Ickenham Churches Christian Aid Group has been able to send £920 to Christian Aid during 2005, and has already sent a further £500 this year.  These sums are of course in addition to the summer house-to-house collection.

The revenue comes from waste newspapers/magazines taken to the bins in St Martin’s Approach car park, Ruislip.  (It’s still worth taking them as they contributed £560 last year.)   Also from the monthly Ploughman’s Lunches at the URC, which made £651.   All are welcome at these lunches and forthcoming dates are 10^th March, 5^th May, and 2^nd June.

 

The chance to spend a Holiday Week on Iona is offered to everyone in the Diocese of London.

Spending seven nights in the Bishop's House on Iona, the group will have the chance to share with the Iona Community, as well as experiencing a time of learning, fellowship and exploration.

From June 30^th  - July 8^th , Revd. John McManners, an immensely popular pilgrimage leader and a great source of knowledge on the Celtic Saints, will lead the group in worship, talks and retreat.

£528 includes one night B&B in Durham, seven nights full board on Iona, all luxury coach travel and ferry journeys.

For further information, please contact the UKLTG Brochureline on 0845 6019567
Email: mail@ukltg.com
www.ukltg.com

 

ROS Stage Works, the Young People’s Theatre Workshop, will be running a Summer School of performing arts this August, at the Winston Churchill Hall in Ruislip.

The Summer School, co-ordinated and funded by Ruislip Operatic Society with support and sponsorship from LB Hillingdon Service in the Community Programme, will be open to budding entertainers across the borough, aged 8 to 17, whether or not they’ve already enjoyed a moment in the spotlight. 

Stage Works spokesman Malcolm Unwin says, “We aim to encourage young people to develop their singing, dancing and acting skills and have maximum fun along the way. ROS Stage Works was set up in 2003 to introduce children in and around Ruislip to the wonderful world of musical theatre in a friendly, supportive atmosphere. We’re now extending that opportunity to the whole of Hillingdon. For a full week, the performers of tomorrow can discover new talents and start to live some dreams.”

The Stage Works Summer School will include an introduction to some basics of stagecraft, wardrobe, make-up, props, lighting and sound. Seven days of workshops and rehearsals will build to a full-scale performance on the Winston Churchill Hall stage on Saturday 5^th August, for an audience of family and friends.

For information about dates and fees, or to make an application, call Gordon Beck on 07818 464517, visit www.ruislipos.org or email gordonb@learningpartners.co.uk

 

The Hillingdon branch of CCJ commemorated Holocaust Memorial Day’s 2006 theme “One Person Can Make a Difference” by showing the Emmy-award winning film ”The Power of Good”.

The film is a documentary about the amazing courage, determination and modesty of a young English stock exchange clerk who saved the lives of 669 Jewish children who otherwise almost certainly would have been murdered by the Nazis.

Between March and August 1939 Nicholas Winton organised six trains to take children from Prague to new homes in Britain, and kept quiet about it until 1988 when his wife discovered a scrapbook documenting his unique mission. Sadly a seventh train, which he had organised, was unable to leave Prague because of the outbreak of WWII, and it must be assumed that all those children were murdered.

Around 125 people attended the meeting, and we were very privileged to welcome four of the “Winton children” – John Snabl, Josi Knight, Susan Medas and Kurt Taussig. It was harrowing to realise that had it not been for the action of Nicholas Winton these 4 people, mere children at the time, could not have been with us. Tragically the rescued children never saw their parents again and presumably most, if not all, the parents were murdered by the Nazis.

After the showing of the film the four “Winton children” answered a number of questions from the audience, and paid tribute to the kindness and understanding of the families who took them in. Under arrangements made by Nicholas Winton provision for their care was made until they reached age of seventeen. The events recorded in this documentary film, and the presence of these survivors at our meeting, illustrates the truth of this year’s Holocaust theme that one person can make a difference. 

After Nicholas Winton’s exploits became public he was awarded an M.B.E and a knighthood. He is now in his nineties and is involved with some charities; one of which being the Abbeyfield Foundation.   Proceeds from the meeting have enabled Hillingdon CCJ to donate £200 to this cause.
 

More Volunteers needed urgently

The next Sunday when volunteers are needed to collect patients from wards for Communion services in the hospital chapel is:  Hillingdon Hospital on Sunday 19^th March. More dates will be published in future months. This small service is very much appreciated by patients who have no family available to help them. To continue this service we need to supplement our regular team with more volunteers to provide cover for unavoidable absences. Anyone who is prepared to spend a couple of hours on occasional Sunday mornings, please contact Alan Grove on 020 8868 9220.

Each week at St Giles’ Church we pray for all the people who live or work in a particular road in the Parish. During February we will pray for the following roads:

5^th March :  Eleanor Grove.
12^th March : Elgar Close.
19^th March : Enstone Road.
26^th March : Gibson Road.

If you live in one of these roads why not join us at our 8 a.m. or 9.45 a.m. services. You will be most welcome.