Goodbye Anne Rev Anne didn’t arrive at the best of times in Bentham as we had a dark cloud of Anglican mistrust and division swirling around our heads due to the closure of St Margaret’s Church in High Bentham. However, time passes, gradually folk from St Margaret’s started to make their way to St John’s Church in Low Bentham, eventually warming to Rev Anne’s calming presence. Over the passing years I have got to know Anne and the contribution she has made to Bentham as a community other than her church work. Leading the Carnival Parade, heading the Armistice Remembrance service at School Hill, popping-up at the Christmas Market at the Auction Mart, as well as her behind the scenes ministerial duties. In Bentham we have been very lucky to have had Rev Anne in our presence for these past few years, but I knew it wouldn’t be long before the Bishop came calling to say “I (the church) have a job (that you can’t refuse) that is ideal for you.” Continued on pages 2,3 and 4. Photos by Jon Brook of Bentham Imaging Find us on Facebook the bentham news find us on the web www.thebenthamnews.co.uk 2 And so it is that Rev Anne leaves Bentham for a new community challenge near Leeds. I guess her work here is now done and that dark cloud we had when she first arrived has been replaced by sunshine, or is it a sunset like John Wayne riding off into the future? Whatever it is, my very best sincere wishes go with her. Allan Hartley, Robin Lane Anne: we will miss you lots: your energy, empathy and down-to-earth friendliness. We have much appreciated your ecumenical work and the inclusive way you have welcomed us and given support. It feels as if we are now an inter-faith community in Bentham and can work together. The Pop-up-Pantry has been an inspired venture. You have an unerring sense of what needs doing in a community to enable all to thrive. Your new community in the Diocese of Leeds and the parish of Seacroft will greatly benefit from this and we wish you well in what could be a challenging task. Very best wishes and thanks, Quakers in Bentham It is hard to believe that you, Robert and your family have been with us here in Bentham for seven years, yet these years have passed quickly. Not only you but also your family have made an impression on the residents of Bentham. You have all been active in the area and have become a loving presence. You have encouraged St John’s Parish to grow in numbers, through prayer, learning and discipleship together. We all need to listen to others of different faiths. This has been shown by your dedication and the way you have encouraged ecumenism between the Churches. The main Churches in this area supported each other in many ways, especially during the pandemic. You have had the needs of the Parishioners in your heart, giving your time to anyone who needed help and support; the Pop-up-Pantry is a great example of this. The Rectory door is always open for people who need someone to listen to them such as in bereavement and pastoral care to name a couple of issues. You conduct funerals with dignity, and one only needs to read Bentham News to realise how often thanks are offered following funerals of loved ones. You are very approachable and have a warm open nature. You have worked with the children both in the Church and in the local Primary School. You have been an inspiration in this area and are dynamic in all that you do. You have been pushing for improvements in the Church building to make it more welcoming and user friendly. Tasks which have been scheduled for years, in one case for 10 years, such as the provision of better toilets and a much-needed extension, will soon be a reality. Fund-raising is ongoing; this has been achieved by you and your lay team. One person who had spoken about the Ordination of Women told me that you, Anne, are the only female Rector on the Rector Board dating from the 1300s which can be seen just inside the back of the Church. This is a legacy that you will leave behind. Anne, you will all be sadly missed. You are going to another Parish which will be both different and challenging, but I am sure that, knowing you, you will take this in your stride. Thank you for all that you have done for St John’s and the whole of Bentham. God bless you, from Kathleen Kelly, St Boniface RC Church Over the last three years I have known Anne as an ecumenical colleague and as a neighbour - we both currently live in Moons Acre opposite the school. During that time Anne has skilfully led Churches Together in Bentham which plays an active part in the life of our community. We, together with others, have worked together in joint events particularly around the festivals of Christmas and Easter and the Annual Act of 3 Remembrance. Anne also organised the rota of ministers to support the Farming Community Network 'caravan' at the Auction Mart. We're both engaged in the life of the school, supporting each other's work and collaborating on events like the harvest festival. Anne ably supported my initiative to bring back the Easter Sunrise Service by suggesting people to help. Perhaps my best memory is of a long prayer walk around the roads and lanes that surround Bentham. This was an idea that Father Frank proposed and the three of us (four if you count Frank's dog), with some support in the first stage, walked together. During that day we got to know each other better as we shared something of our callings to this work and our varied experiences of Christian ministry. Everyone at Bentham Methodist church wishes Anne and her family well in this next chapter of their lives. Stephen Caddy (Superintendent Minister of the Settle Circuit of The Methodist Church) We would like to say a big thank you to Anne. As funeral directors it's been our privilege to work with her over her period of time in Bentham and district. We could not have had anybody more dedicated and compassionate with funerals, and the families have all appreciated her so much and have told us so. To say she will be missed by everyone in this district is an understatement. We wish Anne and her family well in her new role, and we will keep in touch. Our loss is their gain in Seacroft. We love you lots. Jimmy and the team at B&W Funerals. We will all miss Rev. Anne’s positive, inclusive energy, and heaps of community spirit. Rev. Anne is a truly self-sacrificing person who has achieved so much for the people of Bentham and surrounding area. It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know you and to work alongside you, thank you! Lynda and everyone at Pioneer Projects Anne has such a lovely heart for the Lord and for people and has made a real difference in our community. Her involvement in the school, youth club, auction mart, Pop-Up-Pantry, Churches Together and other community groups, and especially as she simply gets alongside people from every walk of life, has meant that her influence goes way beyond St. John’s. She has touched our lives and reminded us all of God’s love and grace. It has been a joy to know and work alongside her. Thank you, Anne! Marcie Potts/Cornerstone Church Rev Anne, as she is known by many, has been caring, generous and compassionate to all the community of Bentham, not only to church members. She has made many connections, with parents and children at school, the Youth Club, the farming community, Looking Well, the Pop-up- Pantry, Bentham Older People Together, Churches Together and further afield with Muslim women and refugees in Sudan. She has helped us through Covid and been there for us through the sadness of bereavement and the joy of weddings and baptisms. More recently she has spearheaded our building project at St Johns and is hoping to use the flush toilet before she leaves! Dear Anne, we will miss you and your amazing family. God be with you! St Johns Low Bentham 4 Rev Anne says Thank You as she bids Farewell to Bentham It’s been a great privilege to live in Bentham and serve our local communities. Without doubt leaving is going to be one of the hardest things I have to do. When I first arrived - seven years ago - people were quite suspicious and often wouldn’t give me the time of day – why would they? St Margaret’s had sadly just closed, and we weren’t that welcome. I guess I had to prove myself. I had to listen and that’s been great. Listen to people, listen to local stories, listen to loss and celebration, listen and love. Slowly my understanding grew. Every day I would pray, “Lord, break open my heart so the needs and lives of the people of Bentham will fall in. Amen” and it worked – often I found my heart broken but also it got bigger and stronger! I tried to gently follow the example of Jesus who didn’t stay inside religious buildings but always got out there in the streets and homes of real people.