should take At a recent meeting of the a lead from the villagers of Westbury- Campaign to Protect Rural England, the sub-Mendip where they now have a new President, Bryson, highlighted the need mini-library for book exchanges, or do we need a Gallery On The Green as the to preserve the defining features of the English countryside including ancient inhabitants of Settle opted for? Right Hand Woman has vast experience of trees, hedgerows, telephone boxes, and If you have any alternative co-ordinating a wide range of lifestyle projects and events. the village store and pub. While the lat- ideas for a use for the telephone box • Organise & supervise trades people at home or organise a spring clean ter may be long gone from Point, the give a member of the PQA a bell, but • Preparing 2 nd / holiday home: e.g. heating on, pre-agreed food shop, future of its telephone box should soon you’ll need to be quick if you want to supper in oven & clean up on departure! be secured. The Parish Council is to use the phone box on the Green! • Personal shopper: Source & purchase special gifts / products • De-cluttering rooms • Organise family reunions / surprise outings, parties or YOUR special event • Dropping in on an elderly relative – helping with chores/personal shopping • PA – Any project you haven’t TIME to organise and see through yourself

No challenge too big (or small!) - Making the impossible, possible!

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Please contact Nicki: info@righthandwoman uk .co.uk 01872 864 750 or 07971 481 363 4 13 ber meeting we always go out to lunch, Womens and this year the venue will be the St. Michael Hotel in Falmouth. Institute Our final planned event will be only a few days before Christmas with The sport of gig racing derived unhurried perfectionist, produced from Having recovered from another carol singing around the village on Mon- from the keen competition between gig his small but functional workshop in very successful community evening with day 21 st December to raise money for crews to reach incoming ships first and Devoran classic gigs for many of the the underwater photographer, Mark The Fishermen's Mission in Newlyn. We to get their pilot aboard to claim the pilo- leading clubs of enthusiasts that his Webster, we are now planning next shall start at Point Quay at 6.00pm and tage fee. Ralph was enraptured by the initiative had inspired. He was a quiet, year's programme. This should feature end about two hours later at Penlee for speed and elegance of the gigs from an mild-mannered man, a peerless crafts- the Penlee House Gallery paintings, the the usual mince pies and mulled wine. early age, and arranged with Newquay man, as well as a prodigious researcher Mercy Ships Charity, Bonhams auction- We are planning to come along the Rowing Club to borrow three of their and amateur marine historian. His public eers, 'Quirky Cornwall' - parts of the Tram road to the bridge, up Penpol hill, traditional gigs to stage the first Ralph talks about gigs, pilot cutters, wooden county we might not have noticed as down Point road, around Chycoose Bird Three Rivers Race in Truro in boats and local history conveyed his told to us by a Cornish Bard, how to Park and then down the Ropewalk. 1981. The drive and determination with enthusiasm and delight in the subjects, look after our feet by a chiropodist, the Please listen out for us and come and which he promoted the event triggered a and usually sold out. He wrote two life of a vet in Swaziland and during the join in even if it is only for a short while. revival, and within a few years several books, lectured on boat building at Fal- BSE and Foot and Mouth in Wiltshire, Sally Brocklehurst (01872 864717). clubs had formed to compete and to mouth Marine School and made weekly also Prof. Jan Pentreath talking about popularise the sport. visits to the National Maritime Museum, Cornish Wildlife and the Wildlife Trust. Assisted by George Northey, where he was closely involved in a suc- We shall start the year with our Point Quay Ralph arranged a meeting of club repre- cession of restoration projects. usual 'do-it-ourselves' entertainment, Association sentatives in the front room of his cot- Of the 141 registered gigs now which one member has said she prefers to all the talks we have! Last year's for- tage at Carnon Mine, Devoran, in De- in use, Ralph personally hand-built 29 of The AGM of the PQA was held mula of piano duets, Cornish mono- cember 1986 whereby they agreed that them. In October 2007, the year he re- on 3rd December 2009 at Penpoll logues and generally laughing at our- a Cornish Pilot Gig Association should tired from boat building, all 29 gigs that Chapel. After reviewing the accounts selves was so enjoyable that something be established to ensure the build Ralph had built were brought together and activities on the Quay over the last similar is being planned for January. measurements of future boats. A year on the beach in Newquay for the chris- 12 months, thanks were made to those Elaine Beckton has said she will come later, Ralph’s detailed specifications tening and launch of his last, built for the who have helped in maintaining the and demonstrate Indian head massage based on a 19th century Newquay gig, Porthgain club in Wales. Rather fittingly, Orchard and Quay. Billy Trebilcock and to us at our annual meeting in February; ‘Treffry’, were accepted for the future the owners named it ‘Ralph Bird’ in hon- Ewen Abram-Moore were replaced as and in March, Charlie and Nelson, the standard, and his first gig built for Cadg- our of its creator. Secretary and Chairman by Howard fire accelerant detection dogs working with Club, ‘Buller’, was an exact copy. Ralph Bird is survived by his Spiers and Tez Smith respectively. John with Cornwall Fire Brigade, will come There are now 53 affiliated gig second wife, Marie, former postmistress Fox retains the post of Treasurer. and give a demonstration. clubs from as far afield as France, the of Devoran Post Office, and by three Please contact any of the members with After a wonderful talk about the US, Australia and the Faeroe Islands. children from his first marriage, John, any concerns or if you wish to help out. cultivation of willow and its uses, Carol For 21 years Ralph, a painstaking and Vanessa and Patrick. Following an approach by the Horsington is returning in December to Parish Council, the PQA has agreed to run a workshop, teaching us to make take on the maintenance of the tele- garlands for the front door and Christ- phone box on the Green (see article mas decorations. Instead of a Decem- opposite).

12 5 Point family beat a Devoran family in the heart, Dorothy, and had a son John and B*Olders tug-o-war. twin girls Mary and Ann. Dorothy prede- RalphProject Bird ceased him in 2001 and Ann died of the Fund Raising rare Wilson’s disease in 1990. In‘Make Memoriam Over’ Long holidays allowed him to On the 17th October a big fund indulge in hobbies of woodworking, din- raiser in aid for the youth group at Pen- ghy sailing, mountaineering and skiing. poll Chapel was held on the quay. I’m He finished up at the University of Aston glad to say it was a great turn out and teaching undergraduates in automobile we rose an impressive £225, which engineering and researching vibrations brings our total amount to £330 with until retirement to Point. Arriving at ‘Port some very kind donations! Tack’ allowed him to further indulge in his passion for sailing in his Westerly At B*Olders (the youth group) Centaur and to discover windsurfing on we are revamping the upstairs for a cool the creek, along with walking in the Cor- Ralph Ian Bird (1942 – 2009), new chill out space for all to enjoy. We nish countryside. boat-builder and president of the Cor- are having the kitchen redone and new After 25 brilliant years a series nish Pilot Gig Association, was born of a floors and furniture! We really appreci- of minor strokes meant moving to Kinver Cornish family in 1942 in Fish Hoek, ate all the hard work all the adults are to live with the support of his daughter Cape Town, South Africa. His father’s ill putting into this project. The space Mary. Here he was able to potter along health caused the family to move back should be ready in time for Christmas so the canal at the bottom of their garden to Cornwall and Ralph spent his first do feel free to pop upstairs and take a and watch the narrowboats. After an birthday on a ship en-route. His father The fund raiser consisted of peek after the Nativity performance. unsteady year he had a few weeks in died when Ralph was just three years stalls, paper planes, crabbing comple- On behalf of every one in youth hospital followed by a short period in a old and his mother and grandfather, tion and a great tug-o-war! Luckily we club I’d just like to say a big thank you to nursing home last summer before a who worked on the ships in Falmouth had amazing weather and even better, a everyone who turned up and had fun! further series of strokes sapped his harbour, brought him up. Hester Claridge. strength and he died peacefully in Sep- As a youngster, Ralph was PS: In the run up to Christmas we’ve tember. regularly taken aboard the gunboats been busy at ROCK’s and B*Olders and battleships laid up in the Fal estuary preparing pudding (see below) —can’t after the war. After attending technical wait to try it! college in Cornwall, he learnt his craft as a shipwright through an apprentice- ship with Falmouth Boat Construction. Once he had perfected his skills, his teenage interest with traditional Cornish pilot gigs became an adult obsession, and he is credited with taking the sport of pilot gig racing from the history books to what is now a thriving competitive pastime and international sport.

6 11 by the Gestapo as they were not in uni- associated with the First World War ArthurProject Cope form. For a week they were to be shot Penpoll Church were keenly felt, the financial situation as spies. Eventually they managed to was sometimes difficult, relationships In‘Make Memoriam Over’ convince their captors that they were History with other parts of Methodism were not regular servicemen and so became The present Penpoll Methodist always harmonious and younger mem- POWs in Stalag 8b, East Germany. Five chapel was built during 1861 on the bers often had to leave the district to years were spent in harsh conditions, same site as an earlier one and officially find work elsewhere. Nonetheless, very working in open cast mines and sus- opened in January 1862. A huge strong local connections, sometimes tained by potato peelings! amount of historical information about going back many generations, have After the Normandy landings the chapel has survived, most of it held been maintained and will feature they were forced to march eastwards in in our County Record Office. To com- strongly in the book. Four present mem- appalling winter conditions to Poland. memorate its 150 year history, Penpoll's bers have family links that go back well One morning they awoke to find their membership has readily agreed that I over 100 years, in three cases almost guards had disappeared. The advancing should write its history with the aim of the entire 150 years. Their ability to re- Russians took over but had no interest having the book available in the middle call past experiences will be invaluable. in them. The men started to walk back of 2011. As well as describing and inter- westwards through Germany taking preting the 19th and 20th century his- food from abandoned farmhouses. torical information, I will want to talk with Weeks later he reached a river where the present members of the congrega- the allies had met the Russians. There tion to gain their insights into the life of Arthur “Pop” Cope (1919-2009) was chaos and confusion – was he a the chapel in the relatively recent past. If the son of a master mason, was brought fleeing German? Arthur created an inci- there are local people who have mate- up in the Birmingham area with four dent with a jeep full of Russians and rial that they think will be of interest I siblings. After matriculation he did a with a handful of Russian words per- would be most grateful if they will con- machine tool apprenticeship in Bolton suaded them to allow him to cross the tact me by letter, telephone or email. as his parents could only afford to send only bridge left standing. On his solitary (862297 or the eldest son to university. He travelled walk across he still felt they might Methodists established a pres- [email protected] ) there on his beloved motorbike and change their minds and shoot him in the ence in Penpoll just before Cornwall's John Lander lived in digs. back! mining industry began its terminal de- He joined the British Expedi- A period of rehabilitation fol- cline. The economic and social events tionary force in 1939 and was attempt- lowed on a Northamptonshire farm. of the past 150 years have had a deci- ing to reach the evacuation at Dunkirk Arthur then attended a technical training sive influence on the chapel community. when his progress was slowed support- college for ex-servicemen and so began Many of its earliest members were em- ing a colleague badly wounded in the an academic career. He had a brilliant ployed in the lead and tin smelting leg. Overrun by the Germans – the pair mathematical brain combined with prac- works, and the majority of local children were hidden by locals in a canal barge tical skills. Through evening study he attended the Sunday school, meeting and given civilian clothes. The bargers attained an external London University first in the smelting works. harbouring them became frightened and degree with first class honours in engi- Although elements of the story asked them to move on. The pair tried neering; the only one awarded to 256 are typical of those in other Cornish to reach Britain through Belgium but exam candidates that year. towns and villages, there are distinctive were captured and sent for interrogation He married a childhood sweet- features. The individual family tragedies 10 7 The Chapel Sunday School Treat is Memory captured below, back in 1911. If you recognise a family member please con- Lane tact Village View so additional names can be added.

Second row from front: lady on left with bow tie – Edith Rees; man with dark mous- tache and bowler hat behind baby on right – William Michell Back row: 3rd from left – Richard (Dicker) John Hitchens

Join the WI for carol singing around the Creek: Monday 21 st December

Meet at 6.00 pm on Point Quay. Concluding with punch and mince pies at Penlee.

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