Chaplaincy News

Words from your Warden Well, what a week that was. On Tuesday we had our AGM all went extremely well, and we have two new members of council. The members of council are Catherine Chambers, Wanda McKercher, Roy Carter, Paul Davis, Jane Thomas, Sue Wilcock, Sally Freeman and Kathryn Dean. Their contact details can be found on the website www.churchinfrance.com. David will also be publishing their details in Jubilate. So, if you have any concerns bring them to me or to a member of Council. There is now, only one Church Warden, but we will over the next few months, be searching for a second warden. I will be placing in Jubilate details of what a Church Wardens duties are, So that if anyone feels they are being called to this position they know what it entails. As you saw from the reports circulated before the meeting, our financial position is improving and although we are not yet able to offer full or even a part time position to a Chaplain, we are going to begin to prepare a Vacancy Pack and work with the Archdeacon to this end. The first meeting of the Think Tank will be on the 10th of May. Talking of Archdeacon’s we had a visitation from Bishop Robert, Archdeacon Peter and Tony Lomas our Area Dean on the 1st of May. They met our Chaplaincy Council and then Bishop Robert led a service where he Dedicated our Church as The Church of Christ the Good Shepherd. We therefore now move forward in God’s service with renewed vigour, enthusiasm, unity. The Ministry team and council are now in the planning stages of holding an Ecumenical service on the 5th Sunday of May. Where we can invite members of other Churches to join us in Worship and Praise to our God. I will keep you updated with our Chaplaincy’s progress and wish you all an enjoyable time in the sunshine. Carolyn Church Warden

Words from the Wardens Another good and positive meeting of the Chaplaincy Council was held on the 5th of April, Our church in Chef Boutonne is being visited by the Batiment de France at 9 am on the 15th of April, when we will be advised of what we are able to do to the exterior of our church and its garden. Painting work on the interior of the Church has begun and we have started to clear the garden. The fence will be replaced when we have received the go ahead from the Batiment de France as will the sign for the outside of the building telling people who we are, and the times of the services held in The Church of Christ the Good Shepherd. We are getting ready for the AGM which is to be held on the 26th of April at 10.30 am on Zoom. Valerie will send out, to all those on the Electoral role, the reports, Agenda for the meeting and last year’s minutes at the appropriate time, together with the Zoom link. There are three candidates for Chaplaincy Council so far. Details of who, and how others may apply for this very important role in the Chaplaincy, will be printed in Jubilate over the next few weeks. If you require any information on the role of becoming a Chaplaincy Council member, please contact Carolyn on chaplaincychurcwarden1@gmail.com . or Wanda on church.warden2@gmail.com The reintroduction of the Common Cup will be an ongoing Agenda item for the Council, as it feels that it is too early to offer ‘full Communion’. The Council will meet again on the 19th of April to finalise details for the visit of the Bishop on the 1st of May. The time of the service is 6:30 pm at Church. Carolyn and Wanda

LUNCH AFTER FEBRUARY SERVICES AT CHEF BOUTONNE Lunch will again be available at the Restaurant des Canards, 1 Route de Niort, 79110, Chef-Boutonne after both our February services. The traditional Sunday roast and pudding at 12,50€ will still be available on both dates and Sara has kindly agreed to vary the main course choices for the menu at 14€. These are as follows: After Morning Worship service, Feb 13th - Salmon with cream cheese and chilli topping OR warm goat's cheese salad (with choice of 2 desserts or cheese) Feb 27th After Holy Communion service, Coq au vin OR whole Trout (with choice of 2 desserts or cheese) Please contact Wanda to reserve places, stating which date and which choices you would like. Bookings for Feb 13th should be sent by 10pm on Wednesday Feb 9th and for Feb 27th by 10pm on Feb 23rd.

Interested in the following suggestions that can help you ???? We all have questions about admin and with Brexit, nothing is made easy. Where do I get information on changing a driving licence, can I have a carte de séjour, how do I renew my carte Vitale, where do I get tax forms from, am I allowed electricity allowance given my income ???? We are looking to organise afternoons in the Chapel in Chef Boutonne with a professional who can give you explanations, leads and answers on these questions. She is perfectly bilingual and works locally with the prefectures and administrations of all sorts. The same kind of afternoon meeting is possible with a Notary to answer all questions on wills, purchasing, Pacs, donations etc…. The programmes would be : Introduction Main important recurrent themes, carte de séjour, carte Vitale or Purchases/ Wills for example. Questions from the public on any particular situation or problem and answers from speaker. Tea and cakes and possibility to exchange together and/or with the speaker. Entrance of 5€, tea / coffee and cakes by the Chaplaincy fund raising group. If you are interested, please just drop a quick line to the office at office.goodshepherd@sfr.fr letting us know which theme (or both) interest you, so we know it is worth organising and we will arrange dates as of beginning of March Valérie

Words from the Wardens After the hugely successful opening service at the Church of Christ the Good Shepherd in Chef- Boutonne a Holy Communion service was held on 23rd January, followed by lunch at the Restaurant des Canards. Again, the church was packed, and we have received many messages from members of the congregation, both old and new, commenting how warm and welcoming they found the experience. AGM At the recent Council meeting a date was proposed for this year’s AGM, Tuesday 26th April, and for practical reasons, taking into account the ongoing Covid uncertainties, it was decided that this will once again be held on Zoom. This is a very exciting time for our Chaplaincy and there are several ways in which you can become involved in its future. Vacancies Chaplaincy Churchwarden Wanda will not be standing for re-election as Churchwarden at the AGM so if you are interested and feel that you would like more information on this very important role in the Chaplaincy, the Churchwardens guidelines can be made available. Please contact Carolyn. Local Wardens In order to successfully organise services in Courcelles, Cognac, Champagne-Mouton and now in Chef-Boutonne we need Local Wardens who, amongst their duties prepare the church, meet and greet, count collection and complete required paperwork. There is also, due to covid restrictions, the added work of disinfecting chairs and hymn books before and after the service. This may sound daunting but is very necessary and very rewarding. Safeguarding checks and training also have to be completed. There are currently Local Wardens in place in the first three centres mentioned and Wanda is to become Local Warden for Chef-Boutonne but we still need volunteers to share the load and cover for absences. We encourage you to give prayerful thought to this and to contact either of us if you feel called to serve in this way. Council Members After the AGM a new Council will begin to operate consisting of some existing members, but new members will also be required. Further information will be given over the coming months but, again, if you would like to discuss becoming involved in this way, please contact one of us or any other Council member you may know. Forms are available on the chaplaincy website. Discussion also took place on the need for individual groups to help carry out the work of the Chaplaincy. 1. We need to set up a gardening team. With Spring around the corner, the side beds of our new Church will need digging over weeding and replanting. The rear however will need some professional help. Trees to be either prunes or cut down and the whole of the area will need rotavating. Kieran Marshall has kindly offered to work on the replacement fence as soon as we can get the fencing approved by the Mairie. 2. We need a Fundraising team to oversee the Summer Fete and the Winter Bazaar. These two very important events bring people into the Chaplaincy who wouldn’t necessarily do so. As well as raising an awful lot of money for the Chaplaincy. This will be an agenda item for the next council meeting so if you have any ideas on fundraising, again please contact Carolyn or Wanda. 3. We now have an events calendar; Carolyn is holding a physical one and she together with Maria are also in the process of putting one on the website. This will enable you to see at a glance the days that are free for your own venture. Contact Carolyn if you require a space. 05 45 84 19 03 or 0612137007 email: chaplaincychurchwarden1@gmail.com So, thinking caps on please. The colour scheme has been chosen for the Church and will be submitted to the Maire; the Council have chosen 3004 which is Rouge Basque. So, we should be able to paint the front door and the fence as soon as the better weather allows. So, our little Church is going to look gorgeous, well, more gorgeous than she already does. There is still a lot of work to be done however, EDF are arriving at the end of February to update the supply and move the electricity box, and devis are awaited for the heating and the roof repairs which were caused by the recent storm. Carolyn and Maria are in the process of either recording or live streaming the services at Chef Boutonne. And we have the promise of a further Communion service on the third Sunday of March. So, things are moving, some slowly others more quickly. We just need your continued love and support. Remembering the vision of Jeremiah 29 verse 11. For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. They are plans for good and not disaster, to give you a future and a hope. (NLT) We look forward to seeing you at our services in February, details of which will be in Jubilate and on the Chaplaincy website. Until then, we hope you all stay safe and well. Love and blessings, Carolyn and Wanda

Words from the Wardens The nineteenth of December was a very special day. It was the day when our first service was held in our new Church, The Church of Christ the Good Shepherd. A group of us had spent a few weeks getting ready for the big day and the church looked gorgeous. The Church was full, and the ministers both lay and Priestly led in procession to the altar. The new Chaplaincy choir sang beautifully, and the service was very special to everyone who was there. A few photographs for you are added. Our next Communion service in the new Church of Christ the Good Shepherd will be held on the 23rd of January at 11:00 am. (Please note the later time of starting). We also thought you might be interested to know that Nicky drew the raffle at the restaurant after the meal and the winner was Margaret Mace. Many thanks to Stevie Sheldon for donating the prize – Christmas cake and pudding – and for organising the raffle which raised 136€. The sale of Christmas items donated by Margaret and others after the service raised 40€. A huge thank you to everyone who supported these efforts and donated to the collection on 19th. Meal at the Restaurant des Canards, 1 Route de Niort 79110 Chef-Boutonne : 28 of us went to the Restaurant des Canards for lunch after the service and all agreed it was excellent – delicious food, lovely surroundings and a convivial atmosphere. Consequently, we have arranged for lunch there again after the Communion service on 23rd January. The options are traditional Sunday roast and pudding at 12,50€ or a two-course menu with choice at 14,00€. (Please note drinks are not included.) Sara has varied the main course options for the latter – roast leg of duck, pork fillet with prune and apple in a cream sauce, cod on a dill sauce or veggie Wellington. There will be a choice of 2 desserts or cheese. Please let Wanda know by 10pm on WEDNESDAY 19th JAN if you would like to reserve a place and state which option(s) you would like to order. Please REMEMBER your PASS SANITAIRE for the restaurant - it will be checked. We very much look forward to welcoming you to the service on 23rd. Details of future services and other activities will be advertised in Jubilate and on the website in the coming weeks. Blessings to you all. Carolyn and Wanda

Words from the Wardens.Firstly, the purchase of our building has been finalised and the little Chapel will now be known as the Church of Christ the Good Shepherd.We have written to Bishop Robert asking if he would visit our area during his tour of Southwest France next year, so that we can hold a special Consecration Service.A group of volunteers are going in on the 4th of December to give an initial good clean of the building and dispose of the bits and pieces left behind by the previous owner.We will then require two people who would be willing to go in once a month to give the Church a once over.We also need two people to act as Local Wardens. Also, there is the need to prepare the floral arrangements for the opening services and the ongoing services in the new Church. Again if you have the gift of flower arranging and would like to offer it or any of the required posts to the Chaplaincy Please contact: Carolyn - chaplaincychurchwarden1@gmail.com or Wanda – chaplaincy.churchwarden2@gmail.com.Our Christmas services for December are: Times may change.5th December: Courcelles, - Champagne Mouton- St Leger. 10:30 am12th December: Cognac, Ecumenical Carols 3:00 pm and Zoom 10:30 am14th December Courcelles. Ecumenical Carol Service (time to be agreed)19th December: Opening service. 11:00am24th December: Chef Boutonne. 9 Lessons and Carols. 4pm25th December: Courcelles and Champagne Mouton, 10:30 am26th December: Chef Boutonne 10: 30am and Zoom 3:30 pm.As you can see the opening service of our new Church is going to be on the 19th of December where we will be holding a special Advent Communion Service. Full details have not yet been confirmed but the initial thinking is that it will begin at 11:00 am. We would ask the Local Maire and his colleague together with the local Catholic Priest. We are organising a restaurant meal for after the service if anyone would like to join us. We are going to start a Chaplaincy choir for special occasions and Simon Freeman has agreed to be our Choir Master and Musical Director. So hopefully we will be able to rehearse an advent Anthem for the opening service. Further occasions would be Good Friday, Easter, Advent, Christmas and possibly weddings.If anyone who loves singing would like to join us, please contact: Carolyn - chaplaincychurchwarden1@gmail.com or Wanda – chaplaincy.churchwarden2@gmail.com.This was all discussed at our Council Meeting on the 22nd of November.At this meeting the need for more keyboard players was raised, so if anyone can play keyboard and would like to play at the services in the Chaplaincy again contact:Carolyn - chaplaincychurchwarden1@gmail.com or Wanda – chaplaincy.churchwarden2@gmail.com.Roy and Carolyn attended a Live Streaming workshop and are looking into the different ways we can live Stream our services.So, to recap: if anyone can offer their services as Local wardens for the new Church in Chef Boutonne or volunteer to go in once a month to give it a clean.If anyone would like to join our new Chaplaincy choir to sing on special occasions.Or if there is anyone who can play the keyboard and offer their wonderful gift to the Chaplaincy.Please contact:Carolyn - chaplaincychurchwarden1@gmail.com or Wanda – chaplaincy.churchwarden2@gmail.com.Finally, As December marks the end of the financial year in France you might like to consider the benefits from paying your monthly giving through the HelloAsso page on our website. It is quick to set up, informs you how much tax relief you get on your donation and administration is easier than for giving via the envelope scheme. Help and guidance can be given to anyone who is unsure about it. Again, contact the wardens Carolyn - chaplaincychurchwarden1@gmail.com or Wanda – chaplaincy.churchwarden2@gmail.com.Or our Treasurer: Valerie on - office.goodshepherd@sfr.frWe now begin a very exciting time in our Chaplaincy’s Life. Let us go forward together and revive and revitalise our Chaplaincy and bring more people into God’s Kingdom here in Poitou Charentes.Thank you all and may God bless you.Carolyn and Wanda.