Two Gifts for St John's Church

Over the Easter Weekend two gifts will be dedicated at St John's Church. The first gift is a Votive Candle Stand. This has been requested by many. After careful discussion in the Parochial Church Council, and with the agreement of the Parochial Church Council, a Faculty was sought for this Candle Stand. A Faculty was granted on 29th January 2013, and the Candle Stand will be dedicated at the candlelit Easter Vigil, on Easter Eve, Saturday 30th March 2013. This gift was given by a member of St John's, and we are grateful for it. It means that people can light a candle for someone who is ill, or who has died, and can pray themselves, and ask others to pray for specific situations and individuals. It is an aide to intercessory prayer that many value and find helpful. We are grateful for all those who made this possible, and all those who will care for it, week by week.

On Easter Day, at the end of the Family Communion a new brass memorial will be dedicated in the Porch. This is a thanksgiving for the life, work and faith of Betty and Denis Mitchell. They played a full part in the life of this church and this deanery. They were widely respected and their cremated remains are buried in the churchyard. After a request from their family for this memorial, the Parochial Church Council discussed the idea very carefully, and agreed that a Faculty could be sought for this new memorial. This Faculty, from the Chancellor of the Diocese of Chelmsford, was granted on 29th January 2013. It was paid for by the family of Betty and Denis. This fine brass plaque, measuring 10 in x 8 in was produced by Culzean Engraving from Knutsford in Cheshire www.culzeanengraving.com. It blends very well with the other plaques in the porch and we are grateful to all those who made this work possible.

RAYMOND DRAPER