Rose Hill United Reformed Church, Bradford Road, Bolton. A member of the Vision Pastorate, together withTonge Moor URC

and St Andrew & St George URC

Minister: Rev Mark Bates

Tel: 01204 653477 April2014 May /

Church Elders

Anne Fitton (Secretary) ...... 01204 401273 John Waith (Treasurer) ...... 01204 391894 Rita Dunn ...... 01204 305339 Philip Garsden ...... 07854 614245 Sylvia Hodgkiss ...... 01204 363263 Anne Taberner ...... 01204 793341 Janet Waith...... 01204 391894

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Book of Prayer If you would like a church member or friend to be remembered in the morning prayers, please write their name in the Book of Prayer located in the porch, prior to the start of the service. Doing this will also serve to keep Elders and members informed of any pastoral concerns

Items for the next issue of Rose Hill Recorder should be handed in to Rita Dunn or sent via email to [email protected] on or before Sunday 25th May

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Minister’s Letter.

Dear friends Once more the cycle of the seasons continues as does the cycle of the church year. What a difference we are experiencing weather wise this year compared to the same time last year. This time last year the farmers were struggling and livestock were dying as a result of the harsh winter weather. This year we have experiences much milder weather, but also much wetter weather. Circumstances beyond the control of the farmers impacted greatly on the way they were able to live their lives. As we approach Easter and the events of Holy Week I would like to invite you to take the time to stop and think about the thoughts that Jesus might have had as he set his face to Jerusalem knowing what was going to happen. He knew what was going to happen in order to fulfil the Old Testament prophecy, but I wonder if the disciples really understood. Also I wonder if he considered the impact that his death would have on his friends and disciples. The harsh reality of losing someone close to you always leaves a huge void which can never be filled. Circumstances beyond the control of the disciples had an impact on the rest of their lives. Yet we have the glorious news of the Risen Christ. We share in the excitement and the good news that Christ has returned and the risen Christ meets the disciples on their continuing journey. Christ is still accompanying all disciples on their journey. From the harsh reality and the cold that gripped the disciples comes new life; life that has continued to be shared in all its many guises throughout history. From the harsh reality and the cold of the weather we encountered last year comes new life and warmth. Let us continue to share that new life and warmth with each other and with all people, as we continue the journey we are called to make. Mark

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Pastoral News A Family Fun Night was held on Saturday 15th February organised by our minister Mark Bates and the Sunday School. Everyone enjoyed the games and quizzes and also the pasties and peas for refreshments. Thank you to all concerned. It was good for the children and adults to spend some time together having fun. Men’s Sunday was held on the 9th February. Mark led the service and his theme was ‘The Salt of the Earth’. The men’s choir sang ‘Soldiers of Christ Arise’ and ’I Cannot Tell’ Congratulations were given to: Sylvia and Colin Gibbon on their Golden Wedding Anniversary The 8th of March Pat Howard who was 80 on the 16th March and Joan Warburton following the birth of her granddaughter, Harriet Our thoughts and prayers have been with Debbie Collinson (who helps in the choir on special occasions) Her father died on the 9th February. Also: Hazel Henry, on the death of her brother in law’s wife Margaret, Betty Holden, whose sister in law is seriously ill and Thelma Bolton, whose son has suffered another serious operation. We are pleased that Neville Yates has been discharged from hospital. His health has improved and he is settled in his care home. He is able to walk again now and no longer needs a wheel chair. We will keep him in our prayers. Doris West, a long serving Elder at Rose Hill, who now resides at Mill View Care Home reached the age of 92 on the 19th February. She received a card and flowers from church members and friends. Vi Tatlock (Freda Cooke’s sister) has had to move into Calway House nursing home Taunton because of old age and health

4 problems. Vi attended Rose Hill from being a child and was a devoted choir member. She and her husband (Fred Tatlock’s brother) moved to Taunton because of his work, but she always has fond memories of her time at Rose Hill Church February 23rd to the 9th March was Fairtrade fortnight and during the service on March 2nd Mark gave us lots of information about how Fairtrade started in 1988 when coffee was sold in Dutch supermarkets, and how it developed over the years until there are now over 700 Fairtrade and catering products. By 2013 the sale of Fairtrade products rose to raise over one billion pounds worldwide. Gill Bates, with the aid of a giant blow up Banana, involved the children in learning how Fairtrade has helped to improve the lives of the communities who grow and provide the Fairtrade products. One interesting thing we learned was how to correctly peel aBanana - from the bottom, not the top. A very interesting informative morning. Thank you Mark and Gill. We have all enjoyed the warm sunny weather following the very wet winter. Flowers are starting to bloom and new life is all around us. As we journey through Lent we look forward to celebrating Easter and our Lord's resurrection. Marjorie Plant —–— oOo ——–

Ladies Circle January 22nd A Bring and Buy Sale added money to the pot, followed by tea and biscuits and much chit-chat. January 29th Barbara Howard was our speaker on this evening and gave a talk, with music, on the life of Elvis Presley, known as the King of Rock and Roll. He was born on Jan 8th 1935, the only surviving son of Gladys and Vernon. Although quite poor, they

5 were a close and loving family and regularly attended the local Assembly of God church. At the age of 10, Elvis won his first talent show, winning 5 dollars. He continued to perform with his guitar throughout school and in the community until 1955 when he signed his first record contract and Col. Tom Parker became his manager. The rest of his musical career is history, his first No. 1 single being Heartbreak Hotel followed by many more – 18 in all, as well as films and television appearances. He married Priscilla and they had one daughter, Lisa Marie, but the marriage was short lived, ending in divorce. Unfortunately, he battled weight problems and died at the young age of 42 due to prescription drug use. His music, however, has lived on and is well loved, thousands of people visiting his Gracelands home every year. We enjoyed a game of “Eureka” on February 5th, organised by Pat Longworth, but she ended up sounding rather hoarse at the end of the evening. “Laughter is the Best Medicine” was the title of Mr. Dennis Moore’s talk on February 19th. Mr. Moore had been a teacher for 26 years but after retirement became interested in stress management, where one of the courses he undertook included a module on the benefit of laughter to health and well-being. A good laugh relaxes the whole body, releases tension, boosts the immune system, produces endorphins which encourage positive thinking and protects the heart by increasing blood flow and lowering blood pressure. Funny anecdotes from his time as a teacher and jokes from his own joke book, put us in a happy mood. We all know that a good laugh does a lot of good and that’s what we try to do at Ladies’ Circle at the close of the meetings when Freda always looks on the “bright side of life” and we go home with a smile on our faces.

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Derian House Children’s Hospice in , has been our chosen charity for many years and on the following Wednesday, February 26th, Gill Kirkman came along to give us an insight into how it came into being. Back in 1991 there was no respite or palliative facilities in for families of children and young adults with life shortening conditions. The concept of a hospice was born out of the experience of a Leyland family whose son, David Haycock, had died from a progressive genetic condition. They called it Derian House, an amalgamation of Derek and Ian, the names of their two sons. The Haycock family and their supporters initially raised £25,000 to buy the land. On approaching Manchester Children’s Hospital for advice, they approached Margaret Vinton, a nurse and business woman, who agreed to spearhead the project and she set up the Board of Trustees. In October 1993, the first baby entered Derian House. 286 families are now using the 14 bed hospice. There are also 6 flats for parents’ use and a lodge for young adults. £3,000,000 is needed each year to provide all the services with only 9% given by the government, the rest coming from fund-raising and donations. 89%of this money goes directly to the care of the children. At present, there are 86 staff and 200 volunteers who make an essential contribution. It’s an amazing story of how drive and dedication turned a family’s vision into reality, the catchment area now covering the whole of Lancashire and South Lakes, providing essential respite and long term care. “King of the Castle”, a game similar to Beetle, saw budding artists attempting to draw a castle on the throw of the dice on March 5th and on the following Wednesday 38 ladies enjoyed lunch at the Tavern on the Hill on a lovely, sunny spring day. Sylvia Gibbon.

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Ladies Circle Programme

April 2 Speaker Joanne Halliwell-Life of a Scullery Maid 9 Easter Egg Decoration 16 No Meeting 23 No Meeting 30 Speaker Malcolm Tranter - Going up in the World May 7 Plant Sale 14 Speaker Jack Morris- Black Puddings 21 Afternoon tea at Park Farm, Ramsbottom 28 Silent Auction

—–— oOo ——– Sunday School. Greetings from all in Sunday School! As I write this, the rain has stopped, the sun is shining and Spring has definitely sprung! There is a lovely display of daffodils and crocus plants to be seen. Spring is a wonderful season and a little bit of sunshine makes us all feel happy! As usual, Sunday School have been busy with lots of activities. Sunday School teamed up with Mark and Gill and organised another family fun evening which took place over February half -term. Quizzes in the minor hall, games in Church and a pasty and pea supper were enjoyed by all ages. In Sunday School, both classes began their journey through Lent. The older class talked about how Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, whilst the younger class made pancakes and learnt about the true meaning of Lent. All the children talked about what they would give up for lent. Common themes included chocolate, sweets and crisps!

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The monthly Messy Church session took place on Sunday 2nd March and was attended and enjoyed by many of our children and parents. The children joined in a range of activities including making their own prayer dice, creating an edible Garden of Gethsemane and making a Mexican eye of God from sticks and coloured wool. Children also competed in a flapping pancake race and then tucked into delicious pancakes. Messy Church takes place at St Andrew and St George’s Church on the first Sunday of each month from 4 till 6pm. Come along and join in the fun! Mothering Sunday will be upon us soon and, alongside following the Roots weekly lectionary, lessons will also involve making cards and gifts for Mums and then sharing these with the congregation in the Mother’s Day service. Our Sunday School lessons will then begin to focus on the events of Holy Week and Easter. Sunday School will be holding another chocolate tombola following the service on Palm Sunday (13th April). Any donations of chocolate and Easter eggs will be gratefully received by any of the leaders as we approach this date. Plus, come and support us at the tombola and perhaps you will win lots of chocolate! Following Easter, our next big event will be the Sermons and, following Easter, the children will be practising their contributions to this special service. Lastly, a big thank you to all those who support the work of Sunday School in so many different ways, it is very much appreciated. We are proud of all our wonderful children. Please continue to hold them in your thoughts and prayers. Kay Hurst

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WOODSMOKE

12th Bolton (Rosehill) Scout Group Newsletter No 25 - March 2014

The first few months of a new year are generally quiet as far as outside Scouting activities are concerned, not because of any long lasting post-Christmas hang-overs (waist line hang overs not included!) but because of the usual bad weather suffered at that time of year. However this hasn’t stopped the varied indoor programme continuing, now of course including the newly formed Beaver section. January: saw the Beavers learning how to keep safe and dealing with emergencies while the Cubs were looking at hazards in the HQ and on camp – surprisingly they didn’t include themselves as one of the biggest hazards! They then looked up into the cosmos learning about astronomy. All 3 sections had the Chinese New Year as the theme at the end of January with the Scouts constructing Chinese dragons made from card and the Beavers learning how to use chop sticks in a game involving marsh mallows with several of them not surviving – the marsh mallows that is, not the Beavers. February: saw the Cubs completing their Astronomy badge while the Beavers were making pancakes and very messy bird fat feeders, thankfully not both at the same time! Only one pancake landed on the floor – not bad going. The Cubs also made pancakes but these were miniature versions cooked over candles using cooking foil in a small wire frame as pans. Meanwhile the Scouts had a varied month starting with hot air balloons. These were made up of nine 3 foot long tissue paper panels glued together to form the balloon which was raised by hot air directed by a baked

10 bean tin chimney from a camping gas stove. The Scouts had strict instructions not to set the place on fire! We didn’t quite raise the balloons to the upstairs hall roof but we weren’t far from it. All sections had the founder of Scouting Baden-Powell as the theme for Founders Day with the Scouts particularly fascinated by BP’s exploits as a Army Scout (Spy) behind enemy lines. One occasion BP posed as an eccentric English butterfly hunter complete with net and note book containing detailed drawings of butterfly and other insects supposedly captured and studied. However, the shape of patterns on the body and wings represented the walls of military installations with dots and other shapes representing different types of gun positions. Scouts also had a discussion on how to spend a fictitious £1000 gift. Each Scout had to argue for their cause and despite a valiant and very persuasive effort by Patrol Leader Sian a weekend for the leaders at a luxury hotel got voted out in the first round. We’ll remember that!! March: only in the second week as this is written but the first Friday in the month saw a different theme for each section. The Beavers had a visitor from the Muslim community talking about his faith, Cubs had an Astronomer badge catch-up and looked at the beliefs of the native American Indians while the Scouts ‘egged’ the Westbourne Avenue side stair well! Actually the aim was to protect the eggs from breaking. Teams designed and constructed various ‘capsules’ to absorb the force of the egg hitting the floor and parachutes to slow the rate of descent. Clive was standing by with the frying pan but despite a very disastrous sounding crunch as one hit the floor, scrambled egg never made it onto the menu with all eggs surviving to live another day – literally as Roy ate them on the Saturday!

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Beavers Grant Just before the Christmas break we submitted a grant application to Youth United for £4,500 to cover start-up costs of equipment, uniforms, etc. The grant was subsequently approved and Roy & Hilary’s front room now looks like a parcel sorting office as boxes and packages arrive. The first items to arrive were the Beaver uniforms, just 2 days late for the first Church parade attended by the Beavers on 9th March but look out for the little blue ‘beasties’ at the next one. Peter Pan 22nd Feb A number of Cubs & Scouts enjoyed a visit to SS Simon & Judes ADS pantomime Peter Pan We were disappointed though by the number of cancellations after the tickets had been bought which puts some doubt on us attending pantos in the future. Scout Night Hike 28th Feb We arranged a night hike which involved some time spent in tents overnight at Bibbys Farm Scout Camp Site and Activity Centre, near Chorley. We met on the Friday evening with our camping & hiking kit at Rose Hill Church before driving up to Bibbys Farm. After all of the recent rain we expected a very muddy site but it was better than we thought and managed to find a relatively dry area. After pitching the tents we set about having a quick hot dog supper before setting off on the hike. It was 11pm when we left Bibbys Farm in dry but cold conditions for an uneventful 5 mile hike. The route led us just short of Botany Bay before cutting across towards Healey Nab wood and Reservoir. We then picked up the lane leading back to Bibbys Farm and returned at about 2.30am to retire to our frost covered tents for a few hours sleep.

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After a breakfast of cereal, bacon muffins and pancakes (with a selection of toppings - some all at once!) we started a crate stacking activity run by the camp staff. This involved stacking the crates one on top of the other with the person doing the stacking on top of the pile, duly roped up. Most got up about 10 crates high before falling off but Jai managed to get high enough to touch the roof (top photo) and encouraged by the others, celebrated by doing an upside down spin while being lowered to the floor (bottom photo). Several of the Scouts were first time Scout campers and others had only a little experience so bringing the tents down and packing the kit away had its usual difficulties. However we managed to leave and get back to Rose Hill on time for parents to pick up – after warning their washing machines!

laces are available for boys and girls in Beavers aged 6 to 8, Cubs aged 8 to 10½ and Scouts aged 10½ to P 14½. We meet in Rose Hill Church Halls on most Friday evenings - Beavers 5.30pm to 6.45pm, Cubs & Scouts at 6.45pm to 8.45pm. Weekly subs of £3 per person, payable each Friday. We are also recruiting more adults to volunteer as Leaders and helpers to bolster the current leadership team. For further

information contact Hilary on 01204 389843.

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An Aussie Blonde goes to Heaven.

An Aussie Blonde on her way to Heaven was met on arrival at the Pearly Gates by a concerned St Peter. “I’m sorry,” said St Peter” but Heaven is suffering from an overload and we have been forced to set up an Entrance Exam to ease the burden of Heavenly arrivals.” “That’s cool” said the Blonde, “What does the Entrance Exam consist of?” “Just three questions” said St Peter. “The first is: Which two days of the week start with the letter T? The second is: How many seconds are there in a year? and the third is: What was the name of the swagman in Waltzing Matilda?” “Now,” said St Peter, “I’ll leave you to think about those questions, and when I come back I’ll expect you to have the answers for me.” So the Blonde sat down and gave the questions some considerable thought (do you know the answers?) and after a short while St Peter returned and asked the Blonde if she had answers to the questions, to which she replied, “I have.” “Well then,” said St Peter, “Which two days of the week start with the letter T?” “That’s easy” said the Blonde “Today and Tomorrow.” St Peter considered this answer for some time, and decided that indeed the answer could be applied to the question. “Well then, could I have your answer to the second of the three questions” St Peter went on, “How many seconds in a year?” “Twelve” said the blonde, feeling very pleased with herself. “Only twelve!” exclaimed St Peter, “How did you arrive at that figure?” “Easy,” said the Blonde, “there’s the second of January, the second of February, right through to the second of December, giving a total of twelve seconds.” St Peter looked at the Blonde and said, “I need some time to consider your answer before I can give you a decision.” And he walked away shaking his head. 14

A short time later, St Peter returned to the Blonde. “I’ll allow the answer to stand, but you need to get the third and final question absolutely correct to be allowed into Heaven. Now, can you tell me the name of the swagman in Waltzing Matilda?” The blonde replied: “Of the three questions, I found this the easiest to answer.” “Really!” exclaimed St Peter, “And what is the answer?” “It’s Andy” “Andy!” exclaimed St Peter. “Yes, Andy”, said the Blonde. This totally floored St Peter, and he paced this way and that, puzzled by the answer. Finally, he could not stand the suspense any longer, and turning to the blonde, asked “How in heavens name did you arrive at THAT answer?” “Easy” said the Blonde, “Andy he sang as he watched Andy waited till his billy boiled...” And the Blonde entered Heaven Submitted by Rita Dunn

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They asked ‘How do you know it's true that the Saviour lived and died. Do you believe the story that the Lord was crucified?’ We have so many answers to prove His Holy Being, Answers that are everywhere within the realm of seeing. The leaves that fell at Autumn and were buried in the sod now budding on the tree boughs to lift their arms to God. The flowers that were covered and entombed beneath the snow now pushing through the 'darkness' to bid the Spring 'Hello' On every side great nature retells the Easter Story So who are we to question 'The Resurrection Glory?' Submitted by Marjorie Plant

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Services Apr 6 Rev. Mark Bates

13 Palm Sunday Brenda Hill

18 Good Friday (11.00 am) Rev. Mark Bates

20 Easter Day—Communion Gill Bates

27 Communion Judith Houghton May 4 Barry Bradshaw 11 Alan Nutall

18 Sunday School Anniversary / Parade Rev. Mark Bates

25 Communion Rev. David Megson

Rotas FLOWERS COFFEE Apr 6 Betty and Ted Holden Pat Longworth & Heather Smith

13 Marian and Alan Rimmer Pat Howard & Judith Fraser

20 Barbara Rishton & Family Barbara Rushton & Hazel Henry

27 Hazel Henry Sylvia Gibbon & Eleanor Magor

May 4 Sylvia and Colin Gibbon Florence Spencer & Joan Lord

11 Sheila Johnson & Family Sunday School

18 Joy Gibbon & David Redwood

25 Thelma and Jim Bolton Pat Longworth & Heather Smith

The flowers in church are very gratefully received, and give much comfort to the sick and troubled members of our congregation and families.

Printed by: Sharon Press, 168 Crook16 St, Bolton, Lancashire, BL3 6AS