We are really sorry but we have had to cancel both services on Christmas Eve.
We have decided to cancel the Christingle Services throughout the Benefice this year because of Covid. We need to keep everyone safe.
However, Christingle packs, with oranges, glow sticks and instructions will be available for collection from the Lychgate, at St Peter’s Church, between 4 and 4.30 pm on Christmas Eve.
There will be an online YouTube Christingle service airing at 6pm on Christmas Eve. Just type J22 Churches into the YouTube channel.
And we have had to cancel the Midnight Holy Communion service in Thornton due to illness – not covid though. Reverend Andrew has tried to find cover for the service but it’s proved impossible at such short notice.
There is a Midnight Communion service at St Michael’s at 11.30pm on Christmas Eve to which everyone is invited.
Everyone is also invited to the Christmas morning service at St Mary’s, Stanton at 10.30 am.
Please spread the word about all this. Thanks.
Wishing you all a Christmas full of hope, joy, and love,
We are really sorry but we have decided to cancel the Christingle Services throughout the Benefice this year because of Covid. We need to keep everyone safe.
However, Christingle packs, with oranges, glow sticks and instructions will be available for collection from the Lychgate, at St Peter’s Church, between 4 and 4.30 pm on Christmas Eve. We look forward to seeing you.
There will be an online YouTube Christingle service airing at 5 or 6pm on Christmas Eve. Watch out for more details.
We wish you all, whatever your circumstances, a Christmas full of love, peace and joy.
After a 22 month break because of Covid restrictions/lockdowns – Quiz nights at the village hall are back (we hope!) on Saturday 8th January ’22. But as I write the rules are changing as the infection rate rises. We can only hope that by then ‘things’ have settled a little. If deemed too risky, nearer the time, the quiz will be postponed to a later date.
Ashley has kept the villagers going throughout Covid with his wonderful fish and chips every Friday afternoon/evening, so I asked if he could cater for 60 of us at a quiz night, and he readily agreed. Here’s hoping it can all go ahead as planned. Profits after expenses will go to the FOSP (Friends of St Peters charity).
Thornton Christmas Tree Festival 2021 took place over the weekend of Saturday and Sunday 11th & 12th December. The theme this year was ‘Christmas Stories in any media, including film’.
Despite the short notice that the festival would be held this year there were still 10 wonderful entries covering the 3 categories:-
1) Adult 2) Children/family 3) Most ingenious/original.
There were approximately 150 – 200 visitors to the church over the 2 day period and 105 voting slips were completed.
The 50p entrance fee and a small donation for refreshments raised £180 for the Friends of St Peter’s.
Winner – Adult category – The Polar Express (The Thornton Ringers)
Copyright – Gillatphotography
Winner – Children/family – The Snowman & Snowdog (Little Angels)
Copyright – Gillatphotography
Winner – Ingenious/original – Two sides of a Christmas Carol (Beta Group)
Copyright – Gillatphotography
Overall feedback was positive and everyone enjoyed the opportunity to do something ‘Christmassy’, whilst looking around our wonderful and interesting church. I’m sure there will be an even bigger and better Christmas Tree festival next year.
The weekend culminated in the ‘9 Lessons and Carols’ service in the evening. A lovely way to end a lovely weekend.
Best wishes to all for Christmas and the New Year.
The beech tree suffering from Meripilus Gaganteus in Thornton churchyard has now been felled much to everyone’s relief.
The storms of late November caused some anxiety, but all is safely sorted now.
Beddow Tree Specialists, a very caring and conscientious company, did an excellent job, taking great care to avoid any damage to the remaining headstones and surrounding trees by lowering each branch using a pulley system.
We were really worried about how the cost of all the work involved would be met but the generosity of local people has been lovely and very encouraging. Thank you everyone.
At the time of writing, we have £1,850 towards the costs.
In May I applied to the Jack Patston Charitable Trust for help with the cost of the Death Watch Beetle treatment. I really didn’t think they would be able to help, but last week we received a cheque for £2,500 (half the cost). And Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council have recently given us a grant of £6,238 to help with the cost of the roof repair after the thieves stole the lead in 2019 and the recent stonework repairs to the church to stop the ingress of water. This represents half the cost. I can’t tell you how relieved we all are. Thank you.
During the month of November alone we have accumulated bills amounting to over £14,000, what with the tree works, stonework repairs, maintenance and monitoring costs for the roof alarm, and the maintenance of the heating system.
The Christmas Craft Fayre was an amazing day. We had so many people supporting this event that we ran out of raffle tickets, tombola prizes and Martins quiz sheets.
The only things we did not run out of were happiness and enthusiasm. This after the day not starting off so well as Father Christmas had to walk to the Community Centre. Gemini, the steam engine bringing him, very sadly was poorly at the last minute. The good news is that Colin her owner quickly diagnosed the problem, and she is back in full working order. By the time Father Christmas arrived he already had an excited queue of children waiting to visit him in his grotto.
A huge thank you to everyone who supported this amazing day. Stall holders, your stalls looked great, full of beautiful items many of which were handcrafted. Thank you. And thank you to everyone that pitched in to help with so many of the jobs. You are all wonderful.
We raised an amazing £1,590. Every penny of this goes towards the cost of maintaining and improving our beautiful, ancient church.
We are hoping that we have very few demands on money over the next couple of years as we are really hoping that the plans for a vertical lift into church and the creation of a comfortable multi-use area will come to fruition soon. We know this will be costly but have every faith that the funds will become available through grants, fund raising and generosity.
I am hoping for no more bees, leaks, beetles, poorly trees, thieves or any other problems!
We wish you all a joy filled and peaceful Christmas and 2022. Stay well and safe.
By Shirley Garlick (churchwarden) and all at St Peter’s church
The Thornton ladies luncheon group, having met in November, for the first time since March 2020, met again on Thursday for a Christmas lunch at the Bricklayers Arms.
Hopefully the group will be able to get back to their pre Covid routine of meeting up once a month for lunch in the New Year.
Thornton Action Group was founded to fundraise in relation to ‘Keep Thornton Green’, a direct response to planning applications on the far side of the reservoir.
The group funds have remained in place for several years in case they were needed, but the Action Group have decided to relinquish monies held in this account. It is with the greatest of pleasure that the members of TAG have donated to Thornton St Peter’s Church over £1,500 to help with the arboriculture work which has taken place within the churchyard.
The group has also paid for two new sets of pads for the defibrillator on the wall facing the car park at the Bricklayers Arms, having reached their expiry date, replacements are required. The group is happy to be involved with two worthwhile projects.
Bagworth, Markfield, Stanton under Bardon and Thornton
By Liz Mitchell
This is the Centenary year of both the Royal British Legion and the Poppy Appeal.
One hundred years ago, veterans were begging in the streets and surviving on hand-outs and soup kitchens. The fabric of our society had been wrecked by WWI, and the health and social care that we take for granted today did not exist then.
The Legion began its life to meet an immediate need to support the returning veterans and their families. Today the Royal British Legion is the largest military charity and has Remembrance, welfare and campaigning at the heart of all we do. We have a network of members that works nationwide to educate all members of the community and to keep the act of Remembrance alive all year round.
The collections and donations from our four villages this year totalled £2,947.06. The schools in our area raised a total of £1,218.63, which is exceptional. Every penny that was raised through this collection will go directly to welfare. My thanks go to all the school staff, pupils, parents, villagers, businesses, Markfield WI, youth organisations and the Parish Councils that have helped in the Poppy Appeal this year.
This weekend is the Christmas Tree Festival and also the Carol Service at St Peter’s Church. Local people and groups go to great effort to decorate the trees in church and the effect is usually spectacular and magical – well worth popping in for a look!
Thornton 