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The Parish Newsletter of the linked charges of Hobkirk and Southdean with Ruberslaw No: 41 Spring 2016 Hobkirk & Southdean Parish Church of : Charity No. SC012830 Ruberslaw Parish : Charity No. SC034629 Don’t forget the Easter Eggs!

ave you ever wondered why eggs have such a special Hsignificance at Easter? Eggs have been an important fertility symbol for millennia, and they have always been associated with the rebirth of Spring. And as eggs are associated with new life, early Christians used them as a visual symbol of the resurrection of Jesus. When people first starting giving eggs as offerings and gifts at Easter time, they used birds' eggs. They were painted bright colours to echo the vibrancy of the colours of Spring after the darkness of Winter. In the UK and Europe, early Easter eggs took the form of duck, hen or goose eggs. These were later replaced by artificial of the century chocolate eggs became the ubiquitous Easter eggs until eventually, as chocolate became a more widely offering. available foodstuff, the first chocolate eggs began to appear in Eggs are significant as a shared tradition between Christianity the early 1800's. The vogue for exchanging chocolate eggs at and Judaism - hard-boiled eggs are served at Passover and are Easter quickly spread right across the globe so that by the end used to reinforce the idea of rebirth. EASTER SERVICES

Palm Sunday, 20 March: Services at 9.30am at Hobkirk and 11am at Minto with Baptism; and 6pm ‘Easter Praise’ at Southdean

Maundy Thursday, 24 March: 7pm Communion at

Good Friday, 25 March: 7pm Service at

Easter Sunday, 27 March: 7am Service on top of Ruberslaw; 9.30am Communion at Hobkirk; and 11am Family Service at Denholm

HOBKIRK & SOUTHDEAN ANNOUNCEMENTS RUBERSLAW Baptisms 31 January 2016 at Bedrule: Octavia Florence Stirling Pollock

Wedding Funerals 20 February 2016 on Ruberslaw: David Mactaggart and Claire 4 December 2015 at Bedrule: Jocky Palmer Hislop 11 December 2015 at Denholm: Grace Beck 16 December 2015 at Denholm: Nan Hardy Baptism 30 December 2015 at Denholm: Jim Oliver 28 February 2016 at Southdean: Ella Rae Shaw 22 January 2016 at Denholm: Olivia Emma Young and Sophia Jane Young Visit our web page at www.hobkirkwithruberslaw.org and like us at www.facebook.com/ruberslawchurch A Message from your Minister…..

Dear Friends, WELCOME TO WORSHIP! With this Easter edition of ‘Parish News’ you will find a copy of the calendar for services taking place in the five churches of Hobkirk and Southdean with Ruberslaw over the coming twelve months. Please put it in a place where you can refer to it as these months pass by. Whether you be a ‘seeker’ or a committed Christian there will be something of interest in the services in the months to come, and there is a variety to suit different tastes. Take this Easter, for example – if you like singing, come to Southdean on Palm Sunday; if you are looking for a time of quiet reflection, come to services on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, or Easter Communion at Hobkirk; if you’d like a Family Easter Service, come to Denholm at 11am; and if you’re feeling very energetic, climb Ruberslaw for our Easter Dawn Service! (See the back page for more details!) Please feel free to come to any of the churches for any of these services – they are open to all, and there can be something very refreshing in attending a church that’s different from the one you normally attend. I look forward to welcoming you to church over the coming months. Your Minister and friend, Douglas.

Denholm Folk Festival 1st Denholm Boys’ Brigade The 12 th Denholm Folk We began in September with 10 boys of Festival was held in the mixed ages when we had fun and games, village from 5 th - 8 th projects and competitions. Our coffee November last year, and morning on 3 rd October was very hundreds of visitors came successful. Adam Rettie and Craig to enjoy the concerts and are to be commended for the way they the informal sessions. A managed to hold onto the B.B. flags on wide variety of performers such a windy day at the Remembrance Service at Minto attracted large crowds, Archie Fisher performs Church! The B.B.’s took part in the Nativity Play which while musicians from as far everyone seemed to enjoy. December 19 th was afield as Norway, Ireland, Christmas Post Day when 223 cards were delivered! and Hungary joined with local people to keep everyone The boys and parents seemed to enjoy being ‘posties’ entertained in the pubs and the Denholm Meet. for the day. It has become a tradition that the Festival ends with a free Our sincere thanks to all who have supported our B.B. concert held in Denholm Church, a venue which creates its own Company in every way. This includes Skye Patterson very special atmosphere. Seven different acts performed, and who is doing voluntary work to achieve her Duke of many audience members commented that it was the highlight of Edinburgh Bronze Award - we wish her every success. the Festival for them. It left everyone feeling how uplifting it is As well as Mr. Curtis coming along to show us ‘there is to have the whole village community coming together to more to sailing a boat’, by courtesy of the Guild we had welcome our visitors and share some memorable occasions a very interesting talk and slide show by Eleanor through our shared love of live music. Bathgate about the World Scout Jamboree to Japan. We The next Festival takes places from the 3 rd to the 6 th November were fortunate to have a sales table during fund raising this year – why not pencil it in your diary now? night at Denholm School where we held a marmalade sale which made £30. This was doubled by the UK Government, making £60 and this money was donated Denholm Drama Group to Mary’s Meals for orphaned children in Malawi and Denholm Drama Group would like to apologise to all their should feed 12 children for a year. supporters in the area for the cancellation of the Christmas Into the New Year Mr. Lothian, a paramedic, came along Pantomime at Southdean Village Hall on Saturday 5th and gave the boys some good advice on first aid and life December last year. This was due to extremely inclement saving skills. weather on that day which we felt posed an unacceptable risk for st people travelling to the village hall. We had hoped that we might B.B.’s will finish for summer on 31 March with a find another date in January to hold the performance, but presentation night. Families and friends are invited to st unfortunately, due to cast and village hall commitments, this was attend. All at 1 Denholm Boys’ Brigade wish everyone found to be impossible. Once again, please accept our apologies a very Happy Easter. - we hope it did not cause too much disappointment or Captain Margaret Derham inconvenience. Watch our website at www.denholmdrama.org for future events in Southdean and Denholm. Ruberslaw Worship Group GUILD NEWS Ruberslaw Worship Group currently supports our Minister Douglas in two main ways. Ruberslaw Guild We organise a Café Church three times a year in Denholm Ruberslaw Guild would like to thank all who supported the Village Hall which provides a more relaxed form of worship. coffee morning in aid of the project: Feed the Minds: The theme and format changes every time and there’s always a breaking the Cycle of FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) – coffee break and time to chat! This gives everyone an which raised a very creditable £175. opportunity to share in praise and prayer in an informal setting. There’s a play area for children so that families of all ages can The January meeting involved looking at the Guild join in our worship. discussion topic – “working through conflict”, when members considered different kinds of conflict we Members of the group, together with Douglas, visit the encounter and ways of dealing with them. At the February residents of Deanfield Nursing Home in three times a meeting members learned about and discussed the “Golden year. We share a short act of worship and spend some time Age” project. afterwards talking to the residents. Over the last few months an increasing number have been taking part. They particularly The next meeting will be on Tuesday 15 th March when enjoy the opportunity to sing well-known hymns. They love members will be considering Food Security. listening to the readings and stories that the Worship Group The final meeting of the session will be the AGM on provides. This is part of an evolving team ministry with local Tuesday, April 19 th . All meetings are at 7.00pm in Denholm churches and The Salvation Army. Church Hall and everyone is welcome. Hobkirk and Southdean Guild Minto Pew Cushions Our March meeting is an open one at Southdean Hall on Wednesday 16 th March at 7.30 when Roger Hemming will The new Minto pew cushions may well be in place by give an illustrated talk on “The Border's Exploration Group” the time you read this! Having had a “wee practice” followed by a light supper. Entry £5. We hope some of our sewing the Denholm pew cushions, a band of friends from Ruberslaw Guild will come. volunteers came forward again to tackle the much larger job at Minto. Our Annual Coffee Morning in aid of Guild Funds will be on Saturday 21 st May at the Laidlaw Hall Bonchester from Ronnie Templeman of Hawick Upholstery Company 10.00am until Noon. It is a great chance to get plants for your has been a great help to us, sewing the material, garden. measuring up the pews – and the pulpit! (‘Thanks’ says Douglas!) – cutting the foam sheets to size, then Details of our regular meetings from Christian Curtis on covering them with stockinet. Annie Shanks then took 01450 860635 or Beatrice Martin 01835 862347 on the task of cutting and machine-stitching the We are always delighted to welcome newcomers! material, with the help of Kay Laing. 3 other ladies helped with the machine-stitching, then 3 “sessions” in Minto Church saw 12 of us stuffing the cushions, then finishing them by hand sewing. Council (SBC) provides assistance with: We are extremely grateful to Mrs Jill Fox who donated Set up £1460, given to her by a group of Dutch metal Development of plans detectors working in the area who had heard about Appropriate insurance cover the project from her. Basic manual equipment (such as snow shovels, square shovels, safety equipment etc). Some statistics you may find interesting: we used 75 First aid training is also provided free of charge by the British metres of material and 1500 metres of thread. We Red Cross covered 37 cushions of various lengths. Local community councils and individuals who are prepared We hope future worshippers at Minto Church will find and able to respond effectively can deal with local issues such the pew cushions to be a more comfortable physical as: experience, as well as our usual uplifting spiritual one! Clearing snow from pathways of people who are unable to do it themselves Siting sandbags in risk areas to prevent flooding Placing domestic flood gates into position Resilient Communities Delivering supplies during severe weather to those most in need The Resilient Community initiative helps communities Providing hot meals within community centres/village develop expertise and puts in place Resilient Community halls Plans. These will make them better prepared to cope with If you would like to volunteer in your area, or require help emergencies, in a way which compliments emergency services. from your resilient community team, please contact your local Resilient Community Teams are groups of volunteers who Community Council. If you would like more information on have joined together in local areas to assist in emergency Resilient Communities in Denholm, come along to a meeting situations. with your SBC Resilient Community Officer in Denholm Village Hall at 7-00pm on Thursday 10th March. News from Southdean Things you may not know about your Renovations at Southdean Hall are still ongoing, Elders.....! including an extension to the building. The Hall This time it is Hobkirk and Southdean Elder Jennie Pole’s turn to tell Committee are assured that it will be complete by the you a little bit about her past...... middle of March. I have lived in Southdean Film nights have re-commenced and continue to be well parish all of my life, moving attended. On 4 March, ‘Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves’ across the hill from will be shown as a tribute to the late Alan Rickman. Ruletownhead to Falside upon The Southdean branch of S.W.I held a Burns Supper, my marriage to Les in July with catering undertaken by members. This was much 1982, accompanied by a pony enjoyed. They also hold a monthly craft event and and a dachshund dog. a “Ladies who Lunch,” visiting various local eateries! After leaving school, I studied The defibrillator is at last up and running - luckily we home economics at Queen haven’t had to use it yet! There will be a coffee morning Margaret College in Jennie with Jerusalem in the background! at the Hall to remind people how to use it and to raise Edinburgh, followed by a funds for the annual upkeep. year’s teacher training at Moray House. I then got a job teaching at Hawick High school in 1979 Roads in the valley have been seriously damaged by the where I remained until 2011, recent weather and the Community Council has give or take a few breaks to informed Scottish Borders Council of the areas of produce ‘Pole boys’! I still do a concern. bit of supply teaching and exam Southdean Community Council is being consulted about invigilation, which gives me a 139 wind turbines on 6 different sites at the moment. chance to keep in touch with ex-colleagues and keep up with all the news! Back home at Falside I have been connected with Southdean Hall, Southdean Church and the Jedforest Hunt for most of my days, and so with The late Rev. Moira Herkes just Les and myself on the farm now, I am never short of things to do. At present we are busy at home with the build up to The Reverend Moira Herkes would have been 68 in lambing time, with just short of 700 girls waiting to produce – January this year - no great age these days - but she including 110 sets of triplets, so we are anticipating a large pet lived life to the full and touched so many people in so pen and have the milk machine already booked! many ways. We in Denholm, Bedrule and Minto were her We look forward to welcoming you all to Falside for the first charge in 1985. Previously she had been in the Lambing Service in May – hopefully on a warm, dry, sunny day! Royal Navy - which broadened her vocabulary considerably - and then worked for the Medical Research Council, where she met her husband, David. She was Ruberslaw 2016 with us for just under 3 years but made a huge impact on us, not only for being our first female Minister, but also for As usual, we will be holding our Dawn Service on top of being a down-to-earth caring person with a wicked sense Ruberslaw this Easter Sunday. Last year, we had visitors who of humour. When she stepped into the pulpit, her rose early from their tent at Ruberslaw Wild Woods Camping sermons could generate that silence that indicated she and this year we have already had a promise on the web site had engaged her listeners. from a couple holidaying in Denholm village who want to make the climb! We’d like to maker it a bumper year this year Moira served in other parishes in Scotland - for pilgrims! Although this is traditionally a Ruberslaw Prestonpans, Brechin, Dunfermline, and was Associate congregation gathering, it is open to all and we’d particularly Minister at Dunblane Cathedral at the time of the Primary like to welcome members of Hobkirk and Southdean to the School shootings. A particularly happy time was as a summit! locum in Ballachulish - she was a MacDonald and felt a real spiritual affinity with Glencoe. OK... It’s a bit of a climb, but everyone who regularly goes will tell you it is more than worth it, particularly if the weather is In life, Moira wore her faith lightly. As she knowingly fine when at some stage in your journey your will see a approached death in the last few weeks, she freed her spectacular sunrise! We leave Denholm Church at 6-00am by mind by making all possible preparations, down to the car for Denholmhill Farm, where the walk begins. And don’t last details, to ease her passing for her family, and to forget the breakfast at the Church Hall when you get back! meticulously arrange her funeral - held fittingly in Dunblane Cathedral. This left her open and willing to NEXT NEWSLETTER accept the will of God with great courage and deep faith Summer 2016 Issue when she died in peace on 26th November 2015. Copy Deadline: 21st July 2016 Target Issue Date: 1st August 2016

Produced by Hobkirk and Southdean with Ruberslaw Churches and edited by Alan Dowler-Smith for the information of all congregation members and other interested people on church life in the linked charges. If you have any comments or contributions, please send them to Alan at Old Fodderlie, , Hawick TD9 8JF or e-mail [email protected]