NOTTINGHAMSHIRE News from and about members An illuminating year Above: VPCEve ‘NOTMANYpeople knowthat,’ as Michael Caine school performed aseries of tableaux about the 54 Corbett certificate presentation at once famouslyremarked. The that in thiscase women, or ‘PilgrimMothers’, who sailed on the Legal Service is the north Nottinghamshireorigin of manyof Mayflower, most of whom did not survivetosee the Pilgrim Fathers. Butitall started withMartin the first Thanksgiving. After the service we formed Luther in 1517 with his 95 theses nailedtothe the numeral 500 armed with tea lights. door of Wittenberg Church and the beginning of Meanwhile in October,Ijoined over 100 others Protestantism, an event celebrated in this county on the side of the pitchatthe ground of Notts with aservice at Attenborough St Mary’s Church County Football Club at the CEO Sleepout to raise at which the preacherwas the local Lutheran money for local homelessnesscharities, including PastorPaulinaHlawiczka. Twomonths later my the Friary, acommunity funded drop-in centrethat wife and Iattendedthe ‘Illuminate’ Service at St provides food, cooked meals, showerfacilities, GP Swithun’s Church, Retford, atownnear the Pilgrim services and IT supportfor benefit claimants. Iwas Father villages. Students from the local secondary joined on the grass by the Bishop of Sherwood, 36 High Sheriff | Summer 2018 News from and about members Tony Porter,and Rabbi Tanya Sakhnovich of Nottingham Liberal Synagogue, who had earlier sparred withMarcellus Baz. He runs aboxing club for young peopleand won the Unsung Hero award at the 2016 BBC Sports Personality of the Year.I returned to the FriaryonChristmas Dayto‘help’ the MayorofRushcliffe carve the turkey and meet the volunteerswho were giving up their time to serve up to 60 Christmas meals. The second half of my year included several prisonvisits. In October Ipresented community awards to 10 prisonofficers who had prevented a wing being wrecked, in circumstances where not being involved had been alegitimate choice. Their courage wouldnot otherwise havereceived wider recognition. In November we made aformal visit to Lowdham Grange,aCategoryBprison, to be briefed by the director (it’s aSERCO prison) and to giveawards to 19 prisoners who had completed aSycamoreTreerestorativejustice course. In December we visited WhattonPrison, home to over 800 sex offenders, asolid middle-class Above: CEO Sleepout governor introduced me to the editor of the prison cohortwho do not givethe governorany trouble. at Notts County FC with magazine Whatt’on Earth! as the High Sheriff; he Bishop Tony Porter and Shockingly,afewresidents,astheyare called there, Rabbi TanyaSahknovich promptly replied, ‘Hi! Sheriff’. In MarchItalked aresodangerous that theycannotbereleased and Below: Luther 500 service to around 20 Whatton residents about anovel I with Pastor Paulina will die in prison. During our tour of the site, the Hlawiczka had published on Amazon in 2015. Iapologised for leavingslightly early because it would takeme alittlewhile ‘toget out of here’;one wag replied, ‘not half as long as it will takeus!’ Finally,with the help of my neighbour and friend the High Sheriff of Derbyshire, Annie Hall,wevisited the women’s prisonatFoston Hall with Halima Khaled, the first MuslimMayor of Broxtowe,who is interested in helping Muslimwomen who end up in the criminal justicesystem. It has been awonderful year in which Ihave had amazing supportfrommywife, Under Sheriff Deborah Hutchinson, and manyothers, including my Chaplain, the Revd Chris Rattenberry, who came out of retirement to officiateatmyMarch Legal Service. Imanaged an ecumenical and inter- faith event that saw an inspiring sermon by the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham, the Rt Revd Paul Williams, secular texts read by the Imam Chaplain at Rampton Hospital, Farooq Mulla, and aperformance of asong to words by the Christian Martyr,Dietrich Bonhoeffer, sung by Pastor Paulinaand accompanied at the piano by Rabbi Tanya. After the service Ipresented acertificate of service to one of my two High Sheriff’s Volunteer Police Cadets,Eva Corbett, who had loyally supported me during my year. David Sneath TD DL High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire2017-18 Summer 2018 | High Sheriff 37.