Stebbing Scene Your Village — Your Magazine
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Stebbing Scene Your Village — Your Magazine Edition No: 131 Autumn 2014 Bringing Home The Harvest! Thanks to Curtis Walsh @ rarebreedphotography - more on the inside back cover Summer has flown by again and autumn is already making itself known, with dew on the grass and some chilly nights. It has been an eventful summer though, especially in the sporting arena, and I hope you feel we have captured enough of the flavour of events in this issue. Many of us watched the local stage of the Tour de France but it took a Yorkshireman to head north and record his experience of Le Grand Depart - and thanks Ben for sharing it with us. I'm sorry that this little space does not allow me to individually thank the many others of you who contribute - but there would be nothing without you! The harvest photos were a pleasure to receive and if other villagers would like to send me some autumn pictures by the middle of November perhaps we could have a centre spread of the best. Richard Foot Editor 1 Bran End Celebrates! The community of Bran End Fields and their families gathered together on Saturday June 21 2014 to celebrate 60 years of the development of their homes. Some have lived there since 1954, when the houses were built, and have raised their families during their time in this road. Some families moved from London and commented on thoroughly enjoying seeing the green fields and countryside around the area. Oral history was gathered in a series of interviews on the day on behalf of the Stebbing History Society - including memories of 'moving-in day' through until the day their youngest child left home. Some wartime memories including Doodlebugs were also recorded. Saturday 21st June was a gloriously hot and sunny day and ideal for the Bouncy Castle, which many children enjoyed along with “Sponging the Vicar” and other entertainments. A BBQ kept everyone fed and there was a constant stream of tea and juice until the supplies ran out due to the very hot weather! There was much chatting and friendships were renewed or started. One of the happy outcomes of this successful day was that the people of Bran End Fields expressed a desire to meet regularly for coffee and a chat, since they so enjoyed the occasion of camaraderie and meeting their neighbours. Thanks go to Maggie Wardle for co-ordinating and steering the event from idea to reality and to the Rev Tim Goodbody, along with the marquee supplier, the Bouncy Castle supplier, the Friday Market team, the Fab Music Team and all others who helped out - and, of course, huge thanks go to the people of Bran End Fields who turned up for a unique event and made the day such a success! Clare Kanharn Commonwealth Games Success! West Essex Judo Club coach Faith Pitman won a Bronze Medal at the Commonwealth Games 2014 in Glasgow. Faith, who teaches Judo at Stebbing Village Hall with Tom Cousins, beat Australian Katherina Haecker in the under 63kg section of the women's Judo competition to take the bronze. We only take lessons from the best in Stebbing! 2 Tour De France – Le Grand Depart - Yorkshire When I first heard that Yorkshire was hosting the start of the Tour De France, the thought occurred that I should make the effort to head north and attend. After all I was born in God’s own county. The village of Hebden Bridge staged a curtain raiser, “The Grand Departs”; a team of cyclists towed a grand piano six miles up Cragg Vale, the longest continuous ascent in England. Thousands turned out to watch. While it climbed, amateur and professional pianists played a specially commissioned Piano Cycle, live on the grand. Eighteen cyclists took 3 hours 52 minutes to reach the top. An internet search for the top ten places to watch the Tour confirmed a trip to the north was essential. Hawes, in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales and, renamed for the event, the “Côte de Buttertubs” climb was top of the list, so Hawes it had to be. Further internet searching brought up several farmers offering modestly priced (and basic) camping in fields adjacent to the course. One was on the edge of Hawes, part way up the Buttertubs pass - couldn’t be better. It is mostly motorway to the Dales but average speed was a measly 40mph. We arrived in rain, pitched the borrowed Stebbing Scouts tent, and went on a Buttertubs recce. The top of the pass was in cloud but we found a very pleasant pub serving decent beer, jacket potatoes and a variety of fillings. It rained most of the night however; Saturday dawned dry and sunny. Tea and bacon sandwiches were courtesy of more borrowed scout gear. Our plan was to ascend the Côte de Buttertubs, find a viewing spot and let the day unfold. We took up our position by a stone wall on the grass verge at about 10.30 for what was to be 6 hours by the side of a country lane. With the peloton not due until mid afternoon, was it a tad boring? – not in the least! An estimated 2.5m people lined the route over the weekend as 'Le Tour' took in some of Yorkshire’s most famous sights and landmarks. The race route was closed to vehicles but open to walkers and cyclists. It seemed like many spectators had made the Buttertubs section their viewing choice. A passing head count and a spot of maths indicated 3,000 people per hour passing our spot and heading up the Côte! The sun shone, the crowd gradually increased, children came prepared with jumbo chalks to decorate the road, gendarmes and UK police bikes patrolled the (Continued on page 5) 3 The Stebbing Society will be holding - on behalf of Stebbing Community THE ANNUAL STEBBING VILLAGE FETE SUNDAY - SEPTEMBER 28TH 2014 at 1.30pm MILL LANE CRICKET FIELD Arena Events ◊ Felsted School Band ◊ Village Organisation Stalls Side Shows ◊ Games ◊ Bouncy Castle ◊ Archery ◊ Coconut- Shy Fun Dog Show ◊ Crockery Smashing ◊ Children’s Roundabout Face Painting ◊ Classic Cars ....and Much More BBQ ● Bar ● Teas & Refreshments ● Ice Creams Free Admission & Parking Please come along and support your local Community Organisations 4 (Continued from page 3) course, high fiving the kids (really!), and finally a whole cavalcade of support vehicles and the publicity caravan swept through, dispensing a variety of publicity giveaways. A lull followed, with yet more gendarmes and UK police bikes until finally a swarm of helicopters announced the lead riders and the peloton snaking up the climb. In a matter of seconds the Tour had swept past and disappeared up the hill. And that was it, the tide of spectators began to descend the hill towards Hawes - fantastic experience. The words of Tour de France race director Christian Prudhomme, who described Yorkshire's Grand Depart as the "grandest" in the 111-year history of the race sum it up: "I can see the Tour in their hearts and in their eyes. For that I say thank you to everyone in Yorkshire who has made this Grand Depart so very, very special. When you said you would deliver the grandest Grand Depart it was the truth, you have raised the bar for all future hosts of the Tour de France." On a personal note I have been motivated to take up cycling again – no doubt you will see me on the quieter local roads. I hope I’m still out there in a year’s time! Ben Riley Forthcoming Events at The White Hart ELVIS Saturday 6th September QUIZ NIGHT Wednesday 29th October - 7.30pm (See the notice on page 60) 5 Dates for your diary from St Mary’s Church September 11 Alpha Course Starts—7pm in church. September 21 Harvest Festival—11am (supporting Braintree Food Bank) November 1 Dunmow Rock Choir concert in Church November 2 All Souls Service for the bereaved—3pm November 9 Remembrance Service—10.50am December 7 Christingle Service—5pm December 12 Christmas Rocks—7pm December 21 Carols by Candlelight—6pm December 24 Christmas Communion—11.30pm December 25 Christmas Family Service—11am ◊◊◊ Check out our website www.smvstebbing.org You can also follow us on Twitter @Stebbingchurch THE ALPHA COURSE If you want a no-holds-barred, open and honest discussion, you can bring all the questions and things that annoy you about anything to do with Christianity or religion to Alpha. You can ask it, listen to what has got to be said and then make a decision. “IF YOU NEVER ASK THE QUESTIONS – YOU’LL NEVER GET THE ANSWERS .... and if you never give it a go you’ll never know whether it was right or wrong, good or bad”. Ever wondered what it’s all about? Over 2 million people in the UK and 15 million worldwide have attended an Alpha course, an opportunity to explore the meaning of life, running in tens of thousands of churches of all denominations across the world. Alpha is an opportunity for anyone to explore the Christian faith in a relaxed setting over ten thought- provoking weekly sessions with a day away. People attend for a wide variety of reasons – some want to investigate whether God exists, others may have attended church occasionally but feel they have never really understood the basics of the Christian faith. The course is based around small groups of around 8 people and will begin with supper – a chance to get to know others in the group. Each week the talk looks at a different aspect of the Christian faith, followed by a discussion in small groups.