December 2009/January 2010

Community Association AGM

Surely a record turnout at the AGM this year – with many helpful and supportive words from our guests to our committee. We reported a very pleasing year in 2008/9. The Fete in July showed another bumper performance with best ever profits of £3,430. The Carol Evening, Quiz Night, and Mamma Mia Singalong in October were all sell outs. We thanked the Sangers for hosting the Fete, providing so much of the hard graft needed in preparation, as well as lending us their garden. The committee itself must take a bow for contributing so much to other events – with Andy Lewis and Helen Baines deserving special thanks for their creative efforts at the Carol Evening and Mamma Mia, and Caroline Oakley and Amanda Potter for master minding the catering.

Outside the committee, we rely on a number of very special ‘friends’. There is Derek Brooker, who slaves away in the kitchen producing gallons of mulled wine every year for the Carol Evening, and John Burdass who provides our technology comfort blanket at every event. We should also thank Norman Large, ever ready at the piano at the Carol Evening, and Lynn Burridge, who works so hard on the hampers distributed by the Scouts in the village at Christmas, using Carol Evening profits. And so it goes on.

Once again, we reported a healthy bank surplus for the year, with reserves at £6,770 and another £2,000 accrued for church building and maintenance plans. £5,162 was distributed as grants to village activities and clubs during the year. Finally, it was an evening for saying goodbye to stalwart committee members. We have been trying to introduce new people to the committee for a number of years, and now we have started to do so, with Helen Baines, Sue Booth, Julie Carr and Ann Linton joining in the last 18 months. Joan Brewer, Sue Myatt, Caroline Oakley and Maureen Tarry stood down as members this year, with our most grateful thanks for their long service. Meanwhile, Madeline Sanger resigned as secretary. Madeline has been an amazing secretary, taking on many of the committee’s duties single-handedly. We will miss her greatly. She came back once after retiring, so we live in hope. The Chairman and Treasurer (James Davys) were re-elected, with all other current Committee members: Helen Baines, Sue Booth, Julie Carr, Frank Farquharson, David Fox, Andy Lewis, Ann Linton, Amanda Potter, and Tony Stapleton. Sue Booth was elected Secretary.

Hugh Roderick

Environment Group

Oxfordshire Project on Reducing Energy Use
Who can be against keeping a warm home in the winter and saving money doing it? Improved insulation and the use of energy efficient appliances, solar panels, ground heat pumps and the like offer ways of achieving these aims, by reducing household energy use. To promote these aims the Group is planning to take part in the Oxfordshire Eco-renovation Project (OEP) being run by the University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute and the Climate Outreach Information Network (COIN). Some 200-300 householders are being recruited across the county who will form a “Club” to receive a support service, including information, the loan of smart meters, discounted micro-generation installations and advice. In return the Club members will be encouraged to renovate their homes to reduce energy use and carbon emissions, recording what they consume and release month by month.

To launch the Project, Sally Harper talked on “Achieving a Low Carbon Home” in the Village Hall on Tuesday 24 November followed by an introduction to the Project by David Evans Roberts who is taking the lead for the Environment Group. Please get in touch with David on 836839 if you are interested in taking part.

Orchard and Fruit Tree Survey
For much of the year the project to record the number and species of apple and other fruit trees in the village has been going ahead led by Alison Bloomfield, whose idea it was. This culminated in a very successful Apple Day held at the Red Lion on 18 October. The survey recorded some 600 fruit trees, 338 being apples: Paul Chilton being able to identify the variety for 196 of these. This gave a total of 43 known species of apple trees in the village with 36% of households having fruit trees. As some notable gardens and orchards still have to be surveyed the work is continuing.

River Thames Talk
We had a well attended and successful talk by Steve Capel-Davies on 3 November. Steve took us from the headwaters of the Thames down to the Pool of London, describing past and present activities and the people involved in them. Basket making, transport by barges, mills, boatbuilding, floods, fisheries and docks all came into it. It is strange that we don’t think of Brightwell cum Sotwell as a Thames-side parish and yet part of our northern boundary is some 8km of the river!

John Rodda

Apple Day

As this was the first Brightwell-cum-Sotwell Apple Day at the Red Lion we had no idea how many people would join us, but it proved to be very popular with, we estimate, over 150 people attending the event. Along with many villagers, there were visitors from Wallingford, Didcot, Abingdon and local villages, as well as apple enthusiasts from as far away as Oxford, Thame, Henley and even Maidenhead.

The pub garden was transformed into an orchard market. Paul Chilton presented a magnificent display of 24 different varieties of desert and cooking apples, all sourced from the village, including: Norfolk Beefing, Rev. W Wilks, Charles Ross, Monarch, Ribston Pippin, Peasgood Nonsuch, to name but a few. John Bloomfield had at least a dozen different varieties for tasting, including: Laxton’s Superb, Blenheim Orange, Lord Lambourne, and two Russets, Egremont and Golden. The Spartan apples were a favourite with the children, especially as once polished on a sleeve they produced a deep red shine, while the connoisseurs ‘apple of choice’ on the day appeared to be Ashmead’s Kernel. The main comment from visitors was how amazed they were to see so much fruit and have a chance to taste so many apples they hadn’t even heard of. All were very impressed with our village juice and there was much discussion and debate about the five different blends available; all 100 bottles sold out.

We started this project because we wanted to take an opportunity to showcase the village fruit, press some juice for people to try and celebrate the impressive number of varieties we have in the village. So far we have discovered 43 varieties of apple.

Throughout September and October apples were picked from gardens and. In all, Paul picked about 500kg of apples for pressing, display and tasting. The day before Apple Day we pressed our own juice using equipment kindly leant by Little Wittenham Manor. Using a hydro press and centrifugal crusher we pressed and pasteurised about 80 litres in 5 hours.

Thank you everyone who contributed to this autumn project, especially those who offered their fruit. We didn’t even scratch the surface of the 600 fruit trees in the village. Next year, if interest is there, we could possibly make a small dent in the village crop.

For more information about the history of Apple Day go to the Commonground website – http://www.commonground.org.uk/

Alison Bloomfield

Navigating Through Life

Not long before my elderly father died in July we took him for ride in the beautiful countryside around Stonor Park. To help me find my way around the network of narrow lanes I was using my “satnav”. When this disembodied voice said “In 100 yards turn left” he was bemused. I explained to him that a process of triangulation using several satellites orbiting the earth was able to pinpoint where we were to an accuracy of about 3 yards and the rest was a detailed map of the whole of Europe stored in the memory of the device. Then there was the processor working out the best way to get to my destination. He quietly remarked, “I don’t belong on this planet anymore”.

Dad was a navigator in the Fleet Air Arm during WW2. He had a map and compass and had to use any visual clues he could get to determine where they were. During the Normandy landings he was flying patrols from the Hook of Holland down to Cherbourg, looking for enemy movements. On one occasion they emerged from cloud to find that they had overshot Cherbourg and were flying over Alderney, which was under German occupation. The defence forces fired everything they had at this one small plane. “I’m glad they missed” said I. They didn’t. A shell had penetrated the engine cowling and missed by millimetres vital wiring that would have stopped the engine and brought them down. A narrow escape from a situation caused by a small error of navigation.

Mankind since his earliest beginnings has been wandering around on the earth, as Shakespeare put it, like actors on a stage, but the problem is that the script seems to have been lost and no-one seems to know the plot or even if there is a plot at all. We are born, have some sort of adventure of life then die, says the bard. The only purpose seems to be to reproduce and perpetuate the species for as long as possible. As Dad said in his last few weeks “Theykeep giving me pills to keep me alive so that I can take more pills”. Suddenly into the darkness and pointlessness of it all 2000 years ago Jesus, the Son of God and of Man, came to us and said “I am the way, follow me”. Life was not terminal and pointless after all. There is meaning, there is eternal life.

On holiday in Devon recently we were going down one of those very narrow lanes, wing mirrors touching the high walls on both sides when “Lilly” (the voice of satnav) says “If possible do a U Turn”. We burst into laughter at the ridiculous suggestion, but that was what was necessary to get to our destination. Unlike on that Devon road if you want to find The Way it is possible to do a U Turn and start going in the right direction. Happy Christmas!

Neville Burt

St Agatha’s Church Extension

Wheels turn ever so slow - but they are turning. Matters are being progressed robustly with the powers that be, even if responses are not as expeditious as one would like. Nevertheless we anticipate success eventually and our fund-raising events continue for the benefit of the Church Building Fund, earmarked for the Extension project once approvals are in place.

The Sponsored Walk on 19 September benefited from marvellous weather and a great turnout. Our Vicar managed to lose his way on the walk (leading his flock astray?) but eventually made it back to the churchyard in time for the barbecue, enjoyed by young and old alike. A total of £1,530 was raised; congratulations to Wendy Murton and her team and thanks to the Scouts for the barbecue. From physical to mental challenges - on 26 October Andy Lewis, despite recent surgery on his knee, organised a highly charged Pub Quiz. The Red Lion was standing room only and £558 was raised. Thanks to Andy and his team, and to Sue Robson for nobly putting up with it all.

We look forward to continued support in the future. Remember that this is a community project to improve St Agatha’s ability to host a wider range of community activities, now and for future generations.

Tony Lascelles