Great Ellingham

On the first Sunday in May, we joined with churches across the country in holding a service of commemoration for VE day. Outside, the church was decorated with red, white and blue bunting and the service was followed by refreshments. Later in the week, our bells rang out at 6.30pm as they would have done eighty years ago and Charles, our churchwarden, lit a beacon in the churchyard.

Instead of our usual pop-up café, on 10th & 11th May, the church was the venue for a local history display celebrating jobs and occupations within Great Ellingham. It was a fascinating display, enjoyed by over 200 people over the weekend. There was plenty for people to discover. As well as family history, there was also the opportunity to see amazing archaeological finds from Matt Hall’s metal detecting. We thank Heather, Matt and teams for their hard work and for everyone who supported the event. Refreshments were available throughout, manned by members of the PCC.

Our café church on 11th May was themed on Christian Aid, as it was the start of their annual fundraising week. The service utilised some of their online resources. We saw slides about Aurelia, a farmer from Guatemala, whose crops have been devastated by climate change causing heat waves, storms and unpredictable seasons – quite ironic given the lack of rains we have seen this year in our county, which are also causing problems for our own farmers and gardens. Each member of the congregation was given the opportunity to plant a sunflower seed to take home and nurture, remembering our world, created by God. We ended the service with a chocolate button reflection (Aurelia learnt how to grow cocoa and make chocolate with Christian Aid’s support) – savouring the chocolate as a reminder of how God wants to fill us with love and hope.

We held our APCM during May and are pleased to say that Charles agreed to continue as churchwarden. All the members of the PCC remain.

As May draws to a close, Rev Sue Strutt will be hanging up her formal position of Priest Associate and we thank her for all she has done with us in this benefice. We know she’ll still be at services, but hopefully she will be able to take some more time to rest and do ‘other things’!

Our next pop-up café will be on Saturday 7th June. This will be our usual offering of a place to socialise, get a hot drink and fresh cake. We are also planning a Messy Church at the same time, so welcome anyone interested in seeing church in a different light, with activities and crafts. Both will be 10am – 12 noon.

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